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Camp Art and Learning 2023 (online)

Coordinator | Jaison Manjaly | Jasubhai Memorial Chair Professor, IIT Gandhinagar

About
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Art education is an important part of a well-rounded education and has numerous benefits for students of all ages. Some key benefits of incorporating art education into the school curriculum include:

  • Fostering creativity and self-expression: Art activities encourage students to think creatively and express themselves in unique ways, which can help to build confidence and self-esteem.

  • Developing critical thinking skills: Creating art requires students to analyze, interpret, and synthesize information, which is important for success in all academic subjects.

  • Promoting cultural awareness: Through art education, students can learn about different cultures and historical periods and gain a greater appreciation for the diversity of the human experience.

  • Enhancing overall academic achievement: Studies have shown that students who participate in art education have higher grades, test scores, and attendance rates and are also more likely to graduate from high school.

Art education plays a vital role in the overall development and education of students and should be an integral part of the school curriculum. Art can also bring different disciplines together in a number of ways. Some examples include

  • Interdisciplinary projects: Art projects can be designed to incorporate elements from various disciplines, such as science, history, and literature. For example, students could create a series of drawings inspired by a scientific concept or design a sculpture based on a historical event or a scientific concept. 

  • Collaborative projects: Art projects can be designed to encourage collaboration between students from different disciplines. For example, students could work together to create a mural or performance piece incorporating elements from their respective fields of study.

  • Integration into other subjects: Art can be integrated into other subjects as a means of enriching the learning experience. For example, students could use art to illustrate scientific concepts or create historical reenactments through drama or dance.

  • Art-based scientific inquiry: Students can use art as a tool for scientific inquiry, such as by creating observational drawings of plants or animals or using photography to document the stages of an experiment or to illustrate a scientific concept. 

Overall, art can serve as a bridge between different disciplines, allowing students to see connections and draw inspiration from various sources. Integrating art and science can help students to see the connections between these subjects and encourage them to think creatively and critically about the world around them. The Curiosity Camp on Art and Learning aims to engage students, teachers, and parents through a range of activities and sessions spanning three days. Students and teachers will be introduced to techniques that provide a gateway to holistic learning by fostering creativity and self-expression and encouraging scientific inquiry through art.

Schedule

Camp Schedule

Curiosity Lab invites students from 6 - 12 grade, teachers, parents, and others interested in exploring art as a tool to understand the world around us.

3 February 2023

02:45 – 03:00 pm: Inauguration 

03:00 - 04:30 pm: Exploring Science through Drawing

04:45 - 06:15 pm: Animate to Educate

4 February 2023

03:00 - 04:30 pm: Creativity in the Classroom

04:45 - 06:15 pm: Art and Sustainability: Role of youth in India

06:30 - 08:00 pm: Theater for exploring Oneself and to Experience the World

5 February 2023

11:00 – 12:30 pm: How to Strengthen Scientific Communication Through Storytelling 

12:30 - 03:00 pm: break

03:00 – 04:30 pm:  Art and contemplation 

04:45 – 06:15 pm: A Young Student's guide to Documenting Art

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Who should participate?

Camp Art and Learning is open to all, especially students (6 - 12 grade) with an insatiable curiosity, and all interested parents and teachers

Registration

Camp Art and Learning will be held online from 3 - 5 February 2023. The deadline for registration is February 2 2022

Contact 

Email: camp@iitgn.ac.in

Curiosity Lab, IIT Gandhinagar
Palaj, Gandhinagar – 382355, Gujarat

Registration
Competition

Competition on Visualizing Through Drawing

Submission of entries by 12 February 2023
Awards to be announced by 26 February 2023

Topic: Friendship among planets

Topic: Sustainable Science

Category High School: 9 -12 grade 

Category Middle School: 6 - 8 grade 

First Prize Badge
Star Badge

Winner:  Rs 3000

Runner up: Rs 2000

First Prize Badge
Star Badge

Winner:  Rs 3000

Runner up: Rs 2000

 There is no participation fee, but you must be registered for Camp Art and Learning 2023 through paid mode. 

Camp Modules & Speakers

Speakers and modules
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How to Strengthen Scientific Communication Through Storytelling

This session involves the craft of storytelling in the sciences and how stories mixed with emotion help to convey science facts and figures with greater impact. Playing with the Hero's Journey model and more recent approaches to the craft of storytelling, Brophy will present opportunities for participants to interact while engaging educators, parents and students to find positive takeaways for future storytelling opportunities.

