On Thursday, November 21 at 2:00 PM (EST) RAAMP will be in conversation with Michael Dickins, the curator and director of The New Gallery at Austin Peay State University. He will talk about the campus plan he created which enables him to share the gallery’s collection in the university’s community spaces.
“My formal gallery is 1500 square feet,” writes Dickins. “My actual gallery is 186 acres of surrounding campus. I list my Gallery as my primary residence, but the rest of my campus is my second home, or better yet, a cultured land that includes some of my favorite vacationing spots.”
“I often use academic buildings, student common areas and the campus landscape to install works of art to not just boost the presence of the Department of Art+Design around campus, but as extensions of the gallery to educate students and the campus community about art and to generate conversations. These installations of artworks have bred collaboration between departments, administration and, more importantly, the facilities and grounds crews. They have also been excellent teaching opportunities for my students to learn about curating, installation, collaboration and managing red tape.”
Michael Dickins earned an MFA in Interdisciplinary Arts from Goddard College and a BFA from Georgia Southern University. His work has been exhibited throughout the Southeastern U.S. as well as Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, Denver, Houston, San Diego, Portland; Augusta, Maine, Istanbul and Berlin. He has twice been a featured artist at {Re}Happening at Black Mountain College and has received commissions from the Pittsburgh Playhouse and the Houston Metropolitan Dance Company for original sound score and projection design.
He currently lives and works in Clarksville, Tennessee and is the Curator and Director of The New Gallery and University Collections at Austin Peay State University.
As Director of The New Gallery, Dickins has curated numerous exhibitions by Wendy Red Star, Valery Estabrook, Stephen Hayes, Andrew Blanchard, Michi Meko, Yvette Cummings, Gamaliel Rodriguez and many others. His upcoming projects include exhibitions by Jiha Moon, Laura Splan, Rahelah Filsoofi and Peter Precourt.
His role as a curator in a university setting is to provide diverse programming that is visually appealing, physically engaging and intellectually challenging to the university and surrounding communities. “As a gallery director, it is my privilege to provide a safe space for artists to experiment with their craft, engage with the public, and participate in a dialogue on issues of social, cultural and political identity that is welcoming and accessible to the public.”
To RSVP to this Coffee Gathering, please email Olivia Knauss at oknauss@collegeart.org.
Our Coffee Gatherings are hosted on Skype for Business. All participants who have RSVP’d will receive via email a link in advance to attend the session. Once you receive the link, you may join the conversation to test the Skype for Business application. Please use this same link when you are ready to join the scheduled date and time for the Coffee Gathering.
Please note the Coffee Gatherings are recorded and uploaded for future viewing.
We kindly request that you turn off your microphone during the conversation; however, you may keep your camera on if you wish.