Defining the Undefined: Art, Education, Technology, and the Mapping of Ourselves

2022 Mid-America College Art Association Virtual Conference

Hosted by Slippery Rock University of Pennsylvania

March 31 - April 2, 2022

As artists we draw maps, imperfect translations of the world we interact with that function as a tool for others to better understand where they situate themselves within this world. As educators we design road maps for students to find their bearings, to set a course, then to pick up where our maps leave off and continue discovering new terrains. Technology is the means in which we generate these maps. New advancements in technology generate new understandings of the maps that define us, both physically and metaphysically. It is undeniable there are still many maps to be drawn that will both solidify and complicate how we understand ourselves in relation to each other and the space we inhabit now and in the future. We invite artists, educators, historians, writers, scientists, and any other professionals to submit proposals that engage with the technological, psychological, social, political, and experimental practice of mapping as it relates to the way in which we understand the spaces we occupy.

Given the challenges educators, students, and institutions are currently facing, we are particularly interested in sessions that address timely topics relevant to the changing landscape of art, technology, and education, as well as those which consider mapping in relation to cognitive, emotional, and health-based applications.