In this article, the authors reflect on a storytelling tunnel book project, from their interdisciplinary course Art & Social Justice for nonmajors at Nazareth College, a small, private, liberal arts college in New York. The authors argue that in an era of increased political polarization, rising racism, and xenophobia, storytelling is a…

This article explores collaborative social justice art education, community building, and activism through teacher workshops that utilized contemporary art to generate curriculum and dialogue. It models one possibility for professional development that casts teachers as learners in a supportive yet critical environment. It draws on critical…

The purpose of this article is to reflect on the events that occurred at Pulse nightclub and how a social justice camp collided to create opportunities for campers, preservice teachers, and faculty mentors to use creative activities to connect community members during a time of tragedy. The author begins with a brief introduction to critical…

Linda Stein created a series of artwork entitled "Holocaust Heroes: Fierce Females" (H2F2) in response to her experiences during the attacks on the World Trade Center on September 11, 2001. The body of work centers around 10 mixed media tapestries that depict different female heroes from the Holocaust. This article explores the idea of…

In 2014, chief executive artist of Reservoir Studio, B. Stephen Carpenter, II, conducted a participatory performance at Edinboro University to draw attention to the global water crisis. During this performance, art and art education students, faculty, artists, and members of the community made hand built ceramic water filters to raise awareness of…

The Baltimore Uprising was in response to the death of Freddie Gray, who was fatally injured in April 2015 while in police custody in Baltimore City. The Uprising unfolded as a series of protests, community meetings, and actions throughout the city. This was a catalyst for art education faculty and preservice teachers to enter conversations about…

From the Pulse nightclub massacre to the brutal police killings of unarmed Black men, women, and children, the summer of 2016 saw a wave of deadly violence and hatred leveled at Black and lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer (LGBTQ) communities. In the aftermath of this violence, which included prolific public dialogue across traditional…

"What do you really mean by social justice art education?" This question constantly causes confusion among not only the students, but also the educators, researchers, and artists working at the intersection of art, education, and social justice. The labels for this work come in many shapes, among them, activist art, community-based arts, new…

Thirty years after its completion, "The Dinner Party" found a permanent home at the Brooklyn Museum in the Elizabeth A. Sackler Center for Feminist Art. At the request of artist Judy Chicago, the authors developed a curriculum guide for educators to include this significant artwork in K-12 programs. Chicago's hope was that by engaging in serious…

Making the visual arts program meaningful in public education can be a challenge when one considers how little instructional time is devoted to the visual arts. A challenge for art educators is to seek opportunities outside the classroom for real-life inquiry-based projects. This form of systematic inquiry done by teachers for themselves is called…