Cynthia Lawson with The New School at Parsons in New York City suggested pushing educational boundaries beyond the classroom and into the world, where students learn from hands-on fieldwork and teachers serve as facilitators to help them develop their resourcefulness and observational skills.

To read the full article see Students bring TED(x) formula to Furman.

Framed under the theme of Redesigning Education, I was honored to participate in Furman University’s inaugural TEDx event. My talk was entitled Universities Without Classrooms: Learning Through Community Engagement. Through several stories of actual student fieldwork experiences, I make a case for breaking out of classroom walls for teaching and learning. Each of the experiences I share will highlight what was learned, and how that moment could not have been replicated inside a traditional instructional space.

Below is the video of the talk, and great documentation photos are over on Hannah Woodard’s Flickr page, such as the one below.

Experiments in Extra-Institutional Education
April 11, 2013: 6:30 PM
The Graduate Center
365 Fifth Avenue, Room 9206

What are the theoretical and political repercussions of education outside of a traditional classroom? Whether spurred on by a tidal wave of student debt, changes in technology, or new and nontraditional learning scenarios emerging from various academic disciplines, DIY education is on the rise. This workshop and roundtable brings together artists, educators, and researchers to present case studies of important experiments in this area to explore the future of creative learning outside of the conventional classroom, moving beyond questions of whether these alternative spaces can produce meaningful learning.

Mary Walling Blackburn, Anhoek School; Jen Messier and Jonathan Soma, Brooklyn Brainery; Ajay Singh Chaudhary and Abby Kluchin, Brooklyn Institute for Social Research; Haley Mellin, Bruce High Quality Foundation University; Mark Allen, Machine Project; J. Morgan Puett, Mildred’s Lane; Michael Mandiberg, New York Arts Practicum; Jon Santiago, NYC Resistor; Jason Wozniak and Cynthia Lawson Jaramillo, Occupy University; Steve Lambert, School for Creative Activism; Nova Benway & Taeyoon Choi, The Public School; Katherine Carl and Srdjan Jovanović Weiss, School of Missing Studies; Carla Herrera-Prats, SOMA Summer; Caroline Woolard, TradeSchool.coop. Moderated by Michael Mandiberg, College of Staten Island, CUNY.

Cosponsored by Graduate Center Digital Initiatives and JustPublics@365, and the New York Council for the Humanities.

Honored to have been invited to speak at Furman University’s inaugural TEDx event on the theme of Redesigning Education. “This year, TEDxFurmanU is proud to present a cast of students, teachers, authors, founders and creatives that dedicate their work to redesigning education for the 21st Century. While their stories may differ, these doers and thinkers are united by a common thread – their commitment to lifelong learning and positive change.”

TEDxFurmanU
Friday, March 15, 2013
Details: http://www.tedxfurmanu.com/

A turn to nature, inspired by its time, its speed, and its presence. We have lost the ability to see small changes around us so do we even notice that natural systems are in constant flux? Does the fastest moving glacier in the world, at 3 meters a day, seem to be in motion? While we rapidly descend snowy runs, do we realize nature is everything but static? In a body of work intended to be a retreat from the city in which it’s exhibited, I challenge viewers to wonder how often we allow ourselves to be still, and observant? An interactive video installation, digitally and physically layered photographic works, and videos of seemingly still landscapes are each an invitation for the viewer to disconnect from the city, slow down, and reconnect with nature. To be. And to be still.

This book catalogues my solo exhibition Slow Landscapes with the text “A conversation about time, silent transformations, and the hard work of attending” between myself and educator/philosopher Jason Wozniak. Below is a preview of the 52-page book.

The production of this exhibition and catalogue were in part funded by Parsons The New School for Design’s School of Design Strategies, The New School Provost’s Office Student Assistance Fund, and Pratt Institute of Art’s GradComD program.

To order a copy please see the book’s page on Lulu.com.

Happy New Year and a Slow 2013 to all.

NOTE: In case the opening is postponed due to hurricane Sandy, please tune into the Facebook event, my Facebook page, or my website. And if you believe in crossing your fingers [M. Bloomberg], that would be much appreciated.

Slow Landscapes
November 7, 2012 – January 16, 2013

Opening Reception
Wednesday, November 7th
5:00 – 7:30 p.m.
Pratt Grad CommD Gallery
144 W 14th St.
7th floor
New York, NY

“Untitled (Perito Moreno, Argentina)”, Archival photographic tryptich, 70x20in total, 2012

From the press release
Pratt Institute’s GradComD Gallery is pleased to present “Slow Landscapes,” in which artist Cynthia Lawson Jaramillo turns to nature, inspired by its time, its speed, and its presence. We have lost the ability to see small changes around us so do we even notice that natural systems are in constant flux? Does the fastest moving glacier in the world, at 3 meters a day, seem to be in motion? While we rapidly descend snowy runs, do we realize nature is everything but static? Lawson Jaramillo challenges us wondering how often do we allow ourselves to be still, and observant? This exhibition is intended to be a retreat from the city in which it’s exhibited. An interactive video installation, digitally and physically layered photographic works, and videos of seemingly still landscapes are each an invitation for the viewer to disconnect from the city, slow down, and reconnect with nature. To be. And to be still.

The artist would like to thank her studio assistants Lisa Lee, Cristobal Oltra, Jessica Posner, and Maya Weinstein. She would also like to acknowledge the financial support of Parsons’ School of Design Strategies Fund and The New School’s Student Assistance Fund.

Screenshot from “Untitled (Sisga, Colombia)”, Digital video, 8 minutes, 2012

Exhibitions:

• FoliLab, First Photography Biennale, Lima, Peru, March 27 – April 30, 2012
• Itinerant Cross Urban, Colombian Consulate, Paris, France, November 2 – 18, 2011