Artist in Residency | A Visual Conversation with Eric Dever

As part of the Parrish Art Museum’s artist-in-residence program, Eric Dever and Parrish educators connected with more than 250 students in 18 workshops between December 2021 and February 2022. For this residency, Dever passed down a collaborative process he learned from Mary Jane Slike, his art teacher at Westchester High School in Los Angeles. The process and Slike’s teaching methods were inspired by her studies at Immaculate Heart College with artist and activist Sister Mary Corita.

To create A Visual Conversation, Dever encouraged students to “converse” through painting, drawing or mark making without concern for making representational imagery. Before the collaboration began, students selected one color and a painting or drawing tool to be their voice throughout the conversation. Students made a mark or gesture to begin the conversation and worked in one-minute intervals, painting, drawing, or mark-making on the paper in front of them, before passing it on to the next person. With the second and subsequent sheets of paper, students responded to what was already there. The exchange and collaboration led students to a creative “flow state.”  As the process continued, Dever prompted students to explore their chosen materials and find new ways to work with the same tools. The resulting works were exhibited as a collaborative mural; each class or “conversation” was displayed together.

Students from Bridgehampton School, East Hampton High School, Hampton Bays High School, Southampton High School, Tuckahoe Common School, and the Southampton Town Youth Bureau participated in A Visual Conversation.

The 2022 Student Exhibition and related educational programs are supported, in part, by property taxpayers from the Southampton School District and Tuckahoe Common School District with additional funding from Milford D. and Janice B. Gerton/Arts and Letters Foundation; May and Samuel Rudin Family Foundation; Joseph M. Cohen; The John J. McDonnell Margaret T. O’Brien Foundation; Bobbie Braun/The Neuwirth Foundation and the William Talbott Hillman Foundation. The Museum’s exhibitions and programs are made possible, in part, by the New York State Council on the Arts with the support of Governor Kathy Hochul and the New York State Legislature.

Children in Galleries Photo: Parrish Art Museum

The 2020 Student Exhibition and accompanying programs are made possible, in part, by the New York State Council on the Arts with the support of Governor Andrew M. Cuomo and the New York State Legislature, and the property taxpayers from the Southampton Union Free School District and the Tuckahoe Common School District. Additional support for the artist-in-residence program is provided by the Robert Lehman Foundation and the William Talbott Hillman Foundation.

Artists in Residence | Process and Action

As part of the Parrish Art Museum’s annual artist-in-residence program, three artists—who were included in the special exhibition Artists Choose Artists—connected with over 300 students in December 2019 and January 2020. Students visited the exhibition, met the artists, explored each artist’s ideas and process, and then made art alongside the artists.

The artists worked with 16 total classes and created collaborative artworks inspired by their themes and techniques. Irina Alimanestianu shared how she uses spontaneity and material exploration to guide her process. In her workshop, Alimanestianu prompted students to create abstract murals inspired by forms and colors in nature. Scott Bluedorn addressed the importance of environmental planning and preservation in response to climate change. Bluedorn prompted classes to envision a future and encouraged students to imagine sustainable, eco-friendly architecture and landscapes through collaborative drawings. Bastienne Schmidt presented on color scheme and collage, which played an important role in her career. Schmidt invited students to create their own organic and geometric shapes from collage papers, which were placed together to form a collective mural. Participating schools include Bridgehampton School, East Hampton High School, Hampton Bays Middle and High Schools, Southampton High School, Southampton Intermediate School, and Tuckahoe Common School.

Student work was displayed in the Parrish Art Museum’s annual Student Exhibition, from March 7 to April 19 of 2020.

Mind Maps with Bastienne Schmidt, 2017

East End Field Drawings with Alexis Rockman, 2015