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Part-Time Assistant Adjunct Professor of Book Art I - Essential

Employer
Mills College
Location
Oakland

Job Details



Part-Time Assistant Adjunct Professor of Book Art I - Essential


About Mills College:

Located in Oakland, California, in the heart of the San Francisco Bay Area, Mills College is a liberal arts college for women and gender non-binary students, with graduate programs for all genders. Consistently ranked one of the top master's universities and one of the best value colleges in the West by U.S. News & World Report, Mills also has been named one of the Best Colleges in the nation by The Princeton Review. The Mills experience is distinguished by small, interactive classes, one-on-one attention from exceptional faculty, a culture of creative experimentation, and cutting-edge interdisciplinary learning opportunities which empower students to make a statement in their careers and communities. As one of the most diverse liberal arts colleges in the country, we have a strong record of academic success with first-generation students, students of color, Latinx students, LGBTQ students, and other underrepresented students. Mills College has recently become a Hispanic Serving Institution. Applicants with expertise and experience in supporting and promoting success for Latina/o students are encouraged to apply.

Mills College encourages diversity in hiring and particularly welcomes applications and nominations from women, gender non-binary individuals, and minorities. Mills College seeks to recruit and retain a diverse workforce as a reflection of our commitment to equity, inclusion, and social justice and our desire to maintain the excellence of our faculty. In so doing, we offer our students not only the opportunity to learn about varied disciplines but to engage with diverse perspectives and ways of knowing and learning. For more information, please visit www.mills.edu.


Job Description:

Courses to be taught will include Visible Language, (fall 2021), The Material Book (fall 2021), Books as Multiples: Publishing on the Letterpress (spring 2022, potentially alternating with Freedom of the Presses: Resistance and Rebellion in Print in Spring of 2023) (see course descriptions below). The job also includes working with first-year Book Art MFA students as they design and curate their first year exhibition (First Year Exhibition, spring 2021), participation in Book Art Concentration which consists of individual meetings with Book Art Graduate students and serving on the thesis committees of second year Book Art MFA students.

The successful candidate will have a strong familiarity with the history of typography, typographic design, letterpress printing, hand typesetting, and traditional and contemporary binding structures. They will have broad knowledge of contemporary artist's books, prints and broadsides, and be capable of teaching split level undergrad/grad courses in the letterpress and bindery studios as well as a graduate level course that includes readings and discussions of theory in relation to book art, and the analysis of artist's books and related historical items housed in Special Collections in the Mills library. They will also be well versed in the curation and installation of book art exhibitions.

Department: The Book Art Program offers a broad set of classes for both undergraduate and graduate students. Graduate students can enroll in the MFA in Book Art. Undergraduate students can pursue a Book Art Minor or an individualized major. Students have access to a wide range of equipment in our studios, including Vandercook, platen and hand presses, an etching press, a polymer platemaker and a Risograph. The Book Art bindery has tools for hand bookbinding such as drymount presses, a Kwikprint, board shears, standing press and many nipping presses, sewing frames, etc. Papermaking is being added as a new part of the curriculum. The Book Art Program is housed in the department of Art and Visual Culture.

Course Descriptions:
Visible Language (split level undergrad/grad)

This course explores the language of type and its relevance to students' own written and visual creations. We will examine contemporary trends in visual poetics and legibility, and study the history of writing and type. We will learn about the avant garde period, and students will research the history of written language from their cultural backgrounds. In the studio students will learn both traditional letterpress printing and experimental and improvisational techniques as they produce works on paper. Workshops, guest artists, and field trips will be included. This course meets MW 1:00-3:50, Fall semester.

Books as Multiples: Publishing on the Letterpress (split level undergrad/grad)
What is the connection between content and its physical form? How does meaning shift when its form changes? What does it mean to publish a book? How are form and content linked in your own work? Students will produce books in editions (multiples) in the letterpress studio as well as digitally as we investigate the ways text, image, and print come together in traditional and contemporary books. We will examine the history of print technologies, look at the work of today's independent publishers, and explore the future of the book. Field trips, guest artists, and workshops will be included. This course meets MW 1:00-3:50, Spring 2022.

