Tenure-Track Position in Creative Artificial Intelligence, Design and Computation Arts
Job title: Tenure-Track Position in Creative Artificial Intelligence, Design and Computation Arts
Position code: 21_T_DCART_M
Date posted: October 7, 2022
Application deadline: December 15, 2022
Advertised until: Position is filled
Position Description
The Department of Design and Computation Arts in the Faculty of Fine Arts invites applications for a full-time, tenure-track position at the rank of Assistant Professor in Creative Artificial Intelligence to begin August 1, 2023. Exceptional candidates at the Associate level may also be considered. Duties include research and teaching at both the graduate and undergraduate levels, and service to the institution.
Artificial Intelligence (AI) technologies are increasingly part of our everyday lives, transforming all sectors of society, including communication, design, and art. The selected candidate will play an instrumental role in challenging the status quo of technology-led AI research and research-creation, by asking crucial questions such as:
- How do these new techniques change our aesthetic sense and challenge what might constitute a work of art or any creative experience and output of human beings?
- How can designers and artists remain creative, critical, and innovative in a world of similarities and implicit bias powered by algorithms?
The ideal candidate is a creative practitioner, researcher, and coder whose computationally-based work is disseminated or realized through platforms and cultural contexts where the potential and boundaries of artificial intelligence and art are being tested. Diversity, heterogeneity, and representation within AI and computational arts are urgent, and preference will be given to candidates addressing these issues through their research. The Department is particularly interested in applicants whose work involves one or more of the following areas:
- Critical approaches to AI Ethics and Equity (e.g., critical design, design justice, algorithmic bias);
- AI and Indigenous Knowledge (e.g., Indigenous protocols and AI, relational technologies)
- AI and Critical Design (e.g., speculative design, adversarial design, design fiction);
- AI and Procedural Generation (e.g., text, images, sounds, worlds, games); and/or
- AI and Interaction Design (e.g., social media algorithms, algorithmic literacy, AI-assisted design).
Qualifications and assets
Candidates must have a terminal degree (such as a PhD, MFA, or MDes) or the equivalent combination of education and professional experience. The main criteria for selection are scholarly and teaching excellence. The successful candidate will provide evidence of high-quality scholarly and creative output that demonstrates potential for independent research-creation leading to peer assessed publications, exhibitions, or other outputs and the securing of external research funding, as well as strong potential for outstanding teaching contributions at both the undergraduate and graduate levels. Candidates are encouraged to share any career interruptions or personal circumstances that may have had an impact on their career goals in their letter of application. These will be carefully considered in the assessment process. The Department values diversity among its faculty and strongly encourages applications from women and members of underrepresented groups. Concordia University is an English-language institution of higher learning at which the primary language of instruction and research is English. Since this position supports academic functions of the university, proficiency in English is required. Working knowledge of French is an asset.
How to Apply
All qualified candidates are encouraged to apply; however Canadians and Permanent Residents will be given priority. To comply with the Government of Canada’s reporting requirements, the University is obliged to gather information about applicants’ status as either Permanent Residents of Canada or Canadian citizens. While applicants need not identify their country of origin or current citizenship, all applicants must include one of the following statements:
Yes, I am a citizen or permanent resident of Canada
or
No, I am not a citizen or permanent resident of Canada
Digital applications should be submitted to Michelina Sardella, Department Coordinator, Design and Computation Arts at michelina.sardella@concordia.ca on or before December 15, 2022 but, will continue to be reviewed until the position is filled. Only shortlisted candidates will be notified and will be required to provide an attestation of their terminal degree(s). Submissions should consist of a single PDF file and include the following items in the order specified below:
- cover letter clearly identifying the job title and position code (21_T_DCART_M);
- curriculum vitae;
- statement of teaching philosophy and interests;
- evidence of teaching effectiveness—e.g. teaching evaluations (if applicable), assignments, and syllabi of courses taught;
- portfolio of research-creation work;
- statement of research achievements including funding and research supervision;
- links to any relevant research, including recent articles, publications, reviews, etc.;
- names and contact information of three referees.
All inquiries regarding this position may be directed to pk langshaw, Professor and Chair, Department of Design and Computation Arts at pk.langshaw@concordia.ca or michelina.sardella@concordia.ca.
Concordia University is strongly committed to building a diverse, equitable, and inclusive community, and recognizes the importance of inclusion in achieving excellence in teaching and research. As part of this commitment to providing our students with the dynamic, innovative, and inclusive educational environment of a Next‐Generation University, we require all applicants to articulate in their cover letter how their background, as well as lived and professional experiences and expertise have prepared them to teach in ways that are relevant for a diverse, multicultural contemporary Canadian society.
These ongoing or anticipated examples can include, but are not limited to:
- teaching about underrepresented populations
- mentoring students from underrepresented backgrounds
- committee work
- offering or organizing educational programming
- participation in training and workshops
All applicants will receive an email invitation to complete a short equity survey. Participation in the survey is voluntary and no identifying information about candidates will be shared with hiring committees. Candidates who wish to self-identify as a member of an underrepresented group to the hiring committee may do so in their cover letter or by writing directly to the contact person indicated in this posting.
Adaptive Measures
Applicants who anticipate requiring adaptive measures throughout any stage of the recruitment process may contact, in confidence, Anna Barrafato, Accessibility Change Lead: anna.barrafato@concordia.ca or by phone at 514.848.2424 extension 3511.
