Elly Yazdanpanah

9.8 Translanguaging Territories: Worlding Higher Education Differently (Panel)

Chair:

Patricia Osler – The Convergence Initiative | Concordia University, Montreal, Canada

Panellists:

Elly Yazdanpanah – The University of British Columbia, Vancouver, Canada – virtual

Samia ElSheikh – Faculty of Art Education, Helwan University, Cairo, Egypt – virtual

Anita Sinner – The University of British Columbia, Vancouver, Canada

Cristian A. Zaelzer-Perez – Faculty of Fine Arts, Concordia University, Montreal, Canada

Abstract:

Worlding higher education differently offers a unique accounting of unexpected territories through arts-based, integrative, accessible projects that shift learning to cultivate new translanguaging activations. Our session presents a tripartite ecosystem of transnational (local, national, international), transdisciplinary (technology, art, science) and transmedia (digital media platforms), and in this panel we explore how art-sci-tech immersive learning activations operate as iterative, open systems for transformative change. With translanguaging at the heart of practice, we present processes of becoming(s) in which we embrace seeing what might be, instead of what is. This panel invites educators to rethink art education paradigms, equipping students with the skills and knowledge to thrive as global citizens in a rapidly changing world. We emphasize encounters with difference: diverse modes of thinking, feeling and doing that involve multi-levelled, multi-layered, and intra-disciplinary collaboration with, in and through other perspectives and experiences in teaching and learning. Highlighting a series of projects in Colombia, Egypt, Japan and Canada that seek to disrupt arts education through international virtual and onsite exchanges, we demonstrate why this resonates among students at our site-specific locations. We address core questions: How do international university and museum collaborations advance transnational learning partnerships? In what ways do art-science partnerships contribute to decolonizing discourses of creativity and learning? How does technology function to equalize access and transform lifelong learning? Through open discussion and shared examples of inventive and experimental activations, we will demonstrate the dynamic convergence of art, science and technology as a learning commons with applied ‘glocal’ projects, bringing situated, arts-based knowledges to global contexts. By integrating museums as extended educational settings, we present new ways to diversify theory-practice discourses. Our goal is to enable collaborative, unifying activations as an arts-based blueprint for higher education globally.

9.16 Sensorial A-r-tography: Walking with Public Art through Unexpected Territories (Panel) – virtual

Chair:

Elly Yazdanpanah – The University of British Columbia, Vancouver, Canada – virtual

Panellists:

Xi Chen – The University of British Columbia, Vancouver, Canada

Rita Irwin – The University of British Columbia, Vancouver, Canada – virtual

Ashleigh Janis – The University of British Columbia, Vancouver, Canada – virtual

Koichi Kasahara – Tokyo Gakugei University, Japan

Anita Sinner – The University of British Columbia, Vancouver, Canada

Abstract:

In this panel, we will present seven provocative visual essays that explore the convergence of art, pedagogy, and public art in relation to space through the lens of a-r-tographic practices. The collection of visual essays examines how public art engages with diverse geographies, socio-cultural contexts, and pedagogical practices, creating “unexpected territories” that challenge conventional approaches to art education. Central to this issue is the notion of “geographies-in-relation,” where artists, educators, and researchers embrace experimental and speculative inquiries that push boundaries of public art, expanding it from static articulation to dynamic, relational experiences. By employing a-r-tography, the contributors delve into critical themes such as anti-racist and decolonial education, cultural memory, queer identity, and the politics of public spaces. Adopting walking as a mode of inquiry, these engagements uncover hidden curricula within public art and reveal how art operates as a vibrant force for addressing social inequities, fostering collective memory, and challenging dominant narratives. Through engagements with spaces – from urban intersections to natural landscapes – the essays illuminate the potential of public art to act as a transformative pedagogical implement, bridging private and public spheres while fostering inclusivity, equity, and decolonial approaches in art education. By embracing the fluidity and overlapping nature of a-r-tographic practices, this issue reimagines public art as an essential component of a socially engaged, responsive, and resilient educational framework. The initiatives challenge educators to reconceptualize their pedagogical approaches, inviting them to engage with public art as a means of fostering embodied, meaningful learning experiences that acknowledge the diverse, more-than-human world we inhabit.