As a student, I was definately a minority in my elementary school, art was NOT my favorite subject. In fact, I would say it was my least favorite subject. I was very creative, but I could never seem to transform my visions into works of art. No matter how much my teachers tried to encourage me, I could only see my weaknesses, not my strengths. I would compare my drawing abilities (or lack thereof) to the other students and always feel left out.
I never really considered art to be a "real" subject. When it became an elective in high school, I decided that I wouldn't bother art and art wouldn't bother me. However, I now see the value of art, especially visual arts, and I want to help develop an appreciation for it in my future students. I want to show my students that anyone can "do art". We may not all be artists, but we can all use art to express ourselves.
It is my goal for this semester to create a new art project each week. These won't be elaborate pieces of work, but rather simple projects that I would be able to do with a class of elementary students. I will endeavour to create projects that have meaning and allow for personal expression, but also include some craft-type projects. I will post pictures of all the projects in the hope that I can inspire others.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
2 comments:
I admire your determination and the specific goal that you've set for your own professional development in this area. Perhaps the first act of creativity is to recreate ourselves...to rewrite the ending to stories such as the one about your high school art attitude. Have fun...and don't be too hard on yourself if you miss a week or two. Goals need to be achievable but also a challenge, and yet you will have many other challenges this term as well.
You were not as unusual as you think! Most people stop drawing around the ages of 11 or 12. I always ask my students if they stopped doing math or writing right now, would they get any better? The answer is always a resounding "NO!", then I ask them why they think it would be the same with drawing. When we look at it in that light it tends to change our perception of our abilities. I also tell my students that the first time I did a painting that looked exactly the way I pictured in my head wasn't until I was well into art school. (Sometimes it still doesn't happen!)
Post a Comment