Eureka College Professors Demonstrating Expertise Outside Campus This Winter
EUREKA – Eureka College is proud to have talented faculty members who are trailblazers in their respective fields and leaders in their community.
This semester, a trio of faculty members have recently used their unique skills and expertise to make an impact outside of campus:
· Dr. Alexander Swan, associate professor of psychology, released an online learning course on understanding cognitive biases through The Great Courses/Wondrium.
· Rhea Edge, art studio manager and longtime art professor at EC, currently has two art exhibits on display at the Contemporary Art Center of Peoria.
· Dr. Adriana Martinez, assistant professor of music, recently gave a lecture, demonstration and master class on art song of Latin America and Spain at Illinois Wesleyan University.
Swan’s course, which was released in January, helps students identify and understand some of the more common cognitive biases that affect how people think about and navigate through the world. Over 24 lectures, Swan defines and gives several examples for each bias, and explains the results and conclusions from seminal research studies.
“Understanding Cognitive Biases” is designed to appeal to everyone on the cognitive bias spectrum – not just students in the psychology field. The course can be purchased/streamed through The Great Courses/Wondrium with an audio-only version through Audible.com.
Edge is a skilled realistic and abstract painter whos art focuses on ecology. In this mentor-mentee exhibition at the Contemporary Art Center of Peoria, Edge partners with artist and Illinois State University educator, Harold Boyd.
The first show is called “Lost Lore,” and it is currently located in the Preston Jackson Gallery. With a focus on the human story, Boyd’s fluid ink drawings and figures are poignantly recognizable, while dramatic images of motion and flight depict nature out of balance in Edge’s paintings.
The second show is called “Printmakers,” and it can be found in Gallery 3R. Boyd’s gestural figures defy gravity, exploring lithography, etching and relief printmaking with fluid lines in a largely black and white world. Edge, meanwhile, delivers the power of stealth bombers and predatory birds, abstracted etchings, lithographs and relief prints. The two shows are open through Feb. 18.
Martinez is a specialist in American music, and her research and teaching focuses on the role that music plays in the formation of national identity in Latin America and the United States. She presented her guest lecture, demonstration and master class on “Art Song of Latin America and Spain” on Monday, Jan. 23 inside Westbrook Auditorium of Presser Hall for the Illinois Wesleyan School of Music.