The opportunity to support creativity and out of the box thinking is one of my main motivators for teaching. I strongly believe the act of teaching to be a bilateral experience. An experience that provides me the great privilege to not only foster these values in the students I teach but also to learn from them and continuously tune and readjust these values in my own scholarly and creative practices. Along with this primary motivator of creativity, I am passionate about delivering a platform for my students to understand that failure and challenge is beneficial to their learning experience. Instances of challenge and frustration are not the time to shut down and feel defeated or embarrassed, but rather to find a state of resourcefulness and joy, where imaginative and wondrous solutions seem to rise to the surface. It is of paramount importance to sustain principles of creativity, adaptability, inclusivity, vulnerability, and courage in present and future generations in order to establish grounded individuals who are comfortable addressing and solving the hard questions.

I find that to achieve these vital objectives it is my responsibility to serve as an educator, role model and mentor for my students; to continue to nurture their artistic and imaginative freedoms as they venture forward into the future. In order to succeed in my responsibilities, I strive to deliver an ecosystem of learning that is founded on open communication, inclusive collaboration, artistic experimentation, and constructive critique. This environment serves as an equitable platform on which to discuss the myriad theories and philosophies of new and emergent media. Establishing the significance and applicability of each so that students may be capable of creating work that connects to varied historical and experimental materials and methods, approaches solutions to challenging situations of the past and future, and develops an informed yet unique and personal voice that is needed in the ever-evolving fields of art, academia and industry.

The beauty of teaching in a creative field is the innate opportunity for project-based learning. I am a strong supporter of this approach of education and meaning-making because it fosters active engagement in projects that are personally meaningful to the students and has the potential for real-world applications. A lot of this engagement starts in the ideation process, a step that I find to be the most enlightening for both me and my students. This pivotal stage is where the imagination has the opportunity to run wild and I am proud to let go of the reins, to plant a seed with an assignment, and to look on in awe as students imagine projects and pieces of art that address critical issues in ways I could have never come up with myself, even in my wildest dreams.

In my experience the blending of practical projects with writing exercises is pivotal to the maturity and growth of student abilities. It is in the act of committing ideas and words to paper that students are required to develop and organize their thoughts, something that necessitates an intentional grappling with and understanding of relevant material. Additionally, the need to respond critically, whether in writing or otherwise, requires students to become dexterous researchers in order to learn how to be critical thinkers and stimulating contributors. This not only provides a more universally enriched classroom environment for the students but helps them to stand on the shoulders of the theorists and artists that have come before them. To learn most importantly how to effectively communicate their thoughts, ideas, questions, and solutions with poise and intelligence.

Many of the tools used in the creation of new media require heavy technical instruction and know-how. I pride myself on being able to break down a multitude of difficult software into their fundamental components. And to do so in a way that is not as dry or challenging as many others make it out to be. Mixing logical constraints with elements of play and experimentation make it so that each and every student is able to develop solid fundamentals, learn proven workflows, and have some fun along the way. I also find that it is important to develop a platform agnostic approach because in the field of new media the evolution of technology is superluminal. I teach software to students by delivering it to them in a framework that at its most primary level can be applied to learn any software. Allowing students to feel comfortable adapting to different programs quickly. However, this framework is only a starting point and I often express to my students that mastering technology only comes with intentional practice and that understanding the technical elements of the tools used in new media is only a small step in the journey to making good work. I also recognize the range of learning modalities and speeds that are present in every class and I feel it is my privilege to assist any individuals who may need additional help outside of class.

Often, I have noticed both in the classes that I took in college and the ones I helped teach that students respond positively when the teacher presents some of their own or work that is relevant to the material of the course. For example, in a course on Tangible Interactivity, I shared briefly on my experience with wearables and brought in a prototype of a sensor-based project I had been working on. The goal of the course was to expand upon the human computer interface with a specific focus on the role of the body. After my lecture, each and every student came up to me after with enthusiastic questions about my project, queries about specific sensors, and even ideas for their own.

