No images? Click here USDAN MUSING & ONLINE HIGHLIGHTS: WEEK 1 Lauren's Musing: Since March, it has become clear that we cannot and should not go back to the world we once knew. By so much falling apart, a positive opportunity has opened up: the possibility to accelerate the future towards equity and sustainability. Many people with whom I speak are aiming to use their personal and professional influence to direct that change. I am one of them. Now more than ever, my colleagues and I are committed to making Usdan the place we wish the world to be. We need to do this to show our children that if we can make the little world of Usdan sustainable, diverse, and equitable that they can do it in the big world too. We are five days into Usdan Online, the first ever online program offered in Usdan’s 52-year history. As I watched the courses develop, and as I observed the online studios throughout the week, I kept wondering: can art education really change the world? Can courses such as "Fashion as Creative Expression", "Inside Drama Lab", and "Our Creative Nature" lead to racial equity, planetary sustainability, and a healthy environment for our children? This feels like a tall order. Weighing the goals against the vehicle for change, I kept wondering if our ambitions this summer are outweighing our capacity to make change. Then, I remembered one of the most important things I ever learned, from educational philosopher Maxine Greene, and my mind rested: "The arts, it has been said, cannot change the world, but they can change human beings who might change the world." - Maxine Greene The arts can address sustainability, they can address equity, and they can teach us many other things too: how to say what cannot be said, how to be empathetic, that problems can have more than one solution, and that our everyday world is not the only possible world. This week, I saw evidence of these teachings in our classes. If you are a parent with a child enrolled in Usdan Online, I encourage you to reply by sharing what you think the arts taught your child this week. Everyone else: please reply by sharing what the arts have taught you, or have taught your children, and how you believe this learning is helping to change the world. - Lauren Brandt Schloss, Executive Director Fashion as Creative Expression: In the online studio, teacher Sage Chasen shared: Then, Sage demonstrated how to do basic fashion illustration in a way that honors different body types, by adjusting proportions and the length of the lines to create, for example, broader shoulders and shorter legs. Then, students worked on their own range of bodies. Fashion as Creative Expression ClassInside Drama Lab: Students learned how to use voice and expression to say what cannot be said with words alone. A student communicated frustration through the tongue twister: A student shared a monologue, expressing excitement. One student said about the course: “You get to be creative in a no judgment environment.” Inside Drama Lab ClassOur Creative Nature: One focus this week was that our everyday world is not the only possible world. Teacher Hildur Palsdottir asked: “What would it feel like to be born? Because after this class, you will have a whole new experience and a new way to see the world.” Co-teacher Hawley Hussey asked: “Why did we use an eye?” Our Creative Nature ClassUpcoming Community Events Friday Open MicTo celebrate student creative voices across disciplines, we will hold two Open Mics and talkback sessions for Usdan Online students. Students are welcome to register for an Open Mic as a “presenter” or an “audience member" and are encouraged to share work created in or out of the online studio from any art discipline. The first Open Mic is Friday, July 17 at 12:00 PM. Parent & Guardian WebinarRoutines, boundaries, chores, communication, fun, and expectations have all been upended since COVID-19 restrictions begin. The third in our webinar series with child psychologist and art therapist Dr. Robin F. Goodman, this webinar will discuss resilience-based strategies for connecting and communicating with your family as you cope with reopening plans. The webinar will take place on Thursday, July 23 at 4:30 PM. |