Art/Design CONCEPTUALISM ART: BERKSHIRE AT ITS CORE *Lisa Warren-Kruger P ’15, ’20 and Andrew D’Ambrosio Conceptualism is the creative process of an idea becoming the machine that makes the art. In other words, how do we express words or ideas in art? In this class, we will use Berkshire School’s core values--integrity, perseverance, curiosity, respect, resilience, and inclusion-- to create visual art, performance art, installation, music, photography or film, the tools artists use to express ideas. Students will think about one of Berkshire School’s core values and ask themselves how they would express this concept within an artistic medium. *Lisa Warren-Kruger is an artist who is a currently exploring identity through an autobiographical narrative that uses a variety of materials. Lisa’s most recent show was “Reconnecting with Nature” at The Flinn Gallery in Greenwich, Conn. in 2014. She graduated from Yale with an MFA in 1995, received her BFA from RISD in 1992, and was a fellow at the Skowhegan School of painting and Sculpture in 1991. Lisa was a member of The Painting Center in 2003. Her website is lisawarrenswork.com.
PINBALL WIZARDS *David Hamilton (Explo Studio) and Jasper Turner You pull back on the plunger and hold it. The spring presses back against your fingers. Your eyes scan the board. Where is that multiball trap? Can you get there without hitting that giant kicker? A deep breath. The plunger slips between your fingers. The steel bearing rockets up the launch chute riding the curve over the kicker and slamming headlong into the first slingshot. You move your hands instinctively to the flippers. Wait for it… wait for it… NOW! In this course we will build our own working pinball game — the arcade cornerstone invented nearly 300 years ago. Using the most humble of materials, we will construct saucers, switch gates, whirlwind spinners… anything that makes pinball, pinball. Your physics teacher sticks her head in, “You know, you’re just investigating Newton’s Laws.” Don’t worry about her. You worry about unlocking Wizard Mode. EXPLO Studio is an innovation lab that develops engaging and creative STEAM courses for schools striving to incorporate more inquiry-based learning in their curriculum. It challenges students to think with their minds and their hands and challenges instructors to rethink how they teach and their role in the classroom. Art and design are meaningful and intentional components of course design, encouraging creativity and individuality as students sharpen their critical-thinking and problem-solving skills.
MODERN POETRY: WHAT CAN YOU DO WITH A HEN? Victor Li ’18 and *Hilary Russell You will ask yourselves this and many other questions as you investigate the fun and the ridiculous in Modern Poetry. Throughout the week, you will write, read and look at the texture of words through activities--anything from word games to hiking the mountain to
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