Open Forum: A school beside the school?

Join gallerist and educator Emil Scheffmann and Kaiwhakaere Deputy Director Bridget Riggir-Cuddy for an open community conversation presented as part of CRIT: Art Learning Since 1987. Drawing on the histories, case studies, and questions raised throughout the exhibition, this open forum invites artists, educators, students, graduates, and cultural workers to reflect on the current state of arts learning in Aotearoa. Together, participants will examine the opportunities, limitations, and assumptions that shape contemporary arts education, considering the relationship between formal and informal learning, the responsibilities shared across the sector, and the futures we might imagine for artistic learning. Open and participatory in format, the conversation welcomes diverse experiences and perspectives on how artists learn, who supports that learning, and where it might take place. WHAT TO EXPECT This event is free. This event is held in the gallery at Artspace Aotearoa. This location is accessible. This event is seated for group discussion. BIOGRAPHIES Bridget Riggir-Cuddy is a writer and arts worker based in Tāmaki Makaurau. She is currently Kaiwhakahaere Tuarua Deputy Director at Artspace Aotearoa. She was part of the collective which founded Samoa House Library. Her writing is shaped by close proximity to cultural infrastructure and a labour-conscious attention to the social, institutional, and discursive conditions through which artistic value is produced. Emil Scheffmann is a gallerist and educator based in Tāmaki Makaurau. He is the Director of Grace, a gallery dedicated to representing early-career artists from across Aotearoa. Previously, he was an arts writer for Metro Magazine, contributing criticism on contemporary art and culture. Scheffmann studied at Elam School of Fine Arts before completing an MPhil at Auckland University of Technology on alternative models of arts education. He was an Associate of Open School East in 2016, an experience that continues to shape his approach to arts education and institutional practice.