However, there are instances when some software is taught better—or at least introduced—by industry experts, artists, and faculty working on the edge of their fields. That being said, the introduction and inclusion of guest speakers, when possible, is extremely useful in providing outside perspective for students. It is important for them to be exposed to a wide range of methodologies when it comes to technical as well as creative processes. The opportunity to hear, interact with, and learn from a diverse and multicultural group of artists and professionals is pivotal and may provide the one kernel that opens up an entire field for a student. I feel extremely fortunate to be part of a growing network of wonderful individuals existing in and operating across many fields. Each and every one all feeling very grateful for the opportunities to share their stories and perspectives with the next generation.

Another important responsibility as a teacher is to foster student confidence. This is especially relevant in project-based classes where students are sharing their work, learning new technologies with which they may have no experience, or working in groups to solve problems none of them have faced before. In order to foster this confidence, I return to the platform that failure and challenge are beneficial. There are many instances where students experience difficulty in mastering the artistic and academic material required to complete a project, often resulting in students that may feel uncomfortable or hesitant in sharing their work or opinions with the rest of the class. Working together with students to find ways for them to adapt to these situations can help them step forward and find more ease in making their voice heard and presence felt.

Adaptability is also crucial when it comes to course design and flow. I strive for a consistent rhythm in my courses, using the syllabus to truly create a framework that makes sure that students are not straining to keep up nor do they feel held back by the pace. This largely to ensure that all students are moving forward, each growing through a measurable progression. Furthermore, to do this effectively it is important to constantly reflect on what may or may not be working in order to adapt and pivot on the fly. I relish in the opportunity to make the needed adjustments, knowing that it will not only help current students but also those arriving in the future. Also, fully aware that a course is a living entity that requires input from everyone involved. Moreover, I believe courses need to grow and evolve from term to term. Responding to reflect relevant changes in society, the field of study, developing technologies, and discovered student needs. The opportunity to learn and grow in order to more effectively cultivate environments where students can fulfill their innate potential is why I am constantly motivated to become a better teacher.

As both an artist and creative professional, I work across many media–interactive art, video, wearables, computer-aided visualization, and augmented reality–but regardless of the tools or materials I’m using to create, I always find that it’s the process that makes the work special. It is in the process that I discover the most valuable aspects of a work. For me, this is where the true learning and meaning-making takes place.

I work mostly with digital fabrication and wearable design because these mediums are what light me up. Plain and simple, there is just an abundance of energy for which I can work with. My obsession with the process and the learning opportunities involved has manifested itself not only in my production work, but also in my research interests in bioenergetics and collective behavior. Most often materialized through multi-participant interactive installation.

It is in the process that I get to take the most risks, which is an aspect I find to be of extreme importance to any meaning-making involved. The many roadblocks that arise during the creative process and the respective failures and successes are often what keep me coming back to making work. I make the pieces I make in order to understand and move through personal experiences and the emotions therein. It’s pure catharsis. The opportunity to share the work with others and give them a chance to make their own meaning is just a bonus for me—or maybe it’s the final step in the healing journey.

These journeys also present a wonderful opportunity to consider the relationships to my methods and materials. I am most definitely someone who loves their toys, especially the technological ones. I truly enjoy experimenting with all the newest gear in order to find the edge, but also to understand our connection to the current iteration of technology. Furthermore, to reiterate points made by Rafael Lozano-Hemmer, we live in a globalized society where technology is the language of said globalization. Each and every person is already having a technological experience. “Working with technology is inevitable and it is normal, it is natural.” Integrating technology as a tool into the creative process allows one to meet people where they are, while at the same time addressing concepts that may or may not be technologically influenced.

