Aspen Art Museum

As an artist, how can one find a place for themselves when the dominant narrative sometimes diverges from their experience and values? How can one make the structure of critique useful? Breaking down the idea of the monolithic voice, especially as it relates to art, is an important part of Brooklyn-based artist and arts professor Damien Davis’s practice.

Davis thinks about his own studio and teaching practice in a holistic way, considering the skills that he and other artists need beyond creative capabilities. Davis teaches foundational sculpture and professional development at SUNY Purchase, where he emphasizes the notion of a “tool kit” for artists, synthesizing the administrative and the practical with the creative into his curriculum. In this conversation, Davis will speak about figuring out how to make art that is purposeful and relevant to this moment, teaching students to engage with the issues that matter to them, and living out one’s philosophy as both an artist and a human.

Initiated during this period of unprecedented physical distancing, Slow.Look.Live., offers an occasion to slow down and reflect with deeper intention on artistic processes and dialogues. Introducing a range of artists, curators, and thinkers, the new initiative focuses on how perception, creation, and community are being shaped by our various current geographical locations. Each week, we chart the relationships of our guests to the changing world, their immediate environments, and their studios. As we continually redefine how art can be made and experienced, Slow.Look.Live., will evolve indefinitely as a core program for Aspen Art Museum’s visitors and beyond.

Join a regional, national, and international group of participants on Fridays at 4 p.m. (MT) with Rachel Ropeik, AAM Learning Director, on Instagram Live and Instagram Stories @AspenArtMuseum.