Photo by Steve Thackston
Susannah Darrow (M.A. ’13), a lecturer in the College of the Arts, is teaching for the first time at Georgia State.
What are you teaching this semester?
Critical Issues in Contemporary Art. I like to think of it as functional art history for studio majors.
Tell us a little bit about your background?
I’m originally from Atlanta and have always been very connected to the city. After I finished my undergraduate degree, I came back to Georgia State for my master’s in art history. Around the same time the nonprofit I was co-founding, BURNAWAY, was getting off the ground. It was a crazy couple of years doing both simultaneously, but the art history program here had a huge impact on how BURNAWAY developed in the early days.
There was a lot of great symbioses that came out of that period in my life that have directly led to the work I am doing now. Since then I have also worked with the online arts publication ArtsATL, and now I’m running a consulting firm with an emphasis on supporting the growth of the arts and culture sector in Atlanta.
What inspired you to come to Georgia State?
The art history program has a faculty I’m excited to work with — they’re not just academics, but people who are deeply involved and active in their fields in myriad ways. I know because I’ve gone through the program. The students are pretty cool, too.
What are you most looking forward to this semester?
The main thing I am excited about is that I get to take my class on field trips to see galleries, institutions and meet artists all over Atlanta. They won’t be sitting in a classroom all semester, which I think makes for a great opportunity for more dynamic thinking.
What are some of your favorite things about teaching classes here?
Teaching is a great opportunity to keep learning and to think a bit more deeply about the artists and issues that I talk about in my job every day. Because the course I teach is on contemporary issues, I have to be mindful of what's next. This course is a fun excuse to make sure I am staying up to speed with the rest of my field.