Arts ReimaginED Teaching Artists | Supporting Learners at Werklund Centre

Discovery Lab: Purpose, Connection, Collaboration, and Mentorship
May 1 – 3, 2025

How do purpose, connection, collaboration, and mentorship shape and elevate your creative practice and teaching artistry?

Teaching artists are invited to explore these foundational elements and their transformative impact on artistic growth, learning environments, and community engagement. This interactive experience will guide artists in understanding how their own curiosity and inquiry process can deepen artistic expression, strengthen relationships, and foster meaningful change.

By engaging in both group and individual sessions, participants will discover how purpose fuels creativity, connection builds trust, collaboration expands possibilities, and mentorship nurtures the next generation of artists and learners.

The Discovery Lab is co-designed and facilitated by Jean E. Taylor (Lincoln Center Education) and Karen Youngberg (Arts Commons Education).

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Teaching Artist Delights
Fall 2025

Launching soon, Werklund Centre Education invites you to Teaching Artist Delights—bi-monthly gatherings designed to spark joy, deepen practice, and nourish our vibrant teaching artist community.

These sessions are a space to experiment, reflect, connect, and create. Whether you're refining your facilitation tools, trying out a new idea, or simply craving conversation with fellow artists who get it, this is your space to grow.

Expect low-stakes, high-play invitations. Expect laughter, "aha" moments, and expect to leave recharged.

Arts ReimaginED is creating opportunities for arts facilitators and teaching artists!

As the largest performing arts centre in Western Canada, Werklund Centre is uniquely situated to be a catalyst for change in our community. Arts ReimaginED will lay the groundwork for a new understanding of arts education in our community and support you in the vital work you do.

As part of the Education Arts Benchmark Survey conducted by Werklund Centre in collaboration with Calgary Arts Development, we heard from you that teaching artists want to engage and learn more AND connect to more teaching opportunities!

History of Teaching Artist Development at Werklund Centre

In 2023, Werklund Centre Education launched Calgary’s first Teaching Artist Development initiative, in collaboration with Jean E. Taylor from the Lincoln Centre in New York City. The initiative was strongly rooted in collaboration and community engagement and endeavoured to define what teaching artistry means within Calgary while assessing the local interest in this evolving practice.

In 2024, Werklund Centre Education deepened its commitment to teaching artistry by bringing together teaching artists to further explore and define the practice. Once again collaborating with Jean E. Taylor, we introduced the Curiosity Lab: Building Curiosity. Noticing. Process. Collaboration. —a space to examine how these elements shape both creative practice and teaching artistry. This three-day experience was intentionally designed through multiple perspectives and ways of knowing, to ensure a well-rounded and inclusive approach.

Meet the mentors

Karen Youngberg

Jean E. Taylor

Arts ReimaginED is creating opportunities for arts facilitators and teaching artists!

Witness the wonder

OF ARTS EDUCATION

Partner

Public Sector Support