Back to the Sandbox: Art and Radical Pedagogy Black History Month Summit Feb. 9-10 at WWU

Western Washington University is presenting the “Back to the Sandbox: Art and Radical Pedagogy Black History Month Summit” on Friday and Saturday, Feb. 9-10.

Events, which are all free and open to the public, will be in the Performing Arts Center, Concert Hall and at Wilson Library.

"Performing arts can be used as a teaching tool to be integrated into any subject matter and provide critical and wonderful ways of learning for our students and future educators," said Karen Dade, co-director of the Back to the Sandbox project at Western and professor of Secondary Education in Western’s Woodring College of Education.

Activities on Feb. 9 will include a Black History Month cultural reception with welcoming performers, an “Africa to America” participatory performance workshop and African Diaspora Fashion Show.

Activities on Feb. 10 will include African descent visual and performing arts featuring local and non-local Black artists and art collectors to exhibit, perform and participate in education panel discussions on the works of Black artists. The panel discussions will highlight topics such as: art as radical pedagogy; current challenges in the profession; learning to invest in Black art; understanding the world of Black art collectors; the social movements of Pan African artists, critical race theory (CRT) and racial identity development using art, Black renaissances, and understanding culture and traditions through art pedagogy.

For a complete schedule of events at the Black History Month Summit see https://westerntoday.wwu.edu/news/wwu-black-history-month-summit-program-details.

Panelists will include national artists such as Knowledge Bennett; national art dealer Alitash Kebede; art collector Edward Moore, and Nyanda Miata Donaldson, co-partner/curator of Gross Art Gallery. In addition, a visual artists’ gallery walk, student talent showcase, mural painting and participatory social justice arts workshops/sessions will take place the afternoon of Feb. 10.

The Black History Month Summit is being co-hosted by members of the Black Student Union, African Caribbean Club, African Descent Faculty & Staff affinity group, Snohomish/Everett NAACP, and individuals from the Bellingham community. The event is being organized by the Black History Month planning committee, which includes representatives from each of the groups listed above.

The exhibition is part of the “Back to the Sandbox: Art and Radical Pedagogy,” a project throughout the academic year focused on the junctions of art and education that will include a partnership with the Bellingham School District, Western Gallery art exhibition, a summit with international and local artists, and the Black History Month summit.

For more information, see: https://westerntoday.wwu.edu/news/releases/back-to-sandbox-art-as-radical-pedagogy-project-includes-wwu-art-exhibitions-art