Failure And The Artist: A Graduate Student Symposium

"Ever tried. Ever failed. No matter. Try again. Fail again. Fail better." —Samuel Beckett, Worstward Ho As Lisa Le Feuvre writes in her book Failure, artists working today address failure in diverse ways. Whether artists are realizing works in the studio, tackling the notions of past art movements, or confronting community concerns, failure presents an opportunity for artistic progression and dialogue. The Graduate Art Organization and Sam Fox School of Design & Visual Arts at Washington University in St. Louis present Failure and the Artist, taking place March 20-21 in Steinberg Auditorium. The Graduate School of Art's inaugural symposium will consider failure as both a condition of working and as a subject for critical dialogue. Events include a keynote lecture and Q&A session by Ellen Harvey, panels, workshops, and a juried group exhibition. The current schedule of events is listed below; please check back for updates. All symposium events are free and open to the public. Join the conversation: #FailureAndArt FRIDAY, MARCH 20 5p Reception 5:30p Keynote Lecture: Ellen Harvey Steinberg Auditorium Introduction by Patricia Olynyk, Director, Graduate School of Art, and the Florence and Frank Bush Professor of Art, Washington University Ellen Harvey was born in the United Kingdom and lives and works in Brooklyn, New York. She was a participant in the Whitney Independent Study Program and the PS1 National Studio Program, and has exhibited extensively in the United States and internationally, including at the 2008 Whitney Biennial. Solo exhibitions include The Unloved at the Groeninge Museum, Bruges, Belgium; The Alien's Guide to the Ruins of Washington DC at the Corcoran Gallery of Art, Washington DC; The Nudist Museum at the Bass Museum, Miami Beach, Florida; Ruins are More Beautiful at the Center for Contemporary Art, Warsaw, Poland; Mirror at the Pennsylvania Academy of Art; and A Whitney for the Whitney at Philip Morris at the Whitney Museum at Altria. Harvey has completed numerous commissions, including Arcadia for the opening exhibition of the Turner Contemporary, Margate, United Kingdom, and permanent installations for New York Percent For Art, New York Arts in Transit, the Chicago Transit Authority, the Flemish National Architect, and the Federal Art in Architecture program, among others. Her book The New York Beautification Project was published by Gregory R. Miller & Co. in 2005. She also has been the subject of several books: Ellen Harvey: Mirror, published by the Pennsylvania Academy in 2006; Ellen Harvey: The Unloved, published by Hannibal Publishing in 2014; and Ellen Harvey: Museum of Failure, which will be published by Gregory R. Miller & Co. this summer. Upcoming solo exhibitions include Metal Painting at the Barnes Foundation, Philadelphia, this September. 7-10p Exhibition Opening Des Lee Gallery, 1627 Washington Blvd. Failure--->Progression Juried by Ellen Harvey, this exhibition features works in a variety of media by artists who utilize failure within their practice. This term "failure" can be interpreted in many ways, whether literal, formal, or conceptual. The exhibition will be on view March 20-22. SATURDAY, MARCH 21 8:30a Breakfast & Coffee, Steinberg Hall 8:45a Panel 1, Steinberg Auditorium Ethics and the Artist: Failure in Social Practice and Community Engagement Moderator Mariam Ghani, Artist; Henry L. and Natalie E. Freund Teaching Fellow, Saint Louis Art Museum and Sam Fox School of Design & Visual Arts, WUSTL Panelists Regina Martinez, Adjunct Faculty in Community Arts and Social Practice, Brown School of Social Work, WUSTL Brea McAnally, Founder and Co-Director, The Luminary DeAndrea Nichols, BFA10/MSW14, Community Engagement Manager, Contemporary Art Museum St. Louis; Founder and Creative Director, Civic Creatives Kaveh Razani, Founder, Blank Space Ila Sheren, Assistant Professor of Art History & Archaeology, Arts & Sciences, WUSTL Panelists will discuss the social responsibilities of artists, the ethical issues in the implementation of projects, and the curatorial responsibility both to the artist and to the public. 10:30a Panel 2, Steinberg Auditorium (Post)Studio: The Space between Failure and Success Moderator Marilu Knode, Executive Director, Laumeier Sculpture Park; Aronson Professor of Modern & Contemporary Art, University of Missouri-St. Louis Panelists Aaron Collier, Assistant Professor of Painting and Drawing, Newcomb Art Department, Tulane University Brian Leahy, MA Candidate, Department of Art History, Theory, and Criticism, School of the Art Institute of Chicago Nicole White, Lecturer in Photography, School of Art & Visual Studies, University of Kentucky Panelists will discuss failure within artistic practice, as experimentation, as critical investigation, and as methodology. Noon Lunch, Steinberg Hall 1p Panel 3, Steinberg Auditorium Life Post-MFA: Failure and Economics or Economics and Modes of Being Moderator Roseann Weiss, Director of Community and Public Arts, Regional Arts Commission Panelists Jennifer Baker, MFA12, Curatorial Assistant, Pulitzer Arts Foundation Christopher Ottinger, MFA11, Lecturer in Film, Video, New Media and Animation, School of the Art Institute of Chicago Ann-Maree Walker, MFA06, Research Assistant, Department of Prints, Drawings and Photographs, Saint Louis Art Museum A panel of MFA graduates from Washington University will discuss life post-MFA, experiences in graduate school that have influenced their career paths, and a variety of ways to sustain an artistic practice. 2:45p Workshops, Steinberg Auditorium & Kemper Art Museum Grants for Artists: Application, Inspiration, Perspiration, Steinberg Auditorium Brigid Flynn, Co-Founder, Midwest Artist Project Services (MAPS) How to Build Community Through Forming, Maintaining, and Adding Value to Relationships, Kemper 103 Wesley Hoffman, Founder, Treehouse Networkshop Master of Arts in Nonprofit Management, Kemper 211 Michael Behle, Director, Paul Artspace 3:35p Workshop Material Share, Steinberg Hall 3:45p Closing Remarks, Steinberg Auditorium Andrea Coates, MFA15, President, Graduate Art Organization, Washington University Margaux Crump, MFA15, Vice President, Graduate Art Organization, Washington University 4p Visit to the Contemporary Art Museum St. Louis, 3750 Washington Blvd. Welcome remarks by Kelly Shindler, Associate Curator, Contemporary Art Museum St. Louis 5p Dinner on Own 8-10p Closing Reception, Lewis Center, 721 Kingsland Ave. Visit the studios of Sam Fox School MFA students, see video works at the Collaborative Technology Center, tour the Lewis Center, meet current students and faculty, and enjoy light refreshments.