2011 NAEA National Convention

Blogging the Seattle Convention

Hi! I'm B.J. Adler and I will be Tweeting, FBing, YouTubing and blogging our Convention over the next few days.  Join the conversation and share your experiences here!

Still Sleepless in Seattle!

Overheard in the ladies room at the convention center, "I'm worn down, but I'm happy!" I am energized by the commitment of America's art teachers. They grab their lattes and scurry in early to each day's general sessions and they rush between super sessions, poster sessions, small sessions, exhibits and the bookstore feasting on a tasting menu of professional development. They make every movement count. and what a feast it has been. The artists and cultural institutions of Seattle have been the rich background palette. If there was a through line, it seemed to be the transformation that technology 2.0 and advances in brain research are catalyzing to demonstrate clearly how much the arts inform our lives in a complex and challenging world. The Young Innovators are living proof of the power of an arts background to bring illumination to the top echelons of science as well as to real time human interactions in a world where many of us are glued to our screens. So delighted to meet so many of you. If you could not be in Seattle, we tried to share some of the action and inspiration. Make plans to be in New York March 1-4, 2012--NAEA's 65th Anniversary. BJ

Overload in a Good Way

It's afternoon of Day 2!  Whew!  By now everyone has figured out how to navigate the Convention Center and pack as much into each day as humanly possible.  Robert Root-Bernstein demonstrated the remarkable correlation between skills and ability in the arts and innovation in science.  A tapestry of simultaneous sessions.  The energy is palpable.  We were "invaded" by artist Nick Cave's soundsuits.  Don't miss this amazing exhibition at the Seattle Art Museum.  Old friends have reunited and caught up in real time.  New friends have been made and friended on FB.  More sessions like the one I'm in right now on Pecha Kucha or the other one I stopped by on iPad art aps.  Don't miss the Artisans Gallery at the Sheraton Ballroom for some great take home souvenirs from colleagues!

Now we're awake in Seattle!

After a few cups of good Seattle coffee the convention center began filling with ART TEACHERS!  The rain held off so the open-glass areas of the multi-level convention center were a colorful, moving installation of teachers going up, going down, finding their own pathways through a full convention.  The first General Session was a big WOW.  Mark Dion reminded us vividly of why we are so passionate about our field.  He embodied CREATIVITY, IMAGINATION and INNOVATION with wonderful stories, images and his own unique sense of humor.  Gotta love a guy for whom shopping is a major inspiration.  He made us think.  He made us laugh.  He challenged us to carry on and be the best we can be as the artists and innovators of our classrooms.  And the sessions and the learning and the inspiration continue. Wish you were ALL here!

BJ

Ready for Day 1

Are they sleepless in Seattle or just pouring over their session guide to choose today's convention itinerary? There was lots of fun on the monorail ride to the Experience Music Project venue for Crayola's Opening Night festivities. Early arrivers had a chance to help start a memorial totem pole project for master carver John T. Williams.
There was some "wearin o the green." And Crayola invited NAEA revelers to create their own verions of the famous Seattle latte in one of several art activities stations at the Experience Music Project during the Opening Event. 
Speaking of lattes. . . time to grab one before first General Session with Mark Dion, Media Salon and Exhibitions Opening!

Arriving in sunny Seattle!

Art in the cases at the arrival terminal at Seattle-Tacoma Boeing Field Airport.  I sat next to a first time NAEA Convention attendee on the plane from Denver to Seattle.  Nice to meet Nancy who told me a good idea about how art teachers can "recruit" elementary students for middle school art programs by taking a page out of the music educators who take student ensembles into elementary schools.  Good point!  Then I shared a light rail ride with NAEA vet Sherry, also from Austin who is "retired" but still teaches at San Marcos University and a small Christian elementary school. She told me how much she values NAEA Conventions as the best professional development available.

Loved the art cutouts at the Washington State AE Welcoming Table. But best of all is seeing colleagues from around the country.  Nice to see Linda Kieling from Oregon and Denise Tullier-Holly from Louisiana.  Welcome to Seattle!
So let me know what you learned today!

BJ from Seattle! (And yes, the sun really came out!)

Packing for Seattle!

Our colleague Kathi Levin has a good post today on Americans for the Arts Artsblog about our Convention themes of CREATIVITY, IMAGINATION and INNOVATION.

ARTSblog

See you tomorrow in Seattle!

BJ

Call for Innovation

1. CREATIVITY, IMAGINATION and INNOVATION. 
   
   
   

With digital technology businesses are able to move beyond their R & D departments to gather ideas from consumers. Nokia has created a Web site to collect innovative ideas. Ideas Project

I like their "Join. Create. Together."  That's what we do at NAEA!

Safe travels to Seattle and stay tuned!

BJ

Reclaiming Convention Themes

There's a lot out there in print and the blogosphere about CREATVITY, IMAGINATION, and INNOVATION, our Seattle convention themes. More and more these concepts are "sticking" to science and technology sometimes to the exclusion of the arts! Let's use our time together either in Seattle or virtually to rededicate ourselves to that in our teaching and practice which "sticks" these concepts back to being engaged in making art.  Here are some inspirational soundbites to get you in the mood: What is Innovation

Greetings from the National Convention!

Hi from B.J. Adler, your guest blogger for the Seattle NAEA National Convention! I am busy studying the Convention schedule and getting ready to share insights, highlights and the creative energy generated when we gather to create both a real and virtual learning community. I am mindful of cataclysmic world events occurring in Libya and Japan, which remind us how critical our work is in developing a new generation of innovative and creative thinkers. I'll be "seein' ya" either in Seattle or online!