I have three degrees in photography. Yup. A Bachelor of Fine Arts (BFA), a Master of Art (MA) and a Master of Fine Art (MFA). Phew! glad I got that I have that off my chest! You are now free to think that is ridiculous or bad ass. Personally, I like to mix those two perspectives together. But now, I am ready to take my decades of schooling and teaching to the streets (aka the internet) and put my ideas out for the masses to absorb.
Allow me to introduce myself. My name is Erin, I have been practicing and navigating functioning as an artist for fourteen years and counting. I am an educator, photographer, athlete, traveler, independent, and (currently) single woman. I have what many consider a dream job, I teach photography full time to students in Hawaii. That’s right, I currently live in paradise, where the sun shines everyday and I can wear slippers (flip flops) to work. Disclaimer: I am not originally from here and suffer from the true hardship of sun-guilt daily.
But recently I have been reflecting on my photographic experiences through academia and have begun to wonder…
What can my teaching platform, my students and classroom look like when presented from something other than the traditional academic culture?
This is my journey to answer these questions. I am here, unscripted and wanting to freely give my knowledge, perspectives and life challenges that have molded me and shaped the way I practice and teach photography.
For the first time in my career I did not submit a CV, portfolio or Skype interview to start this and no one hired me.
I hope to meet all the fellow art school junkies, amateur creatives, lifetime professionals and everyone in between that are out there and have a passion for growing their creative perspectives, making stronger work and desire to be part of an emerging community. I invite you to become part of my virtual classroom as I delve into my practices, the highlights, shadows and all mediocre snapshots in between!