The Department offers programs in both Design and Computation Arts. At the graduate level, our Master of/Magisteriate in Design (MDes) brings together diverse research-creation-oriented approaches. Our BFA in Design emphasizes the areas of visual communication, the built environment, design studies and interaction design within the overarching principles of socio-cultural environmental sustainability and critical engagement. Our BFA and BCompSci in Computation Arts focus on a varied combination of digital media, including game design, tangible media, and interaction design, all addressed through both technical and critical lenses. Catalyzed by the increasing role that digital technology has played in design in every aspect of daily life, teaching and research within the Department address design as an experimental and collaborative discipline, exploring the complementarity of research and practice.
Design and Computation Arts faculty already work with and/or lead several transdisciplinary and inter-research groups that focus on sustainability, materiality, playful and experimental digital media, the built environment, and Indigenous futurisms. There is a strong desire to further strengthen collaboration with Hexagram, the Milieux Institute for Arts, Culture and Technology, the Applied AI Institute, the Centre for Expanded Poetics, the Next-Generation Cities Institute, as well as others.
With over 4,000 students, faculty, and staff, the Faculty of Fine Arts is among the five largest art and design schools in North America. Nestled in the heart of a pulsing city, embraced by a dynamic research university, the Faculty of Fine Arts benefits from extraordinary access to brilliant practitioners, thriving venues, cross-cultural perspectives, and an extensive network of outstanding facilities for research and production.
Taking advantage of our place within the rich fabric of a research university and our long history as one of the premiere sites in Canada for the study and creation of the arts and arts-based scholarship, the Faculty of Fine Arts is currently engaged in a transformative moment in which pedagogical, conceptual, theoretical, and material practices find resonance with a significant diversity of approaches. In our university community we value equally those practices that embrace aesthetic activism, live performance, historical scholarship, technical experimentation, skills-based production, community fieldwork and education, and therapeutic practices as well as traditional and digital fabrication. In addition to curricular advances, the formation of significant research centres and external partnerships in the Faculty of Fine Arts continue to enrich opportunities for faculty and students alike. The faculty is also home to a number of research groups led by faculty members who are Black, Indigenous and people of colour and disabled, and centred on their concerns. For more information, please visit the Faculty of Fine Arts website.
Concordia University is located on unceded Indigenous lands. Tiohtià:ke/Montreal, on the traditional lands and waters of the Kanien’kehá:ka Nation, is historically known as a gathering place for many First Nations. Today it is home to a diverse population of Indigenous and other peoples. We respect the continued connections with the past, present and future in our ongoing relationships with Indigenous and other peoples within the Montreal community.
Building on the skills of our faculty and the strengths of Indigenous, local, and global partnerships, we set our sights further and more broadly than others and align the quality of learning opportunities to larger trends and substantial challenges facing society.
“Concordia is a young, forward-looking university. It’s a unique place where experimentation, innovation and creativity are truly valued. Our community of students, faculty, staff and alumni all contribute to our momentum as Canada’s next-gen university.” — Concordia President Graham Carr.
Profoundly global, Concordia is North America’s top university under the age of 50 and is recognized for attracting some of the most talented faculty and students from around the world. Driven by ambition, innovation and a commitment to reconciliation, research and community engagement, Concordia is celebrated for advancing transformative learning, convergent thinking and public impact.
Tiohtià:ke/Montreal, is exceptional; safe, vibrant and diverse, with new things to discover around every corner. The Kanien’kehá:ka Nation is recognized as the custodians of the lands and waters on which we gather and conduct our activities. With a population of 1.7 million, Tiohtià:ke/Montreal is home to four major universities and several clinical research centres and has been named the best student city in the world. It offers the most affordable tuition in Canada.
The city enjoys a thriving multicultural scene. Bilingualism is a part of Montreal’s tradition and adds to its inspiring atmosphere. While supporting a significant anglophone population, it is the one of the largest French-speaking cities in the world.
Montreal is famed for its innovative culinary scene and festivals. It was also the first metropolis to be designated a UNESCO City of Design by the Global Alliance for Cultural Diversity.
The city is recognized globally as an important centre for commerce, aerospace, transport, finance, pharmaceuticals, technology, design, gaming and film.
Territorial Acknowledgement
Concordia University is located on unceded Indigenous lands. The Kanien’kehá:ka Nation is recognized as the custodians of the lands and waters on which we gather today. Tiohtià:ke/Montreal is historically known as a gathering place for many First Nations. Today, it is home to a diverse population of Indigenous and other peoples. We respect the continued connections with the past, present and future in our ongoing relationships with Indigenous and other peoples within the Montreal community.
Employment Equity
Concordia University is strongly committed to employment equity within its community, and to recruiting a diverse faculty and staff. The University encourages applications from all qualified candidates, including women, members of visible minorities, Indigenous persons, members of sexual minorities, persons with disabilities, and others who may contribute to diversification; candidates are invited to self-identify in their applications.
Immigration Status
All qualified candidates are encouraged to apply; however, Canadian and Permanent Residents will be given priority. To comply with the Government of Canada’s reporting requirements, the University is obliged to gather information about applicants’ status as either Permanent Residents of Canada or Canadian citizens. While applicants need not identify their country of origin or current citizenship, all applications must include one of the following statements:
Yes, I am a citizen or permanent resident of Canada
or
No, I am not a citizen or permanent resident of Canada.