As a new media artist, I exercise my creativity in order to take the time to explore opportunities for understanding. Fortunately, these opportunities have the potential to take many different forms. Most of the time, it’s the opportunity to understand the fundamental reasons why a certain experience transpired and then use that understanding to move through any and all relevant blocks, as in S.O.A.N. #2, which is a video installment in an ongoing self-portrait series that provided a much needed outlet to process the internal commotion and aversion towards the emotions of the outside world. Other times, it’s the chance to experiment with a new process, technology, or material. Or it could be an opportunity to create an experience to share beliefs I feel passionate about with participants, as in Collective Attunement, which is an interactive sculpture that invites viewers to contribute to a unified light and color-based visual representation of our shared collective resonance. Sometimes, it’s using the technology at hand to create seemingly magical experiences for participants to enjoy and contemplate, as in my interactive pop-up installation, Particle Portrait, which invites participants to interact with and guide a particle-based portrait of their auric energy while listening to a customized sound bath. Other times it’s the opportunity to create work that challenges my skills in order to foster learning, as in my digitally fabricated project, Infinity Solids, which required me to push my knowledge of circuits in order to solder together the five Platonic Solids. Or it might be the opportunity to examine specific bioenergetically informed exercises, like my portrait series Vital Movements, which is a set of five portraits, based on high quality motion capture data, that visually represent the dynamic flow of energy through the human body during specific intentional breathing and movement exercises. I also make work to explore the possibilities of technology to help researchers in the field, as in M.C.S.G., which is a wearable system for use by scientific researchers, citizen-scientists, wilderness patrollers, and first responders to passively gather and process relevant data.

I hope that through my work I can became more whole as a person and bring all the aspects of my being into their natural vibrational resonance. And by doing so, arrive at the point in my existence where I can both fully give my gifts to the world and encourage others to do the same.

I feel fortunate to have been exposed to aspects of inclusivity from an early age. When I was ten years old my cousin broke his neck and became a quadriplegic. In the many years since that time, he has gone on to found an organization that I’m proud to be intimately associated with. Life Rolls On is a charity that provides events and experiences to improve the quality of life for people living with various disabilities. Spinal cord injury and neurological disease do not discriminate. The mix of participants, and the volunteers for that matter, include children, adults, men, women, paraplegics, quadriplegics, people with spina bifida or multiple sclerosis, individuals from both LGBTQ and straight communities, as well as affluent and disadvantaged circumstances. The diversity of not only the injuries of the participants but also their ethnicities, lifestyles, and backgrounds are why these events are so truly inspiring and transformative.

The experiences created by Life Rolls On are done so through the lens of action sports and are mainly surf and skate events. That being said, surfing and skating are activities that are challenging even for able-bodied individuals. So, to see a nine-year-old girl in a wheelchair drop into a twelve-foot bowl or watch a double-amputee veteran ride a wave on his stomach is to know that everyone is capable of exceptional things. It is with this knowing of adaptability and universal excellence that I endeavored into my graduate program and the beginning of my relationship with teaching.

During my time as a graduate teaching assistant I have been fortunate enough to work with students across the entire spectrum of backgrounds and circumstances similar to those of the Life Rolls On community. It has been comforting, stimulating, and extremely rewarding to find myself in this wondrous type of environment once again. In one quarter, in a relatively small class, I had the privilege to lead a project where students were assembled into groups of three and tasked with ideating and prototyping a new technology-based system. Over the course of this project, I taught a quiet female student from China how to solder, supervised the discovery of material options with a group of student athletes, and helped an affluent student to develop more universally critical ideation at each step of his creative process. Most if not all of the interactions that took place throughout this project provided an opportunity where I was not only teaching a diverse group of individuals usable skills, but also continuously learning to see topics and situations from the tremendous continuum of perspectives energizing the next generation.

I also consider myself lucky because my experience as a teaching assistant is in a creative course of study. For the most part, the courses are project based and built on fostering creativity and collaboration. In both the studio and cultural classes I assisted, students were encouraged to share their unique perspectives and to learn from each other. I was continuously amazed at the students’ willingness to be vulnerable and open to others in their classes, often autonomously co-creating the exact environment of inclusivity I strive to convey. Furthermore, the ever-evolving landscape of New Media tools and technologies has the immense potential, if implemented responsibly, to increase digital democracy. Thus, encouraging people who would otherwise not have the means to access and create through these mediums to do just that, and to have their work seen by diverse audiences all over the world.

As a grandchild of two Holocaust survivors, I have repeatedly heard first-person accounts of the harrowing discrimination and atrocities of the past. The trauma created by this event, and many others like it, is so large that many research projects have been undertaken to show that it has even been inherited by multiple generations. I believe that the large-scale disbursement of trauma is an extraordinary function of the human species and is necessary for something so emotionally and energetically devastating to be healed. It is unfortunate however, that even just one event like this isn’t enough for us to realize we are all in it together. Showing that there are still structural and philosophical dysfunctions at play in our social, economic, and political systems. That being said, I find that through both art and education that we can move from reactive behavior that results in “melancholic memorialization” to a proactive demeanor of “positive action” and begin to collectively ideate and initiate the changes that need to occur.