Brian Brophy| Scholar-in-Residence, IIT Gandhinagar 

Brian Brophy is the Director of Caltech Theater, Story Coach at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL), a Fulbright Scholar and twenty-five-year veteran actor in the film/TV/theatre industry. He also continues as a Scholar in Residence at the Indian Institute of Technology (IITGN) for his third tour. Other highlights include Yale-NUS Singapore Artist in Residence, a multi-recipient of the California Arts Council/Culture Affairs Department artists in community grant and recipient of a George Soros Foundation funding award for a theatre project in Bosnia.

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Art and contemplation
 

We all can be trained to be skillful in any art form, but originality takes something more than hours of practice and materials. Through this session, we will explore the way of self-learning to pursue things in life with more meaning and purpose and also talk about how arts of any form can be a medium to explore and express ourselves among the chaos around us. We will also be trespassing around inclusivity, focusing on the process rather than a product, stories that need ears, and many more.

Kanmani M| Senior Research Fellow, Chemical Engineering, IIT Gandhinagar

Kanmani is an Environmental researcher by profession, and also a dancer and a theater practitioner from a very young age. He is a trained karagattam dancer which is a Tamilnadu folk dance form. He has been exploring different painting styles for the past few years and recently learning to incorporate natural pigments for visual art. Baking is something which he picked up during lockdown and he runs a small baking business for his kit and kin now.

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Creativity in the Classroom

Join arts educator Cynthia Campoy Brophy in exploring innovative ways in which creativity can be integrated into all classrooms. In this interactive session, Cynthia will share stories about the organization that she founded in Los Angeles, artworxLA. She will share examples of art workshops that took place in continuation high school classrooms, talk about partnership models with local arts organizations, and discuss the development of creative career pathways for teenagers by creating cross-sector networks with education, nonprofits, workforce development, higher education and creative industries. Through creative collaborations, stronger pathways are created for the benefit of all participants.

Cynthia Campoy Brophy | Artist-in-Residence, IIT Gandhinagar 

Cynthia is the Co-founder of Create Protest, an online marketplace of artist-designed merchandise created to motivate action and inspire the community. She is the founder and former Executive Director of artworxLA. The organization combats the high school dropout crisis through the arts, and since its inception in 1992, has grown to bring its yearlong arts education program to 25 continuation high schools throughout LA County. She completed her BA (English Literature) from the University of California, Los Angeles, her Diploma in French Literature from the University of Paris, Executive Programme in Nonprofit Arts Administration from Stanford Graduate School, and Professional Education Program from Harvard Graduate School of Education. She also received core mediation training, satisfying the California Dispute Resolutions Program Act from Loyola Law School, Center for Conflict Resolution.

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Exploring Science through Drawing

Have you ever wondered what gravitational force looks like? What would you do if asked to draw a picture representing gravity? What about thermodynamics? Have we truly understood something if we cannot visually represent it? The main focus of this session is the critical thinking process that goes into visualizing scientific concepts. This session challenges you to think abstractly and to view the world from new angles.

Arghya Manna  | Artist-in-Residence, IIT Gandhinagar 

Arghya Manna is a cancer researcher turned comics artist from India. He explores the historical perspectives of scientific development and social issues through the lenses of an artist and a researcher both, which bridges the gap between academic research and visual storytelling. His other notable projects are ‘Indian Women in Science’ (in collaboration with Sci-Illustrate, Munich), ‘Climate Change Challenge’ (in collaboration with Centre for Cellular and Molecular Biology, Hyderabad), and ‘Archives of the Earth’ (in collaboration with Dr. Amelia Bone, University of Hiedelberg). 

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Animate to Educate

This talk is an activity based interaction about the use of animation as a learning aid. We look at various characteristics of animation and discuss the multiple possibilities of using it as a medium of communicating complex concepts. We will also see examples of how a minimalistic artefact such as a flipbook can trigger curiosity and augment teaching-learning practices.

Sameer Sahasrabudhe| Professor of Practice, Design, IIT Gandhinagar

Sameer Sahasrabudhe is a Professor of Practice in Design, at IIT Gandhinagar. He has a cumulative experience of over 25 years in various fields such as advertising, animation film-making, and educational multimedia production. He has contributed in the development of the Learner – Centric Model and has created many MOOCs for IITBombayX, edX, and SWAYAM. His course on 3D visualization and animation is subscribed by over One lakh learners worldwide and was shortlisted for the edX prize 2019. Sameer holds a PhD in Subject Communication; PG Diplomas in Distance Education and Animation Film-making; and a Graduation in Fine Arts.

