EDUCATIONAL PROGRAMME OVERVIEW
The JRSP has supported the study of art since 2008, with major donations to the University of Cambridge and the University of Victoria, as well as through its ongoing Company of Ideas Forums that take place every year on Hornby Island. In early 2017 it endowed an Educational Programme to ‘advance the understanding and appreciation of art as a source of knowledge, and to raise awareness of the art of Jeffrey Rubinoff’. This programme includes the Company of Ideas Forum, as well as an awards programme for a Postdoctoral Award, a Graduate Essay Award, and a Guest Curatorship. In addition, the Educational Programme supports the research and writing costs of an ongoing publication series on art and knowledge. In the future, a biennial lecture series and international academic conference on this topic have are also under consideration.
The Company of Ideas Forum
Held annually at the sculpture park
The Company of Ideas was established by Jeffrey Rubinoff in 2008 to discuss major issues relating to art and society. Of Rubinoff’s many concerns, the most fundamental related to morality and conscience. Rubinoff believed that a ‘mature individual conscience’ was not only the basis for original art but also for sustained social engagement. He was convinced that serious artists were obliged to address the biggest issues of their time, which in his view were the ‘existential threats’ of nuclear weapons and human genetic engineering. In doing so, they could influence their audience’s thinking and contribute to historical change.
Publication Series on Art as a Source of Knowledge
Publications completed on a four-year cycle
Approximately every four years, the JRSP aims to publish a major scholarly volume exploring art as a source of knowledge. The first volume in the series, Art and Knowledge After 1900: Interactions between Modern Art and Thought, was edited by Dr. James Fox and Dr. Vid Simoniti and published by Manchester University Press in 2023. Future volumes will be developed under the direction of Dr. Vid Simoniti, Director of Educational Programmes, and researched and written by established scholars. Their titles and formats remain to be determined, but they are expected to explore concepts central to Rubinoff’s thought, including conscience, the sacred, and awe. Proposed themes include Art and Conscience, Art and the Sacred, and Art and Awe.
Rubinoff Awards Programme
Awarded Annually and Biennially
Each year the Jeffrey Rubinoff Sculpture Park will choose a Rubinoff Postdoctoral Awardee for their outstanding research in the field of Art as a Source of Knowledge. In addition, there are annual and biennial awards for artists making works inspired by the collection, an Arts Educator Support Fund and Guest Curatorships.
International Conference
To coincide with major book publications
International conferences are currently under consideration to mark the publication of each of the major books. The conference would feature papers by most of the contributors to the book, but would also be open to delegates from around the world. The purpose of the event would be to ensure that the books have field-defining impact.
Rubinoff Lecture Series
Biennially or other schedule suitable to host institution
Considered in our future plans is a Rubinoff lecture series in partnership with a major art institution that sets the activities of the JRSP in the broader context of art history. The Rubinoff Lecture will be delivered by a distinguished international name who will be chosen in consultation with the host institution. The lecture would be advertised widely and would be open to the public.