The J. Paul Getty Museum Education Department is seeking four practicing photographers with experience working with teen audiences to co-facilitate a teen photography program which will run from January-March 2019, as part of the Unshuttered initiative. Reporting to the head of Teen Programs, the Teaching Artists will be responsible for co-creating photography activities and co-facilitating the program, which will include teaching DSLR basics and documentary photography and photojournalism skills, and mentoring students in conceptualizing and creating a series of photographs.
About the program:
Unshuttered is a dynamic IRL and online community that empowers teens to tell their stories through photography. The Teaching Artists will co-facilitate the IRL program, which will take place at the Getty Center and select offsite locations between January and March 2019. The Getty will recruit a diverse group of 10-12 high school-aged students to work closely with the Teaching Artists and Getty staff to learn documentary photography and photojournalism skills, connect to pro-social organizations, and to develop a series of photographs that build a powerful visual narrative around an issue or story that they are passionate about. They will also create content for an Unshuttered social media take-over and share their work through video interviews and documentation (recorded by a videography team at the Getty).
The work of these students will subsequently be featured on the Getty Unshuttered digital platforms, which invite teens and others from around the world to participate by posting their own photographs in response to creative challenges and tips. These platforms allow for widespread connection among socially energized young people and will offer a photography curriculum that will help teachers use the app as a learning tool in the classroom. The Getty Center will host a celebration of the Unshuttered community and its photographs in late Spring 2019.
Teaching Artist Training: December 15-16 (dates are subject to change)
Program Schedule: Saturdays 11am – 3pm, Jan 5 – March 9, 2019
Applicants must be available for all of the program sessions. Teaching Artists will be asked to arrive an hour prior to each session and remain for an hour following each session for prep and post-session check-ins. Teaching Artists will also attend program training, tentatively scheduled for December 15 and 16.
Scope of Work:
Teaching Artists are independent contractors who are paid a fixed stipend of $3500 for participation in the program. Working on a contract basis, Teaching Artists are responsible for:
Participating in a two-day long training session at the Getty Center (tentative dates: Dec 15 and 16).
Working collaboratively with Getty staff to develop photography activities and assignments.
Mentoring a group of 3-4 students on DSLR basics, photography fundamentals, documentary photography and photojournalism skills, using photography as a tool for social engagement, and developing a series of photographs.
Facilitating photography activities and assignments, both at the Getty and during off-site field trips.
Working to create a positive and encouraging environment for growth.
Complying with the Getty’s health and safety requirements for working with students.
Qualifications:
Qualified candidates are working photographers with at least 1-2 years of experience teaching or mentoring teenagers. Candidates have experience creating safe and open learning environments with youth. We are looking for Teaching Artists with a strong cultural competence and sensitivity to and awareness of issues affecting teenagers. The ideal candidate would be able to build photography activities and assignments that merges social engagement and photography in ways that are relevant for young people today. Teaching Artists will have a range of professional experience and diverse areas of interest including, but not limited to documentary photography, social activism, multimedia storytelling, photojournalism, and fine art photography. Teaching Artists are expected to be representatives of Unshuttered; they will be filmed as part of program documentation, and may be featured in Getty press and digital content.
How to Apply:
Please email the following information in the form of a single PDF to gettyteens@getty.edu with the subject line ‘Teaching Artist Position’:
Name, Address, Cell Phone, Email
Link to a website where your work can be viewed
Short biography (4-5 sentences)
Brief responses (250 words max.) to the following questions:
What draws you to mentor teens in photography?
What themes or interests in your work could translate to a teen audience?
2 References: Include name, email address, and phone number.
Resume or CV
Applications will be accepted on a rolling basis until November 16, 2018.