Stearns Creative Electronics

A project that focuses on the developing the creative use of electronics in the arts and beyond through workshops, seminars, lectures, classes, and the production of works for public exhibition at international conferences, symposiums and festivals.

The Stearns Creative Electronics is a project to support creative and educational endeavors as I transition into a practice dedicated to the promotion of electronics education through the arts. The project's long range goals are to develop engaging, creative, goal-oriented, hands-on workshops to teach electronics; investigate ways of supporting and participating in a do-it-yourself (DIY) culture of self-sufficiency and free exchange of knowledge on a local and international scale; and incorporate the aforementioned goals into an ecologically aware practice by powering projects with renewable energies and through salvaging and re-purposing discarded materials.

Since 2006 I have been sharing my knowledge of electronics through workshops that draw their inspiration from my personal artistic projects. My first presentations were at Machine Project for the Dorkbot SoCal, a forum for "people doing strange things with electricity". In 2007 I led several introductory workshops --- at Machine Project (LA), California Institute of the Arts, LAMES (Austria), Eyebeam (NYC) --- teach basic electronics through circuit bending, the creative re-use of obsolete or discarded electronic toys or musical instruments. Workshops that I led during 2008 were geared towards teaching more advanced electronics, a reflection of my own artistic work. The creation of the Stearns Creative Electronics project represents a shift in my practice from focusing on producing solo "art works" to developing workshops for teaching electronics through creative group projects. In 2009 that meant teaming up with Solar1 to teach solar powered electronics to high-school students; holding workshops at NYC Resistor, a local NYC based hacker space; joining 3rd Ward's team of talented educators to offer workshops in creative electronics; and offer analog electronics workshops in Mexico City for the Transitio_MX electronic arts festival. In 2010 Stearns creative electronics offered a free lecture series at Harvestworks along with a 5-part workshop series and 5-day intensive DIY synth class; several classes in electronic at 3rd Ward; a DIY synth workshop at Machine Project (Los Angeles); and a circuit bending workshop at Eyebeam for Make Music New York.

Stearns Creative Electronics is a sponsored project of Fractured Atlas, a non-profit arts service organization. Contributions in behalf of Stearns Creative Electronics may be made payable to Fractured Atlas and are tax-deductible to the extent permitted by law. You can make your contribution now by visiting the Stearns Creative Electronics donations page on the Fractured Atlas website:

https://www.fracturedatlas.org/donate/2402

For information regarding check and in-kind (equipment) donations, please contact me directly A pixelform[at]art-rash[dot]com.

Warmest Thanks,

Phillip Stearns

Op Amp workshop @ the DCTV center NYC for Bent Festival 2008