Sustainable Studio Practices

Catalog description

Art production does not start at the hardware store or fabrication studio but goes back to the origin source of materials, their extraction, production, transportation, consumption, and afterlife. This course aims to provide students with a holistic approach to the true nature of the physical world and its ecological and social impact on the ecosystem we share with other species. The production of the knowledge required for sustainable artists' practices is rooted in the research, transparency, and accountability for our commercially available products, as well as the imagination and innovation needed for their alternatives. Today's students are the producers and consumers of art objects and experiences of tomorrow; this course will expose them to the agency artists have when applying knowledgeable and measured decision-making processes related to various climate justice issues, biodiversity loss, and the changing landscape when navigating the impacts of art production. While sustainable practices are specific to each artist's practice and discipline, they share many core values and principles that are transferable from one discipline or industry to another. The experiments, assignments, examples, and case studies in this course cover sculpture, theater, and interdisciplinary media production, making this course valuable for the broad artistic disciplines of the Tisch community. This course is geared towards Collaborative Arts BFA students and all NYU students through the Open Arts program.