Personally, I feel that my own creative practice is informed by and made to transform my own experiences as well as those of my ancestors. Resulting in works that are created in part to foster more inclusivity for all those that live on this planet. For a few years now, I have been creating installations that explore ideas of biosemiotics and emotional energy, life-force elements that are truly shared by all beings regardless of race, religion, sexual preference, or lifestyle. It is through this lens of biological inclusiveness that I feel issues, experiences, and ideas can be addressed at their most fundamental level. A level that can be a platform on which students and educators–and everyone else for that matter–can come together to better understand one another. And with the shifting manifestations of global interaction, business, and new technologies, I believe it is important now more than ever that we stand on this platform and learn to function as effective communicators in the beautiful rainbow of environments that exist across our shared global setting.

Time in Digital Practices

The Time course introduces the fundamental concepts of time-based media, with an emphasis on audio and video production/post-production. The course moves at a fast-pace and covers the basics of recording/filming and editing. Students understand how to utilize, analyze, and manipulate time in digital media. Students learn the basic language and critical analysis techniques needed to understand when and how to take advantage of each time-based media. This course is not simply a technical skills class. Basic principles of media literacy are discussed and applied to critical thinking as an important aspect of the creative process. The conceptual angle of the course involves a critical look at our world. Technical skills are utilized in conjunction with critical concepts resulting in creative expression.

GIF Projects

Fictional Audio Narrative Projects (Foley)

Colorfield #1 By Angel Benton

Colorfield #2 By Sophie Smithgram

Colorfield #1 By Joe Ray

Stuck In My Mind and it’s the Last Place I Want To Be by Michelle Skibicki

Take That Mask Off by Kai Masuchika

Roommates by Walter Bryant

Genderfluid Meeting by Mina Lewis

“Very knowledgeable about the course software and tech, and his feedback was always on point and helpful to us.”

“This professor is good at keeping class discussions on track, and gives good constructive criticism.”

“An excellent course, I learned a lot about video editing and the feats I could achieve within Davinci Resolve. Jeremy always emphasizes the backgrounds of scenes and imagery, so learning how to manipulate the background to where the scene portrays what I am trying to convey perfectly was really interesting and a great skill to learn.”

“Lots of constructive criticism that challenge students to push themselves technically and creatively helpful in class demos class environment that encourages experimentation in class critiques have been extremely beneficial in multiple ways (project development, learning strategies to deliver feedback, accepting feedback) instructor himself is clearly knowledgeable and one of the better teachers I’ve had at DU.”

“Critical feedback given, fair grading, timely response, quality and depth of material is excellent.”

Imaging in Digital Practices

This course introduces digital imaging and digital illustration. Foundational technical methods and semiotics are introduced as ways to explore contemporary visual language. Students learn to understand the digital creation and deciphering of images in 2D space. The essential language and concepts concerning representation and digital reproduction are developed through critical study and making. Students work on a series of projects to gain a concrete understanding of how to navigate and manipulate images and forms in both vector and raster space through the use of Affinity Designer and Photo. Upon completion of this course, students are able to actively sketch ideas, arrange images and concepts in digital space and gain a foundation for static image manipulation.

Typography Portraits

World’s Fair Posters

Composites

“I think that Jeremy did a great job of introducing new tools and concepts clearly and made himself available for questions and one-on-one meetings which made it easy to get clarification on hard-to- grasp concepts.”

“Jeremy was an awesome instructor, and I felt that he really pushed me and the other students to expand our creativity and to develop a strong toolset/foundation moving forward. Even for me, whose artistic skill lacks greatly, I felt that I have come a long way from the beginning of the course, and was able to put together pieces of work that I was proud of.”

“I think this professors strengths are definitely patience and creativity. He is good at spending lots of time to work on our assignments and taking the time to help critique students work and help them think of creative ways to help their images. I have really learned to think broader and to not limit my imagination in my designs.”

