Social Practice and Interdisciplinary Collaboration // Michael Asbill, Amanda Heidel, Steve Rossi

CAA Conversations

In this conversation Steve Rossi speaks with Michael Asbill and Amanda Heidel, about Amanda’s Mushroom Shed MFA thesis project, which explored the mushroom lifecycle as a model for community engagement through developing connections between the State University of New York at New Paltz Sculpture Program, the Biology Department, and the surrounding community. Themes relating to interdisciplinary collaborations, faculty mentorship, and individual vs. collaborative authorship are all explored. Steve Rossi is currently an Assistant Professor and Sculpture Program Head at St. Joseph’s University in Philadelphia, where he has been developing interdisciplinary studio art pedagogy connected to the varied fields of environmental ethics and occupational therapy. He received his BFA from Pratt Institute in 2000 and his MFA from the State University of New York at New Paltz in 2006. His work has been exhibited at Dorsky Curatorial Projects, Eco Art Space, NURTUREart, the Open Engagement Conference at the Queens Museum, Bronx Art Space, the Wassaic Project, the John Michael Kohler Art Center, the Jules Collins Smith Museum of Fine Arts, and the public art festival Art in Odd Places among many others. He has participated in artist residencies with the Vermont Studio Center, Lower Manhattan Cultural Council, and Gallery Aferro in Newark, New Jersey. As a part-time faculty member, he has taught in the First Year Program at Parsons School of Design and the Sculpture Program and Art Education Program at the State University of New York at New Paltz. Michael Asbill weaves arts advocacy, community engagement, environmentalism, and curatorial endeavor into his installation and public art practice. His work has been experienced in venues such as Sporobole and Galerie Zybaldone (Sherbrooke, QC), Flux Factory (Long Island City, NY), The Oregon City Elevator, and the Poughkeepsie Train Station. As a core collaborator with Habitat for Artists, Michael contributed to eco and social engagement projects for Smack Mellon (Brooklyn, NY), Arts Brookfield (New York, NY), Washington DC’s Commission on the Arts and Humanities, the Corcoran Museum (Washington, DC), and 601 Tully (Syracuse, NY). He has received numerous grants, awards, commissions, and honors including the New York State/Province of Quebec Artist in Residence Exchange Grant, inclusion in the “Introducing” series at the Roger Smith Hotel, and was honored, at the 2018 Arts Mid-Hudson/Ulster County Executive Arts Awards, with the title of “Artivist” which was invented to acknowledge his community contributions. Michael is the founder and director of CHRCH Project Space (Rosendale, NY), a residency for the development of pioneering, community-based, participatory artworks. Michael is a visiting lecturer, and currently head of the sculpture program, at the State University of New York in New Paltz. Amanda Heidel is an artist and educator living in Ithaca, NY. Her research in life cycles, collaborative structures, and community engagement led to the creation of Mushroom Shed, a community project that looks to the mushroom lifecycle as a model for community engagement. In addition, Amanda teaches outdoor mushroom cultivation and facilitates the Community Mushroom Educator program through Cornell Small Farms Program. She is also the Grants Manager for Choice Words Ithaca, a grant writing and fundraising firm that helps businesses, nonprofits, educational institutions, and municipalities identify and acquire grant funding.