Art students learning career lessons for this summer and beyond
Real-world lessons being learned now by 12 art students in a new course at The University of Akron will carry over into this summer’s Boston Mills Artfest — and into the students' careers as professional artists.
The juniors and seniors are investigating the best ways to produce artworks — jewelry, sculptures, ceramics, photographs, handmade prints, wearable art and more — that will appeal to shoppers during the nationally recognized fine art and craft show at Boston Mills Brandywine in the Cuyahoga Valley National Park.
Sherry Simms
Through the "Boston Mills Experience" course, they are also learning about branding, pricing for wholesale and retail markets, packaging, writing artist statements, engaging customers and designing displays.
Collaborative effort
UA Associate Professor Sherry Simms created the experiential-learning course and is teaching it with help from other UA art faculty. For example, Assistant Professor Markus Vogl is showing the students how to build websites and use social media to market their works.
A field trip to Akron’s Zeber-Martell Clay Studio and Art Gallery is also on the class calendar. Owner-artists Claudia Zeber-Martell and Michael Martell are festival veterans in addition to running their successful business in downtown Akron.
This summer will be the second time that UA art students have sold their works at the Boston Mills Artfest. Last summer, encouraged by Artfest Director George Whitten and area arts patron Kady Downing, Simms organized a group to create and staff a booth during both weekends of the festival.
Simms knows that the new course will build on that initial experience.
Markey saavy
"This course gives students the time to create limited production work and to learn valuable business skills that will better prepare them for the 2015 Boston Mills Artfest. Through this experience, they not only explore a new approach to making, they gain first-hand experience to a viable career option that is not always explored in art schools.”
This summer, the UA students may partner with students from other universities in an entire “Emerging Artists” tent at the Boston Mills Artfest.
Thanks to the "Boston Mills Experience," they will be prepared to succeed there and in the professional marketplace.
Media contact: Cyndee Snider 330-972-5196 or cyndee@uakron.edu.