“This whole class was an incredible crash course on different techniques and aesthetics in graphic design, exactly what I signed up for. Jeremy is a great instructor and all the assignments and fun, yet challenging.”

Digital Fabrication

Moving from the digital space to physical space requires consideration of a variety of transformations. There are varied pieces of software that make this possible and range from tens of thousands of dollars to free. The hardware required to make these translations are becoming more and more available at a non-commercial level. We examined digital fabrication processes that exist in both 2D and 3D applications. Students different skill levels determine their preferred directions and toolsets. Additional discussions and experiments involved materials and materiality; the look, feel, grain, strength, color, and finish of an object can change how it is read/received. This course covers several techniques for taking digital creations into the physical world. The focus is on various tools and materials and how the combination of both affects project ideas and fabrication. Techniques used included 3-D printing with specialized filaments as well as molds for larger production runs, plotting, and others.

Exquisite Corpse Cube – Basic Plotter Project

Commercial Association – Alternative Plotter Project

Additive Surrealism – Boolean Modeling Project

“This course teaches students a lot about relevant technology. We used the technology in different ways and explored its capabilities. The instructor was very helpful and let the students explore their talents in the projects. The projects also explored some interesting topics in society which was a nice combination.”

“This course is a good introduction to multiple different forms of digital fabrication. I think it covers the basics that students need and allows them to get inspired and have the foundational tools to pursue further ideas. Jeremy has been a good instructor for this course. He is a very fair grader and gives beneficial and meaningful feedback.”

Wearables

Wearable technology is one of the fastest growing subsets of art and science. With emerging research and development of smaller sensors, soft circuit technologies, and textile integration wearable technology is opening up new possibilities for clothing design and reactive garments. This course explores fundamental sewing, soldering, and coding techniques that can be used to create textile-based projects. These projects help students gain exposure in the field of Wearables, more specifically by critically re-imagining our relationships and sensory experiences with personal devices, accessories, and garments.

The topics discussed include senses, expressions, communications, identities, and social justice. We explored a variety of wearables and e-textile technologies, including but not limited to: conductive textile crafting, on-body sensors, motors, and modular circuitry. Students received hands-on experience of designing and prototyping wearable projects on an individual basis.

3D Spaces

This course is an exploration of the possibilities created by means of digital environments. Throughout the course students examined the opportunities present in the creation of 3D spaces to aid in applications such as games, narratives, visualizations, interaction design, virtual/augmented reality, and exhibition planning. Current theories and workflows that are valuable for various new media applications were covered. 3D modeling software and a real-time engines were utilized.

Students worked on a combination of exercises and larger projects to gain a concrete understanding of how to create, navigate, and implement digital representations of 3D space through the use of software such as Blender, Fusion 360, and Unity. Upon completion of this course, students are able to effectively bring real or imaginative environments to life for the purposes of player interaction or exhibition prototyping and design.

Final Project – Library of the Mind by Ryan Dunagan

Midterm Project – Dream Space by Carter Wirtz

Midterm Project by Grace Kishimoto

“Amazing class. Great project ideas and prompts. Allowed students to go far. Made me excited to work further on similar material in the future.”

“He is good at explaining concepts that are difficult to understand, and introduces the class to great sources of information.”

“I think that the instructor feedback and the persistence of check-ins and feedback sessions was a great help in keeping progress on track and inspiring great ideas within my projects.”

“Jeremy is an extremely knowledgeable and caring professor. He is very responsive via email and understanding of students’ questions and the other things going on in their lives. This course touches on a lot of concepts that are very important to digital art that are not touched on in other EDP courses.”

Exploring Digital Cultures

This course introduces fundamental concepts of digital technologies and networks from a cultural perspective. Students critically examine the broader impact of the internet, search engines, social media platforms, algorithms, surveillance capitalism, technological bias, and online cultural exchange. How can we envision preferable futures for online cultures? What methods can be used to evaluate possible digital futures? Students explore the different cultural aspects of critical speculation through theory, literature, speculative/science fiction, art, and making.

