ALAN ORRISON

The core of my teaching philosophy is centered on two values: dialogue and exploration. I believe that photography is a superior tool of discovery and I strive to motivate students to remain constantly curious about the world around them.

 

Although a high level of craft is stressed at all times, the learning process involves more than simply offering technical assistance. I encourage an atmosphere of active, creative dialogue that continuously challenges students’ ideas and pushes their creative vision to the highet level. My primary objective is to enable my students to analyze our world and process their findings through effective visual communication.

           

It is also important, I believe, that students be trained to digest the overwhelming amount of visual communication with which contemporary society is infatuated—whether fine art photography, images of mass communication, or image-logged social networking websites. Only after filtering this information can one’s purest artistic vision be realized.

 

Finally, I recognize that much can be taught through professional example. For this reason, I strive to remain active in my own artistic pursuits so as to be recognized by my students as a comrade in the constant labor of creating meaningful, fulfilling art.