Van McElwee

Position

Professor; Program Facilitator, Media Production

Department

Electronic and Photographic Media

Home Campus

St. Louis (Webster Groves)

Courses Taught

EPMD 1000 Introduction to Media Production and VIDE 4253 Experimental Video

Education

MFA in Multimedia, Washington University School of Art; BFA in Printmaking, Memphis College of Art

Teaching Philosophy

"In class, I try to create a collaborative environment in which students can become engaged and inspired. Intro classes stress a combination of theory and technique to explore the myriad ways medium and message shape one another. In advanced classes, such as Experimental Video, students work on their own ideas and I function as a catalyst by providing structure, suggestions and cultural context."

About

Media artist Van McElwee's body of work includes over 40 single-channel pieces and installations. Grants and awards include the American Film Institute Independent Filmmaker Award, the National Endowment for the Arts Independent Production Fund (seven-time recipient) and a travel grant from the Government of India. McElwee's work has been exhibited extensively worldwide and is represented by The Kitchen in New York, Trabant Gallery in Austria, Heure Exquise! in France and 235 Media in Germany.

Van McElwee was named a 2010 Guggenheim Fellow.  According to the John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation,  the fellowship is given to "men and women who have already demonstrated exceptional capacity for productive scholarship or exceptional creative ability in the arts."

At Webster, McElwee has received the Wilma and Roswell Messing Faculty Award, a Media Association Faculty Award and a Faculty Research Grant. McElwee has been teaching since 1978.