Midterm Projects – Networked Experiences

Final Projects – Pitch from the Future

Emergent Digital Systems

Emergent Digital Systems is a foundations level course in the EDP program at the University of Denver. As part of my responsibilities as a Graduate Teaching Assistant I was tasked with creating a lecture on Information Systems, specifically The Internet, Blockchain, and Artificial Intelligence. This lecture was given at a point in the course when we were transitioning from natural systems to technological based systems. Prior to this lecture maybe 10% of the course had an understanding of Blockchain technology. Blockchain as a system has numerous applications in the shifting elements of our society and is something that I feel all digitally inclined students need to be familiar with.

This point in the course also marked the time when students were introduced to electrical systems in order to better facilitate their final projects. To teach the students the basic electrical skills necessary for this transition the professor and I provided two individual workshops. The professor introduced multimeters to the students to show them how to test their circuits. I was tasked with teaching the students a workflow for soldering various electrical components such as through-hole and surface mount. We also addressed wire to wire connections, using heatshrink, and methods for desoldering just in case a bad solder joint was created.

The final project of this class asked the students to group up and develop a technology based system of their own. Due to the professor’s research responsibilities, I individually led the days during the course when this project was assigned to the students as well as the week of ideation for each of the groups’ projects. Once the professor returned we worked together to assist the groups with their progress and make sure the students were achieving their project goals.

  • Musical Pen by Max Bonaccorsi, Becket Mohns, and Evan Barbier
  • In Your Hands by Erik Fredericksen, Kelsey Briding, and Cole Moormann
  • Final Systems Project by Jordan Watson, Kylie Dillinger, and Benjamin Powell

“The first couple of weeks were amazing. Learning about the whole concept of systems and system interactions was amazing, I think learning about blockchain and crypto was incredibly useful, soldering is a sweet skill to have in my back pocket, and the breadth and depth of what we got into was fantastic. I feel I learned a great deal about important things I had never been exposed to, and the class was really fun and engaging on top of that.”

Sustainable Design

Sustainable Design is an upper level course in the EDP program taken by a mix of undergraduate and graduate students. As part of my Graduate Teaching duties I was asked to create a lecture and assignment centered on Blockchain Technology. At the time, we were just discovering the ecological effects that mining was having on the world. The main teaching points of this lecture provided a basic understanding of the technology and dove deeper into issues of sustainability. Further discussion was focused on the environmental impact of different consensus algorithms and their pros and cons, mainly Proof of Work and Proof of Stake. The relevant assignment tasked the students to come up with speculative applications of blockchain technology in a group setting.

I was truly amazed by how quickly the students grasped the technology, especially due to both its novelty and complexity. Further, the projects the students created sought to solve an incredibly wide array of issues, ranging from beehive maintenance, distributed electrical power, tree repopulation, and water access. This was the first assignment I created on my own and the student effort and caliber of projects that resulted serve as the beautiful foundation on which my interest with teaching rests and continues to grow.

“I loved all of the relevant and emergent technologies we discussed and worked with such as Crypto.
 Passion about the material.”

Biomedia

Biomedia is another upper level course in the EDP program taken by a mix of undergraduate and graduate students. As part of my role as the Graduate Teaching Assistant for this course I was again tasked with creating my own lecture and assignment. This time centered on prosthetics and the applications of technology to make useful and inclusive tools for individuals that may or may not have adaptive bodies. The most important part of this lecture and project was the recognition of the historical stigma associated with prosthesis. A considerable amount of time was spent with the students to understand this issue in order to make sure that the prosthesis they were creating served an important need while also being inclusive of all body types. Student were encouraged to be open, vulnerable, and serious with this project because their creations had the considerable potential to make a difference for themselves and others. Additional instruction was provided in methods of digital fabrication, circuit design, and Arduino programming so that students were able to have the skills required to succeed in building their respective projects.

The majority of projects took considerable advantage of 3D printing so that they could quickly iterate through designs and make sure their prosthesis were fulfilling the needs they set out to improve.

“The professor is very knowledgeable and kind. Between the TA and the professor, we could always get questions answered.”

“Weaver is a great teacher, very knowledgeable. Him and Jeremy make an awesome pair and helped me a lot throughout this course.”

** Most links to student work go to their student portfolios and websites which may be taken down in the future. If there is a broken link, please do let me know by sending an email to jeremy.billauer@gmail.com. Thank you.