2022 SculptureX Symposium: SXZ

The 2022 symposium - SXZ - was a series of hybrid evening events organized to create opportunities for Gen Z students and emerging artists on October 12, 13, and 14th 2022 both on line and in Pittsburgh and Cleveland. SXZ began with an all-virtual keynote address by Sharon Louden titled, The Artist as Culture Producer. Louden is an artist, educator, advocate for artists, editor of the Living and Sustaining a Creative Life series of books, and the Artistic Director of the Chautauqua Visual Arts at the Chautauqua Institution. Louden graduated with a BFA from the School of the Art Institute of Chicago and an MFA from Yale University School of Art. Her work has been exhibited in numerous venues including the Aldrich Contemporary Art Museum, the Drawing Center, Carnegie Mellon University, Weisman Art Museum, National Gallery of Art, Birmingham Museum of Art, Weatherspoon Art Museum and the Kemper Museum of Contemporary Art. Louden’s presentation was followed by the SX Emerging Artist talks organized by Melanie Landsittel, University of Kentucky, Lexington, KY: Finn Dugan, Allegheny College, Meadville, PA @duganfinn Katie Lenz, Edinboro University, Edinboro, PA @katielentzart Rachel Maly, PennWest Edinboro University, Edinboro, PA and Isabel Agatha Zeng, Bowling Green State University, Bowling Green, OH / @zzeng@bgsu.edu On Thursday, October 13, a 6:30 zoom conversation was held with undergraduate at the CHATHAM UNIVERSITY Art & Design Center, Mezzanine Level (3rd Floor) Woodland Road, Chatham University, Pittsburgh, PA 15323 who contributed work to the WHERE, WEAR, WARE show. On Friday, October 14, at the Reclaimed: process, story, material and idea show at The Sculpture Center, 1834 E 123rd Street, Cleveland, OH 4410, artists talks were streamed on zoom. This show was curated by Melanie Landsittel, University of Kentucky, Lexington, KY: Arcadia Mori Bradley Weyandt David Ross Ella Medicus Emily Irvin Marcè Nixon-Washington Lu and Heather Molecke. The Sculpture Center in Cleveland, OH, directed by Grace Chin, serves as the nexus and fiscal agent for the 2022 SculptureX symposium with partners: Chatham University Pittsburgh, PA -James Louks, Professor & Gallery Director / CIVITAS social sculpture / Indiana University of PA Indiana, PA -Sean Derry and Sharon Massey, Professors & collaborators of Sculpture Support System / PennWest University Edinboro, PA -Lisa Austin, Professor, Bruce Gallery Director / Seton Hill University Greensburgh, PA - Pati Beachley, Professor & Art Department Chair / Slippery Rock University Slippery Rock, PA -Sean Macmillan, Professor / University of Kentucky Lexington, KY -Melanie Landsittel, Professor / University of Pittsburgh Pittsburgh, PA - Delanie Jenkins, Professor.