In Class: Sound Sampler
Art and Design professor “Making mix CDs was very big in my family,” says professor Blair Ebony Smith. (Image by Fred Zwicky) I teach classes on art and design and on gender and women’s studies. One of my courses is called Facilitating Art Experience. Two of the main questions we address are “What is art?” and “How do we teach it?” For one assignment, students get to teach anything they want. It gets them to think about how art and teaching show up in our lives on a daily basis.
In my museum focus course, students imagine, curate and install their own exhibits. The School of Art + Design has a unique space next to Krannert Art Museum where students can showcase their work. They get to create museum exhibits while we’re learning about the subject. They also meet with museum professionals and artists.
I encourage students to make things as an alternative to more traditional projects or papers. It’s great for my students in art education, who see themselves as artists. They’re creating and making things every day. It can be more of a challenge for my gender and women’s studies students. I think that when you show up in a class and the professor’s asking you to create something, it can be harder than being given a prompt and asked to write a response or a paper.
I work with Saving Our Lives Hear Our Truths (SOLHOT), a group that makes spaces for Black girls to celebrate. We’ve done national gatherings and organizing in Chicago, South Carolina, a lot of different places.
My father was an avid collector of music, particularly jazz and funk, R&B and hip-hop. Making mix CDs was very big in my family. In college, I co-founded a student organization that brought hip-hop artists to campus. I had a friend who gave me his turntables. That started my curiosity about the practice of DJing.
My artist/DJ name is “lovenloops.” A lot of the music that I make is playing around with loops—sound samples that repeat over and over. I like to sample vinyl records. It’s my way of making sense of my work. Part of me becoming a DJ was being able to honor myself as a young girl who’s always been in love with music. And being able to share that with others. That is important.
Edited and condensed from an interview conducted on Feb. 11, 2025.
