Art teachers from throughout West Virginia will gather in the newly renovated Myles Center for the Arts on the campus of Davis & Elkins College Oct. 21 and 22 for the annual West Virginia Art Education Association Conference (WVAEA). The is the first time D&E has hosted the conference since the association began in the mid-1970s.
The two-day event gives art educators opportunities to learn new arts and crafts and new techniques in teaching art, as well as build professional connections and community relations. Attendees will have a choice of presentations from 19 instructors including master plein air painter Eric Dye.
“We are so happy to be having the conference at Davis & Elkins College so we can showcase the many talents of the art educators in our community and the College as well as the art programs supported here,” said Tessa Garver-Daniels, adjunct faculty in the D&E Division of Creative Arts and conference coordinator.
Artist and Davis & Elkins College Trustee Chair Emerita June Myles has been selected as the keynote artist. A philanthropist of the arts, Myles’ generous gifts made possible the recent $6.7 million expansion to Myles Center for the Arts and Myles Plaza.
Myles’ fiber art hook rugs and paintings will be on display in the Paull Gallery and display cases in the Harper-McNeeley auditorium atrium. She will be selling books of her work and donating the proceeds to WVAEA.
The conference will also feature keynote speaker Heather Harris, educational programs manager at the Art Museum of West Virginia University. She will present an object lesson on “Unlocking the Educational Potential of Museums.”
Along with Myles’ gallery show, art educators will enter their own work and that of their students in two separate shows. The students’ work will be showcased in the field of self-portraits. Teachers will be exhibiting their personal work for a juror selection and awards. This year’s juror is Elkins native artist and educator Vincent Trimboli.
Last year the WVAEA earned the NAEA Eastern Region Largest Membership recognition and hopes to continue the membership growth trend within the Elkins region.
The Creative Arts Program at D&E provides a basic background in art, problem solving and the creative process to all students. Students develop an understanding of complex and sophisticated visual language, and are prepared for a professional career in art, teaching art and/or graduate study.
