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3/20 (the vernal equinox) at Brooklyn Bridge Park, 6:30pm til sundown
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fruitful.school

fruitful.school is an independently-run workshop series founded in 2020 by laurel schwulst and john provencher.

fruitful.school was founded to explore the ways artists experiment and publish to the World Wide Web.

for our winter 2024 workshop series, we invite participants to interact with the web in a new way through our two 3-week workshops.

This Winter 2024, we offer 2 workshops under a new format ... each is three weeks long ... in-person in NYC ...

β€œUltralight,” led by Laurel Schwulst, is a workshop on creating lightweight websites as an extension of artistic practice β€” understanding the web as connected to physical place and accessible in multiple formats.

more info

β€œNPC Artist,” led by John Provencher, is a workshop on generative programming for the web β€” exploring the ways contemporary artists and programmers use generative software in their practice.

more info

John Provencher is an independent artist, designer, and educator based in New York City. His practice explores the generative nature of software as a tool to produce works both online and offline.

(teacher & co-founder @ fruitful school)

Laurel Schwulst is a designer, artist, writer, and educator. She is interested in ambient forms of design and literature, public works, and the poetic potential of the web. She has taught interactive design at Princeton & Yale, and currently works at Are.na.

(teacher & co-founder @ fruitful school)

Maya Man is an artist focused on contemporary identity culture on the internet.

(guest for NPC Artist @ fruitful school)

Travess Smalley is an artist working with computation to make generative image systems.

(guest for NPC Artist @ fruitful school)

Marie Otsuka is a designer and programmer working on fonts, websites, tools, and books.

(guest for Ultralight @ fruitful school)

Benjamin Earl is a designer, artist, writer, and programmer who considers surrounding environments, the internet, communities, and time.

(guest for Ultralight @ fruitful school)

Looking for our alumni?

When and where are workshops held? (+)

For our winter 2024 session, workshops will be held in person at Index Space in NYC, at 120 Walker Street in Soho/Chinatown.

They will happen on Sunday afternoons from 1-5pm. For Ultralight, it's January 14, 21, and 28. For NPC Artist, it's February 4, 11, and 18.

Do I need any coding knowledge prior? (+)

Although we encourage all levels of experience, each workshop will have recommended at least some prior coding knowledge. Refer to the class pages for more info.

Are there scholarships available? (+)

Each class has different options for scholarships. See the class page FAQ or application page for more info.

Can I take workshops remotely? (+)

For our Winter 2024 sessions, we will be hosting our workshops at Index Space in NYC in person. However, if you are interested in future remote possibilities, feel free to fill out this form.

Can I take both workshops? (+)

If you want to take both, you should apply for both separately. If you are admitted into both, we can offer you a modest price reduction. ($900 is the price for each class separately, or if you get into both, it's $1500.)

Will there be future workshops? (+)

Yes. Subscribe/follow for more updates.

Since we all come from different backgrounds and want to create a safe and open environment for collaboration, we've created a code of conduct to better interact with each other as students and teachers.

Fruitful School’s Code of Conduct

As we talk to each other at Fruitful School, we are:
  • open and free
  • suspending judgement
  • not afraid to share an honest opinion or risky idea
  • building on each other’s ideas
  • sharing often while respecting others’ time to share
  • always trying to help each other create their best work
we do not tolerate:
  • sexist, racist, homophobic, transphobic, ableist, religious discrimination or otherwise discriminatory actions
  • violence in any form
  • unwelcome physical contact or hostile attention
  • deliberate intimidation or stalking
  • advocating for, or encouraging, any of the above behavior
As we present our work, we:
  • communicate in a clear and concise manner
  • describe where we’re at in the process
  • don't self deprecate our own work
  • leave lots of room for others to speak
When we offer feedback to others during critique, we:
  • first…
    • state the facts
    • describe what you see
    • describe what you hear
  • after…
    • describe how *YOU* feel
    • share any associations…

our code of conduct is a work in progress. it was inspired by others and continues to evolve through use. see original blog post for more info.

Winter 2024 β€” Workshops

Ultralight

Lightweight Websites in Time & Place ...
( January 14, 21, 28 )  •   NYC

by Laurel Schwulst

NPC Artist

Programming for the Generative Web ...
( February 4, 11, 18 )   •   NYC

by John Provencher

Greetings,

Happy December! Today we are excited to announce two separate workshops for our Winter 2024 season of Fruitful School, which will take place in-person at Index Space in NYC.

These workshops are different than past workshops in an effort to expand on how contemporary artistic practices engage with the world wide web or technology at large. We want Fruitful School to be a place where artists, designers, writers, and programmers who are curious about how their practice engages with technology today can explore new ways of working.

The first workshop, β€œUltralight,” is led by Laurel. It’s about creating lightweight websites that also consider time & place β€” and explore topics including accessibility, sustainability, and formats. We’ll cover basic HTML, CSS, some JavaScript, and a little physical computing. (January 14, 21, & 28)

The second workshop, β€œNPC Artist,” is led by John. It’s about generative programming for the web β€” exploring the ways contemporary artists and programmers use javascript and other software to enable chance in their practice. (February 4, 11, & 18)

Each workshop is three weeks long and will take place on Sunday afternoons (1-5pm) at Index Space in NYC (120 Walker Street).

Each of these sessions is self-contained; that is, there will be lecture, demonstration, workshop, and sharing all within the course of four hours together. Participants will be present and ready to work during the session and dialogue afterwards.

Each workshop will also invite guest practioners to lecture and sometimes co-workshop together. For Ultralight, we are welcoming Marie Otsuka and Benjamin Earl, and for NPC Artist, we are excited to have Maya Man and Travess Smalley.

We welcome you to apply.

See you in 2024,

John & Laurel

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