CAGE Professional Development Speaker Series: Spring 2021

head and shoulders of Rachel Baerg seated at banquette with chin resting on hand

Photo of speaker Rachel Baerg

Qaumajuq: The New Inuit Art and Culture Campus

Tuesday, April 20, 1:00 pm EST REGISTER HERE

Join Rachel Baerg, Head of Learning & Programs at the Winnipeg Art Gallery to explore the new light-filled spaces of Qaumajuq (“it is bright, it is lit”), an innovative new museum and 185,000 square-foot cultural campus dedicated to Inuit art and culture. Learn about the Gallery’s commitment to reconciliation, education, and cultural training programs that will enable people from North and South Canada, and around the globe, to meet, learn, and work together. As junior chair of the 2020/21 CAGE executive, Rachel will specifically speak to the evolving and ever-expanding role of the Gallery Art Educator to curate a wide spectrum of dynamic learning spaces in and outside the art museum.

Rachel Baerg is the current Head of Learning and Programs at the Winnipeg Art Gallery (WAG), Canada’s first civic art museum. She also serves as the junior chair of the Canadian Association of Gallery Educators (CAGE). Rachel holds a Bachelor of Fine Arts Degree from the University of Manitoba and a Masters in Art History from the University of Toronto. Over the past 10 years at the WAG, Baerg has pushed the limits of traditional gallery programming for participants of all ages, spearheading exciting new education initiatives, including Connected North WAG virtual sessions with students across the Arctic, the innovative Rooftop Pop-Up series, LGBTQ-2S programs, Art to Inspire wellness workshops, the Art Express’dCANADA 150 signature project sending art studio shipping containers across Canada, and the Gallery’s Art Reach program offering free admission and programs to the underserviced in Winnipeg . Bringing together her passion for art education, accessibility, and creative interdisciplinary approaches to learning, she has curated and co-curated a wide variety of exhibitions at WAG including, Naliajuk’s Story, Carving Out a Tradition, as well as math+ art,considered one of the most successful education-led exhibition in the history of the Gallery. As a member of the WAG’s executive team, Baerg has played a key role in transforming the Gallery into a welcoming learning and social space for all. By passionately pursuing collaborative and Indigenous-led programing that directly addresses calls to action for reconciliation, equity and inclusion, she has helped develop the 2021 vision and mandate for Qaumajuq, the world’s first Inuit Art Center at the Winnipeg Art Gallery. Outside her work at WAG, Rachel regularly teaches Art History courses at local colleges and universities, and continues to enjoy her personal involvement in a variety of local community initiatives – as invited project director, juror, guest speaker and workshop lead.

Live from the Art Gallery of Nova Scotia: Virtual School Programs

Thursday, May 20, 1:00 pm EST REGISTER HERE

A bearded man sits at a white table looking at a tablet set on a tripod. In front of him are paint tubes and a mixing palette. Behind him on the wall are eight reproduction posters of artworks.

Photo of art instructor livestreaming a studio session.

Hello? Can you hear me? You can’t? Thumbs up if you can see me. You can? Oh wait, now you’re frozen, sigh…. Join Kris Webster, Manager of School Programs at the Art Gallery of Nova Scotia, to learn more about how the AGNS is offering virtual art programs to schools this year and the many successes and challenges of working with teachers and students when meeting in person is not an option. Kris will discuss the format of virtual sessions, what AV equipment is the most useful, sourcing, ordering and sharing art supplies, and more! Oh wait, you’re frozen again, maybe if you turn off your camera…

In the foreground, a masked blonde woman wearing glasses looks directly at the camera. She is wearing a grey hoodie. In the background, a man wearing an apron is seated at a table looking at a book.

Photo of presenter Kris Webster

Kris Webster has worked in the arts as an educator and arts administrator for over 20 years.  She is currently the Manager of Arts Education for the Art Gallery of Nova Scotia (AGNS) and coordinates the Gallery’s school outreach programs, ArtsSmarts Nova Scotia and ArtReach.

