4/20/20-5/3/20

I spent time working on a powerpoint presentation for the NYAC Drawing class. Although regular classes have been discontinued for the time being because of the pandemic, I still might be able to use this presentation in the future. The presentation features work of Native drawers and painters from the midwest who practice today. The presentation is meant to be discussion based, where the group can talk about the formal qualities, that they have learned up to this point, of the art being shown. The discussion could go into content as well and then there would be time to work on their own drawings.

Journal April 21

4/19/20

This week I got some sewing supplies so I could work on some sewing projects. I also worked through some online demo ideas.

NYAC not moving forward at this time.

4/4/20

Programming has halted at Little Earth and the Native Youth Art Collective during the Covid-19 pandemic. Gen and I have decided not to try and do online classes with our drawing students. We think everyone could use the time to stay home and rest to take care of themselves during these uncertain times. We are available for the students if they want to reach out to us.

Josie's Journal

3/11/20 11:30am-1:15pm

I met with Evie again today. I watched a class that she does through Upstream Arts at Partnership Resources, Inc. that worked with people with a variety of developmental disabilities. This was a day for dance and music making. There were several options for students to express themselves on each exercise. This was very nice to see they had options, it was accessible to all. As some might feel more comfortable expressing themselves with body movements rather than words, or maybe with sounds rather than body movements and so on. 

As for the drawing class with NYAC, it was cancelled this week and for the next two weeks for public health safety. 

Josie's Practicum Journal

3/2/20 6:30pm-9pm

Evie invited me to come to an event at Sandbox Theatre with some of the theatre’s community members, that they called a playtime. There were prompts given where we worked through a variety of movements, sounds and mark making on paper and played off of each other’s movements sounds and marks. Then we took time to discuss the outcomes and processes. This was a very enjoyable experience. 

3/5/20 6:30pm-9pm

The drawing class with Gen this day only had a couple of people. But that was okay, because we got to spend a good amount of time with each other and discussing each other’s work. 

Journal 2/23/20-3/1/20

2/24/20 10:30am-12pm

I met with Teaching Artist Evie Digirolamo for coffee. We discussed the kind of work she is doing as well as the work she has done in the past. Evie and I seem to have similar interests when it comes to teaching. One of them being, using art as a tool for communication, something that does not have to be verbal, a language that can be created through connections with people. We will keep in contact, but she said she will let me know if I can join in on a workshop through Sandbox theatre and see if I can sit in on at least one class at Upstream. She also invited me to sit in on one of her aerial classes. 

2/29/20 9:30am-11:15am

I went to shadow one of Evie’s aerial classes in Osseo at Escalate Dance theatre. It was a class for kids and their parents. It was nice to see how she handled the mixed age levels. Another great thing to see how she handled, was the use of space. There were only two apparatus, so she put everyone in groups and had them rotate to different “stations” to work on a variety of exercises. 

Journal for 2/16/20 - 2/22/20

2/20/20 6:30pm-9pm

This week for the drawing class with Gen, we worked through contour, gesture, negative shapes exercises. Next week we will not have class. But the week after that we start the “college” part of the course. This will be more intensive for the Native Youth Arts Collective students. When they go through this part of the course, they will have the opportunity to lead a pop-up class with the Walker.

Practicum Journal with Gen DeLeon

2/12/20 12:15-12:45pm

Met with Gen to go over some logistics for our class this week.

2/13/20 5:15-9pm

This was the first night of the drawing class with Gen and the Native Youth Arts Collective. We had a great turnout with more participants than expected. It was a pretty open session, where students could come and go as they pleased. Gen started with a few different exercises to get the class going. For the students who came in later, she discussed with them where they were at in their drawing experience and gave them prompts according to that so they could still get good practice. 

Journal

2/3/20-2/9/20

The Drawing class with Gen starts next week. So this week, I was just working on my own art practice. I reached out to a couple artists in hopes of doing studio visits with them.

Josie Teaching Artist Journal

1/27/20-1/31/20

This week I wrote to a teaching artist in hopes of shadowing her. The drawing class with Gen has been postponed to start on 2/13/20. 

Practicum Journal with Gen DeLeon

12/22

12pm-1pm

This was a meeting Gen DeLeon and I had to discuss ideas for me to assist her in a teaching artist residency. I am doing my second residency with Gen and we will be holding a drawing class for the Native Youth Arts Collective (NYAC).

1/7/20

11am-3pm

Gen and I met to create our lesson plan and syllabus. We then met with Heidi and Briezy, two people involved in the NYAC. All of us then went to the Art Cellar to buy supplies for the Drawing class.

1/24/20

11am-1pm

Gen and I had another meeting to discuss scheduling. There were some issues with our original schedule plan, so we had to reassess the situation. 

Practicum Journal with Laura Youngbird

12/26/19

2pm-4:30pm

Laura and I worked on our lesson plan for the Native American Pottery Workshop for December 28th-29th, 2019, to be held at the Plains Art Museum. We went through our learning objectives. Laura had me start a PowerPoint for the lesson.

1/2/20

7pm-8pm

Finished powerpoint for the pottery lesson.

1/4/20

11am-5pm

We spent the beginning of the time discussing the plan for the course and getting set up. Then we had the class. Laura presented the PowerPoint, which discussed Laurel and Blackduck pottery of the Midwestern region. I found this lesson very valuable, especially as I have been thinking about ways in which art classes can be decolonized. Most of the time when people think of Native Pottery, they think of pottery from Southwestern tribes. So, discussing pottery from the tribes of the region we are in, is a good way of Indigenizing an art lesson. Then I got to lead a lesson. I showed the students how to make pinch pots and then how to add coils to them to make them into larger pots. The rest of the class time was for the students to work on their pots.  

1/5/20

12:30pm-5:30pm

With some time to set up and clean up. This day was the day to start decorating the pots. Laura and I referred back to the PowerPoint pictures and showed the students techniques in which they could use the tools to make their pots in the style of Blackduck and Laurel. But they had the option to do other designs as well, not necessarily Blackduck and Laurel. Students spent time exploring different ways to decorate with a variety of tools. 

1/11/20

12pm-5:30pm

We first spent some time discussing the plan for the Ribbon Skirt Making class at the Plains Art Museum for January 1st and 2nd 1-5pm. With some time to set up and clean up. Laura led a discussion about the importance of ribbon skirts and then went through the first few steps of how to make a ribbon skirt. I assisted with organizing and helping students navigate the space, as there was a lot of material people could choose from. I also assisted students with measuring and cutting fabric.

1/12/20

12:30pm-5:30pm

With some time to set up and clean up. Laura went over the last few steps of making a ribbon skirt. Some new students weren’t there on the first day, so Laura had me help them get up to speed on what to do. I do not have a lot of experience with sewing machines, but Laura had me watch her every time she would help a student get set up with a sewing machine. It was helpful that she still had things that I could help her with, but also just to see how she does it.