By Marcus Jensen | Utah State University |  Photo by Dallin Grant | USU

PRICE, Utah — Continual and lifelong learning and mastery of your passion is essential. Your best is still ahead of you. And you can have a profound impact on others. These were the overarching themes of the inaugural lecture of Noel Carmack, newly promoted professor of art at Utah State University Eastern.

The inaugural lecture series is held to honor members of the USU faculty who have completed the promotion and tenure process and have been promoted to the rank of professor in the last year. While the series has been held for many years at USU, this is the first inaugural lecture held on the campus of USU Eastern. Carmack’s lecture was called “Mentoring Moments: The Master Apprentice Tradition and Incidents of Influential Teaching in My Life.”

“We are so proud of Professor Carmack,” said Ken White, senior vice president of Statewide Enterprise. “It was a wonderful opportunity for the community, colleagues, and students to hear about his accomplishments and impact over his career at USU. Professor Carmack’s passion and commitment for his students and his work was obvious to all in attendance. It is a pleasure to have such talented faculty in the USU Statewide system.” 

Carmack opened his lecture with a brief explanation of the master apprentice tradition– where skills and knowledge were passed from one generation of craftspeople, traders, artists, and scientists to the next. These apprentices would have to work for years under their master, then could venture out on their own after a time. Only when they had completed a “masterpiece” could they be accepted into their respective guild. This tradition from the Middle Ages has since changed; however, the need of mentorship in college or trade school is still alive and well. 

Carmack went on to speak about his own upbringing. His introduction to art came from using crayons and pencils in his home. Carmack quipped that his parents had to ration his drawing paper, so they would not be drawn out of house and home. He also credits his childhood board books, which he would read with his parents and grandparents. These books had a lasting impact on his career path, starting with Harold and the Purple Crayon.

“Harold was my first mentor,” Carmack said. “He and his purple crayon could create anything. I learned from Harold that with a simple drawing tool, a whole world of imagination was open to me.”

Art was in Carmack’s blood. His great grandmother, Effie, had a gallery of her own art and was known in her California community as the local artist. Carmack views Effie as a mentor. As he graduated from finger painting in preschool to grade school, Carmack was introduced to books with artwork and illustrations by famous people such as Norman Rockwell. Carmack showed a letter he had received from Rockwell in response to sending the famous artist one of his own drawings. Rockwell wished Carmack well and encouraged him to expand his creativity and originality.

Carmack went on to name many more mentors, including his high school and community college instructors, as well as mentors in his time as a student and instructor at USU. He also showed many of his scholarly articles and artwork pieces that have been won awards or contests. Carmack praised the many people who had taken time out of their own lives to be a mentor to him.

He closed his lecture speaking about the importance of being a mentor and an apprentice. He firmly believes that achieving the rank of full professor is not the end-all, although he is extremely honored by the distinction. He sees his life as a continual search for mastery of his task. He closed his lecture by quoting a book by Robert Greene:

“You must not see this process of moving through levels of intelligence as merely linear heading towards some kind of ultimate destination known as mastery,” Carmack quoted. “Your whole life is a kind of apprenticeship to which you apply your learning skills. Everything that happens to you is a form of instruction if you pay attention.”

Carmack is a USU alumnus, graduating with a bachelor’s in fine art in 1993, and a Master of Fine Art in 1997. Soon afterward, Carmack would join the USU faculty as an adjunct art instructor. In 2008, Carmack had the opportunity to become director of Gallery East, the art gallery on the campus of USU Eastern (then the College of Eastern Utah). In 2010, Carmack was promoted to assistant professor of art and the program coordinator on the USU Eastern campus. In 2016, he was promoted to associate professor.