Kris organizes projects across the province in conjunction with AGNS travelling exhibitions, giving educators and artists of all disciplines the opportunity to learn more about, and respond to, works of art from the Gallery’s collection.  She has also developed courses and workshops to help teachers discover the significance of artistic expression and learn how to create meaningful art experiences for children.

Kris is also an artist and the owner of the Smallest Halifax Art Gallery. She has a Master of Arts degree from NSCAD University, a Bachelor of Education degree from the University of British Columbia and a Bachelor of Interior Design degree from Ryerson University. She has also taught for Mount Saint Vincent University in the Bachelor of Education program and for NSCAD University’s Visual Arts Certificate for Teachers program.

 

 

 

A Curator of Education’s Guide to Institutional Transformation: Provisional Structures: Carmen Papalia with Vo Vo

This image is a digital mock up of the planned installation for Provisional Structures: Carmen Papalia with Vo Vo. An ascending scaffolded ramp occupies the majority of the image, winding in a spiral shape towards the ceiling. From the ceiling hangs a dome that appears to be floating over top of the entire structure. Under the ascending ramp is a red string connecting the scaffolding, guiding visitors under the ramp to the centre of the structure towards a series of white columns surrounding low grey benches for seating. The space is lit dramatically, with cooler flourescent light appearing at the top of the ceiling dome and surrounding the central columns, with the outside areas of the installation remaining quite dark.

Image description- This image is a digital mock up of the planned installation for Provisional Structures: Carmen Papalia with Vo Vo. An ascending scaffolded ramp occupies the majority of the image, winding in a spiral shape towards the ceiling. From the ceiling hangs a dome that appears to be floating over top of the entire structure. Under the ascending ramp is a red string connecting the scaffolding, guiding visitors under the ramp to the centre of the structure towards a series of white columns surrounding low grey benches for seating. The space is lit dramatically, with cooler flourescent light appearing at the top of the ceiling dome and surrounding the central columns, with the outside areas of the installation remaining quite dark.

Wednesday, June 16, 1:00 pm EST REGISTER HERE

The MacKenzie Art Gallery’s Curator of Education, Nicolle Nugent, examines processes of community engagement and institutional transformation through the exhibition and program Provisional Structures: Carmen Papalia with Vo Vo.

Provisional Structures: Carmen Papalia with VoVo is a multi-faceted project focusing on accessibility and disability justice. Composed of an exhibition, extensive public program, and the development of an accessibility statement for the gallery, this project constructively challenges our understanding and imagination of how we interact with each other and within the gallery space in a way that creates real, fundamental transformation.

Nicolle Nugent values community and art education as the foundation for her professional and creative practice. After working in Regina Public, Catholic and rural school divisions, Nicolle began working at the MacKenzie Art Gallery in education, where she is currently programming for community, school and youth audiences as Curator of Education.

Image description: A black and white image of a middle-aged smiling woman. Her hair is pulled back, and her head is tilted as she gazes directly at the camera. She is wearing a floral tunic and is leaning forward with her arms resting on a table.

Image description: A black and white image of a middle-aged smiling woman. Her hair is pulled back, and her head is tilted as she gazes directly at the camera. She is wearing a floral tunic and is leaning forward with her arms resting on a table.

Nicolle has participated in many professional development opportunities including Making Museums Matter, Cultural Resource Management Program taught by Stephen E. Weil (University of Victoria), as well as several National Art Education Association (NAEA), Canadian Art Gallery Educators (CAGE), engage (United Kingdom), American Alliance of Museums and Canadian Museums Association workshops and conferences. She has been an active member of the Canadian Art Gallery Educators executive since 2009, occupying Senior Chair, Past Chair, and Case Study positions.

Carmen Papalia uses organizing strategies and improvisation to address his access to public space, the art institution and visual culture.

His work, which takes forms ranging from collaborative performance to public intervention, is a response to the barriers and biases of the medical model of disability. As a convener, he establishes welcoming spaces where those from historically marginalized groups realize their desires for participation through processes rooted in activism, performance and institutional critique.

Papalia’s work has been featured at: The Solomon R. Guggenheim museum, the Tate Liverpool, the Banff Centre for Arts and Creativity and Gallery Gachet, among others.