Freedom of the presses: Resistance and rebellion in print (split level undergrad/grad)
Print and printing has always served as a locus for dissent, resistance and rebellion. The Bay Area has a long history of voicing resistance through the creation of works on paper, from the Black Panther posters to the silkscreens of La Raza. Second wave feminism saw the creation of many presses, including publishers of queer and other underrepresented voices. In this class we will use the power of letterpress, the Risograph and print on demand to create works on paper that voice resistance, dissent and rebellion. We will explore areas of resistance in print, including by students at Mills. This course meets MW 1:00-3:50, Spring 2023, alternating with Books as Multiples: Publishing on the Letterpress.

The Material Book (grad only)
The book is one of the most successful technologies in history, and one of the most invisible. We never ask ourselves how to operate a book, yet a book is one of the most iconic forms in our daily lives. We will investigate the nature of the book as an object through readings, close examinations of both rare and quotidian books housed in Special Collections, and through some hands-on work. We will look at the linkage between the architecture of the book and reading and writing practice, and we will explore contemporary artists' books, independent publishing, zines and future possibilities. This course meets M 6:30-9:00, fall semester

Compensation: For faculty new to Mills, compensation is $6,500 per course with a terminal degree and $6,000 per course without a terminal degree. Adjunct compensation is governed by a Collective Bargaining Agreement and increases with seniority at Mills College.


Requirements:

  • Candidates with experience in Risograph printing, digital design, alternative printmaking and/or other contemporary approaches to the book are encouraged to apply. Candidates must have availability on Mondays and Wednesdays.
  • MFA in Book Art preferred.
  • One or more years of classroom teaching experience preferred.



Additional Information:

This is an exempt, part-time position. The compensation includes state-mandated benefits including Health Insurance, Social Security, State Disability Insurance, Workers' Compensation Insurance, Unemployment Insurance and Sick Day accrual. Employees also receive free admission to campus events, use of the pool, fitness center, and tennis courts.

Mills College does not permit discrimination based on pregnancy, childbirth or related medical conditions, race, religious creed, color, national origin or ancestry, physical or mental disability, medical condition, marital status, age, sex, sexual orientation, or gender identity. For more information on Mills' non-discrimination policy, please go to https://www.mills.edu/policies/ada-policies/nondiscrimination-statement.php.

All positions are subject to a background check. Prior to the first date of employment, an applicant's background check must be cleared.


Application Instructions:

Click the "Apply Now" button below and follow instructions to submit the following documents:
  • Employee Application
  • Cover Letter
  • Curriculum Vitae
  • Teaching Statement
  • Contact information for three references
  • Link to an online portfolio of relevant creative work that includes information about the work, or a powerpoint of no more than 20 slides with information about the work on each slide.

Please note that you can only upload 6 "Other" documents. You can consolidate multiple pages/documents into one file upload. The file size limit for each upload is 10Mb.

Review of applicants will begin immediately; applications will be accepted until the position is filled.



To apply, visit https://mills.interviewexchange.com/jobofferdetails.jsp?JOBID=129353&CNTRNO=1&TSTMP=0





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Working at Mills College

Mills is an independent liberal arts college for women with graduate programs for women and men. The College educates students to think critically and communicate responsibly and effectively, to accept the challenges of their creative visions, and to acquire the knowledge and skills necessary to effect thoughtful changes in a global, multicultural society.

Mills encourages openness to experimentation in the context of established academic disciplines. Programs are designed to reflect the importance of global issues, provide an understanding of the natural world, and enhance opportunities for women in their developing roles throughout society. The curriculum combines traditional liberal arts with new educational initiatives that recognize the value of cultural, racial, and ethnic diversity.

Inspired by a teaching philosophy that grows out of its longstanding dedication to women’s education, Mills provides a dynamic learning environment that encourages intellectual exploration. The faculty of nationally and internationally respected scholars and artists is dedicated to developing the strengths of every student, preparing them for lifelong intellectual, personal, and professional growth.

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