The Taylor University Art department has seen an influx of new and experienced faces who are teaching this fall semester.
It has a number of new professors teaching classes, including Landin Brown, Matthew Herrmann, Mark Masuoka and Michael Medlock. Additionally, longtime Taylor employee Beth Kaylor began a new position as the Art department program assistant this summer.
Jonathan Bouw returned to his role as the department co-chair and professor of art after he spent time away from it to focus on teaching and creating art.
The Art department will be implementing a mentor-mentee relationship for freshmen students, Bouw said. This will provide a way for students with less experience to be able to reach out and talk to upperclassmen who are able to provide guidance.
Bouw said that he would like to expand the photography portion of the Art department.
He added that he and Matthew Herrmann, the new assistant professor of photography, followed a similar trajectory in their lives by working in New York City as artists before picking up jobs as professors.
Transitioning from commercial jobs to being a professor can be difficult, Bouw said.
“You have to try to wrap your head around ‘how did I learn, and how can I impart that to students in an effective way, to give them a chance at actually being able to do the cool things that I've gotten to do,’” he said.
Herrmann grew up in Upland with his parents teaching at Taylor, and he graduated from Taylor in ‘08.
He received his master’s degree in photography, video and related media from the School of Visual Arts (SVA) in 2015 in NYC.
Herrmann noted that he met with Bouw and asked him about his experience attending SVA, a conversation that helped him make the decision to enroll there.
Herrmann spent a little over a decade working as a contract-based photographer, shooting artwork reproduction images as well as other various projects. He additionally taught at the New York City College of Technology for two years.
After Miles told him about an opening for a job at Taylor, Herrmann felt that it was the right time to come back and teach photography. He moved back to Upland with his wife and two kids at the end of July.
Herrmann emphasized the importance of students getting to learn the muscle memory of using a camera and the equipment available through hands-on experiences.
He added that he couldn’t imagine a better darkroom than the one Taylor currently has but would consider adding different camera technologies in the department.
“I left New York at the best part of my career,” Herrmann said. “…I had no real reason to leave, other than wanting to just get out (of) the hustle and bustle of the city, but came specifically to Upland and to Taylor, because I know what is offered here.”
Sometimes it is from the quiet corners of campus that hidden beauty can emerge.
Mark Masuoka is now an assistant professor of art and director of the Boren Art Gallery (BAG), located in Helena Hall next to the Reade Liberal Arts Center on campus.
The BAG currently has an American impressionist collection and a western collection. Masuoka made it a priority to include contemporary artists in the gallery.
“It's based on a story,” he said, referencing the western collection. “And so, it's actually a great style of painting and artwork that kind of lends itself to at least teaching from that perspective.”
Recently, students from a music class came to the exhibition to do an assignment that involved selecting a piece of music inspired by one of the paintings.
Masuoka said he believes that the BAG can be incorporated into class curricula and used for educational opportunities at Taylor. He plans on looking at potential spaces in campus buildings to do miniature exhibitions. He added that there is a lot of artwork in storage at the BAG that he would like to put on display for the benefit of viewers.
“I think ultimately it's about seeing something beautiful, and something beautiful that has been made can have the ability to change us,” Bouw said.
