Fine Arts - Assistant Professor (Department of Art, Indigenous Art Studio)

Fine Arts - Assistant Professor (Department of Art, Indigenous Art Studio)

Job Title: Fine Arts - Assistant Professor (Department of Art, Indigenous Art Studio)

About the University

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We are one of Canada’s top universities and leading research institutions. With more than 8,000 undergraduate and graduate students, two campuses (Lethbridge and Calgary), seven faculties and schools, and more than 2,500 employees, ULethbridge is Lethbridge’s second largest employer. Faculty and staff come together to contribute, each in their own way, to establishing ULethbridge as Canada’s destination university.

Rank

The Department of Art at the University of Lethbridge invites applications for an Assistant Professor with a specialization in Indigenous Art Studio Practices, to begin 1 July 2025.

Salary Range: $79,132 to $94,000

The University of Lethbridge is strongly committed to equity, diversity, inclusion, and reconciliation. This is demonstrated by its ongoing work, relationships, and connections with the Blackfoot Confederacy. The University strives to provide access and opportunity to historically excluded groups identified under the Employment Equity Act. In accordance with Section 10.1 of the Alberta Human Rights Act, selection for the position will be limited to Indigenous/Aboriginal People. Candidates will be asked to self-identify as part of the application process.

Position Description

The successful candidate will:

• Design curriculum for and teach courses in Indigenous studio art practices at the undergraduate level.
• Contribute to graduate programs through teaching, committee supervision or participation, and/or mentorship of graduate students.
• Develop and teach undergraduate courses in other areas of the art studio program or within the Faculty of Fine Arts, as relevant to the successful candidate’s experience, expertise, and interests.
• Contribute to development of new curriculum and revision of existing curriculum at the program and course level.
• Articulate and conduct a program of original and impactful creative practice and/or scholarly research, as appropriate to the Assistant Professor rank and as required for future tenure and promotion in the Faculty of Fine Arts.
• Contribute in a meaningful and collaborative way to departmental, Faculty, and University service and collegial governance, through participation in committees and other activities such as external outreach, recruitment, and service with organizations in their field.
• Lead outreach, recruitment, and/or engagement activities to serve Indigenous students, community members, and/or artists, fostering positive, reciprocal relationships with Indigenous communities and organizations.

Qualifications

• Applicants will demonstrate sufficient knowledge, training, and expertise to fulfill the position requirements listed above. Knowledge, training, and expertise may be demonstrated might include one or more of: formal education at the graduate level (e.g. MFA or equivalent), professional or community-based experience, in-depth engagement in traditional forms of knowledge transfer and mentorship, and other experiences outlined by the candidate.
• An established and recognized professional, educational, or community-based arts practice.
• Ability to articulate a feasible and significant creative practice/research plan, with outcomes appropriate to the rank of an Assistant Professor.
• Ability to develop and teach studio courses in Indigenous art practices, teaching students from a range of academic areas and artistic backgrounds, including students from outside of fine arts programs.
• Ability to develop and teach courses in one or more areas of either the art studio program (such as drawing, painting, print, photo arts, media arts, sculpture/spatial practice, social practice) or within the Faculty of Fine Arts (such as art history, museum studies, music, new media, theatre/drama, cinema/film studies, interdisciplinary/multidisciplinary areas).
• Ability to contribute to curriculum development at the department level.
• Effectiveness as a teacher or mentor to students or emerging artists. This can be demonstrated through experience in postsecondary education or in other educational, community-based, or professional contexts.
• Ability to teach a diverse student body, to incorporate innovative and equity-informed pedagogical approaches in their teaching, and to contribute to decolonization and Indigenization through teaching activities.
• Ability to develop and lead outreach, recruitment, and engagement activities that build positive relationships with Indigenous students and communities.
• Ability to contribute to a collaborative department and Faculty culture through collegiality, reliability, professional communication, and conflict resolution skills.
• Demonstrated history of positive collaboration/contributions to Indigenous communities.

Preferred Attributes

• Ability to contribute to the museum studies program through teaching, mentoring students, or supervising student internships.
• Established, collaborative relationships with the Blackfoot/Blackfeet community or other Indigenous communities in the region.
• Creative/scholarly interest in digital media, artificial intelligence, and interactive technologies, with potential to contribute to ongoing interdisciplinary and collaborative initiatives within the Faculty.
• Established teaching or research practice that engages with Blackfoot/Blackfeet ontologies and epistemologies and/or with land-based creative approaches and pedagogies.

Application Process

Interested individuals should submit an application that includes:

• A letter of interest that describes artistic background/experience, outlines relationships to community, and explains interest in the position;
• Examples of creative work, provided through a link to professional website, links to websites for exhibitions and cultural projects, images with image list, links to video/audio sites;
• Names and contact information for three qualified referees. We request one reference who can speak to the candidate’s connections with and relationship to Indigenous community/communities, as well as two references who can address the candidate’s teaching and research/creative practice qualifications. Referees will be contacted for shortlisted candidates.

Applications must be received by February 14, 2025.

Please address application documents to:

Dr. Heather Davis-Fisch, Dean

Faculty of Fine Arts, University of Lethbridge

finearts.dean@uleth.ca