SHIFT: Jorge Lucero

Lucero also discusses the way in which conceiving teaching as a material enables a consideration of teaching as a medium or art form. In what ways is teaching pliable? How can we fold or bend it to find out what it will and won’t do?

Lucero calls this development of familiarity with the materiality of schooling 'institutional literacy', detailing three aspects of this process: the working definition for the school as material; what happens when the material proves to be unspectacular, difficult or arduous; and how conceptual art can give permission for creative practitioners to explore this approach.

Jorge Lucero is an artist from Chicago who currently serves as Professor of Art Education in the School of Art & Design and also as Associate Dean for Research in the College of Fine and Applied Arts at the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign.

As part of his decades-long work to test the creative and conceptual pliability of 'school as material', Lucero participates in and around the academy in every manner possible. He has exhibited, performed, published, and taught through his work all over the U.S. and abroad. 

This film is part of SHIFT, Freelands Foundation’s quarterly series of short films spotlighting varied practices, approaches and philosophies within art education. 

Captions and editing: Sixbetween.

All audiovisual material and research is courtesy of the artist.