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Art and Sustainability: Role of youth in India

Art and sustainability are increasingly interconnected as artists and cultural organizations look for ways to reduce their environmental impact and promote sustainability in their communities. India's traditional art practices have imbibed sustainable practices for centuries. The Madhubani, Warli, and Kalamkari, use natural materials, such as vegetable dyes, mud, and cow dung, which are not only biodegradable but also have a low environmental impact. These materials are often locally sourced and are used in a sustainable way, making sure that the environment is not depleted. The youth are playing a key role in building awareness of sustainable art by reviving traditional practices. Through painting, sculpture, performance, and other forms of artistic expression, young Indian artists are also addressing topics such as pollution, deforestation, and climate change. They are also collaborating with community groups and organizations to create public art installations and events that promote sustainable practices and inspire people to take action in their daily lives. This session will explore how you can learn from tradition and be part of a sustainable India. 

Avani Varia | Art Curator, IIT Gandhinagar

Avani Varia is the Art Curator at Art@IITGN. She is an artist and heritage professional with two decades of experience art, craft, tourism, and heritage sectors. She hails from a traditional potter family, the Varia community in Gujarat. She holds a Masters of Arts and Heritage Management degree from London. Avani's contribution to documenting and promoting IndianArts is noteworthy — be it the revival of hand spinning with Charkha, contributing to building museum culture in Gujarat, or documenting Indian Heritage via films through the initiative 'The Heritage Film Festival.' Her works are part of various international publications, and the very recent recognition she received is being one of the 50 Inspiring Women of Gujarat!

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Theater for exploring oneself and to experience the world

Through this session, we will look at our innate feelings and how they can be used as a guide for understanding our inner selves and aptitudes and help us navigate the unknown. This session will be an open discussion for all, where we will emphasize on learning as a playful activity and explore how to deal with fears of failure. This session comprises of theatre activities, games-based teachings, and interactive formats for greater efficacy.

Jaya Iyer | Theater artist and facilitator

Jaya Iyer has been associated with various aspects of social development for over three decades. An awardee of many prestigious fellowships, Jaya is also a recipient of the UNESCO Aschberg Bursary to study the Theatre of the Oppressed with Augusto Boal. As a theatre professional she has developed and staged over 20 major productions and around 1000 studio, street and community performances. Her productions have won the prestigious Sahitya Kala Parishad “Best Play of the Year”, have been showcased in Edinburgh Fringe Festival, Urdu theatre festival, Sriram summer festival, theatre for Truth festival etc. Jaya was CEO of Pravah and led the process to set up the National Centre for Children and Youth in Nehru Memorial Museum and Library. She has been a guest faculty in Bachelor of Elementary Education, TIE, National Museum Institute and Disom School of Leadership. Jaya has designed and led various public campaigns around Seeds-sovereignty, Child Rights, Gender-based violence, Anti-plastic movements and Proactive Peacebuilding.

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A Young Student's guide to Documenting Art

Documentation is the process of developing evidence in support of a fact. For example, documentation of the Ajanta Alora caves through texts and art forms. The documentation process happens at many scales, from noting historical artifacts to jotting important points from a class. Though texts are standard documentation methods, drawing can also be equally effective. This form of documentation allows new forms of expression to thrive while simultaneously opening up the space for creative learning. Through this session, we will explore the process of documentation through art with some takeaways for you to practice in your classroom!

Anisha Mohanty | Masters graduate, Humanities and Social Sciences, IIT Gandhinagar

Anisha holds a Masters degree in Humanities and Social Sciences from IIT Gandhinagar. She is a dedicated artist in various mediums, including music, art, dance, and painting. She practices the "get your hands dirty" way of thinking by continually looking for new connections between art and culture.  She has hosted multiple events at Art@IITGN and initiatives by IITGN. 

IIT Gandhinagar 

IIT Gandhinagar offers a unique educational experience in India with unmatched innovations in curriculum. The institute promotes critical thinking and an appreciation of the interdisciplinary character of knowledge, with an emphasis on the liberal arts, project-oriented learning, diversity, and globalization. IIT Gandhinagar was founded in 2008 and is located in Palaj, Gandhinagar, Gujarat on the banks of river Sabarmati. IITGN is rated India’s first 5-star GRIHA LD (Green) campus for minimizing the negative impact on the environment. The campus has been declared India’s first 5-star campus for ensuring food safety and promoting healthy eating.

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