Educator on the Future of Art and Technology: Dana Harris Seeger
Dana Harris Seeger is a phenomenal painter, print maker, educator and entrepreneur. She was KQED’s 2016 Women to Watch and was one of three artist laureates for Silicon Valley 2020.
As a passionate educator, Dana has taught for children and college students while founding School of Visual Philosophy in San Jose, CA in 2013. School of Visual Philosophy bridges the gap between what’s missing in higher art education and professional development. Students at her school have access to classes, gain skills for their careers, and have a community.
Dana also exhibits her work and has an upcoming show in 2022 at the Triton Museum of Art. There, she will showcase installation based and interactive art work. With conductive ink and screen printing, images will be interactive so viewers can touch and trigger some projections. Dana also has a gift for 2D media: print media, painting, encaustic painting. With inspiration from her personal experiences and Baltic American familial heritage, Dana uses multi and mixed media to resonate her connection with them. Her art references how the past is intersecting with the present because time isn’t linear, “things that influence us now are from the past and relevant to today”.
Dana and her husband continue to teach at the School of Visual Philosophy with additional instructors from Italy and France. As a supportive network, they’re open to listening to feedback and suggestions to what artists want to learn so they can make it possible. Her goals are to change the way art is taught, how art is looked at in society, and break stereotypes of artists being lazy. One of the best pieces of advice she’s received was from a graduate professor, “you have the power within yourself to get to where you want to go...you don’t need to rely on someone to achieve your goals”. With this, Dana tries to instill the knowledge on emerging artists. She expressed, “...embrace your own story, you’ll have a clarity of your vision and you’ll be able to express that to other people and through your artwork”. Stay dedicated, don’t give up, and stay true to yourself.
