Joseph Poon
Joe Poon is a full time high school art educator and a conceptual artist. He works primarily in video and installation, but counts performance (as teacher) and social practice as contemporary forms of expression as well. He is concerned with deep metaphysical, philosophical, and esoteric topics, but knows that life can't be taken this seriously and that however you live your life at the present moment is all that matters. Much of his work is found within his interior soul, as he spends a lot of time thinking about works he would like to create and indulges in self-satisfaction with these ideas. Some works take form (and are built, painted, or filmed) and he decides to submit them to open calls or try to get them to be displayed or viewable by a public audience. He enjoys teaching art "by day", and his main teaching goals are to inspire students to just make art for their own sakes. "The only artist you need to be better than is the one you were yesterday" is the mantra in his classroom. Joe attempts to, and might fail at times, to construct an environment where the art-making is not comparative or competitive, but rather uplifting, collaborative, and experimental. In his pedagogical experiments, he has introduced elements/skills of compromise, and empathy as ideal forms of learning and the habit of self-assessment and reflection as vital to life's greatest pursuits.
Website:
http://joe-poon.squarespace.com/