ProfessorAlexandra Lasczik

Alexandra regards the Arts as powerful catalysts for change, capable of disrupting, transforming, interrogating, and revealing original possibilities. She believes they are not only a driver of economic growth, but also a vital source of cultural strength and a force for meaningful social rebellion. Alexandra’s practice focuses on place, movement, time and memory, through performance drawing, photography, documented forms, walking inquiry, collaborative painting and the visual diary. She is an artist, writer, philosopher, poet, and emerging fiction author.

Alexandra is an influential and pioneering leader in Arts education, celebrated for her exceptional impact and outstanding contributions both nationally and globally. She began her higher education journey in 2004 as a sessional tutor and, by 2011, was a full-time academic in Arts education, backed by 25 years as a prominent secondary Visual Arts educator and senior leader. Alexandra champions the transformative power of Art to interrupt, unsettle, inspire, and reveal. Her commitment to Visual Arts spans practice, research, teaching, and leadership, all driven by a steadfast mission to enrich young lives and shape futures through the Arts.

Leadership

Alexandra is currently Head of School, Creative and Performing Arts, at the University of Tasmania, and was formerly Associate Dean, Education Partnerships; Director, Professional Experience; and Associate Dean, Research, at Southern Cross University [SCU]. She was co-founder and Research co-Leader of the Sustainability, Environment and the Arts in Education Research Centre [SEAE] (2017-2026), internationally recognised as an innovative hub for Arts-Based Educational Research [ABER] and for cutting-edge practice-based research in the Art/Climate Change Education transdisciplinary nexus.

Alexandra has held many leading roles during her academic career, including serving as World Councillor for the International Society of Education through Art [InSEA - UNESCO] and as the first non-North American Chair and Program Chair of the ABER Special Interest Group [ABER SIG] for the American Educational Research Association[AERA]. She was Editor of the Australian Art Education Journal and Editor of the International Journal of Education through Art [IJEtA]. She is Series co-Editor (with Rita L Irwin) of Palgrave Studies in Movement Across Education, the Arts and the Social Sciences (Palgrave Macmillan) book series, and was previously co-Editor of two other book series, Studies in Arts-based Educational Research (Springer), and SpringerBriefs in Arts-based Educational Research(Springer). Her service and impact in the field of Arts-based inquiry and the Visual Arts have been groundbreaking.

Awards

Alexandra is recognised nationally and internationally for her teaching and research. She was awarded the prestigious OLT (Office for Learning and Teaching, Australian Government) Citation for Outstanding Contribution to Student Learning in Visual Arts curriculum and pedagogy.

Alexandra was also named Researcher of the Year (3 times) and HDR Supervisor of the Year at Southern Cross University. Her most recent accolade was as lead author of the Outstanding Journal Article of the Year in Visual Communication 2025, awarded by the International Communication Association, Visual Communication Studies Division, for the paper entitled “Landcare and landscapes and accidental beauty: Failing digital technologies and the gaze of child researchers”.