I Do / We Do / You Do

May 18 – August 5, 2023

The phrase “I do, we do, you do” refers to a scaffolded and interactive method of teaching art. With this method, students move from being instructed, to working collaboratively, and then to working independently. In the I Do / We Do / You Do exhibition, art educators reflect on the intersections of teaching and art making practices. This exhibition includes invited national artists, a collaboration among an art educator research group, and a juried selection of Colorado art teachers. Works reflect the challenges particular to teaching art.

I Do features invited artists:

Jorge Lucero
Jen Delos Reyes
Harrell Fletcher and Lisa Jarrett of KSMoCA

How does an art educator maintain a contemporary art practice while simultaneously teaching and participating in dialogue about the art education process? Jorge Lucero recorded 102 “permissions” that he has pulled from other artists and creatives as concepts to use in his own art making practice. His work titled Conceptualist Permissions for Teacher Posture explores the idea that teaching is an art practice and what happens in a classroom is material for creating art. The work of Jen Delos Reyes supports this concept as the three photographs on display, titled After Mondrian, Blow, and Totem, were created in collaboration with her students as a means to address a constant disruption to her teaching practice in the form of cell phones. Harrell Fletcher and Lisa Jarrett founded Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. School Museum of Contemporary Art (KSMoCA) to unite artmaking, art exhibition, and teaching within classrooms. KSMoCA is the merging of a museum of modern art with an elementary school, radically reimagining the way art is taught, created, and experienced across generations.

KSMoCA Documentary (video still), 2017

We Do features a collaborative artwork by art educators participating in Theory Loves Practice (TLP), an MSU Denver sponsored research group. TLP was created out of a need for community and support for art teachers working in primary, intermediate, and secondary schools. Most often, art teachers at these levels are the only ones of their kind within a school, facing unique situations and challenges without the support of similarly situated colleagues. TLP provides teachers with a way to share their classroom challenges and successes, learn from each other’s experiences, and experiment with new methods. Current TLP participants have collaborated on an installation that examines what is happening in their classrooms right now. The work provides viewers with a snapshot of current issues and a critical analysis of the education system in the hope of creating conversation around the complex situation of education.

You Do celebrates the work of current and retired Colorado art educators (in K-12 and higher education) in a juried selection of work. The jurors for this group of artists are Cecily Cullen, CVA Director & Curator, Pablo Rivera, Visual Arts Teacher at Denver’s South High School, and Katie Taft, CVA Education Manager. Artists were asked to create work addressing their classroom experiences. The thirty-four artists invited to participate in the exhibition were selected based on the conceptual aspects of their work with a specific focus on works that invite conversation about unique topics.

Artists selected for the exhibition:

The 965 Project Gallery presents Grounds for Change, a collaborative installation examining the issue of gun violence in America’s schools. Featuring the artwork of MSU Denver students Xtna d’Luna and Allison Nicolosi-Risinger, the installation provides a place for discussion and offers resources for viewers to engage with organizations that are raising awareness and petitioning for change. Curated by MSU Denver students Andrew Cline and Kristi Zaragoza.

The 965 Project Gallery is a student-led space that provides immersive professional development opportunities to students interested in fine art curation and arts administration.