What a great class. I loved how your work supported / pushed / encouraged each other. You all seem to have a solid sense of your final direction and the a feeling for how you will get there. Exactly what an independent study class should do. Thank your all for your stories and your honest reports of successes and failures. It has been a privilege to be with you on this journey.
I will be in Junction during first summer session. Second session we move to Fredricksburgs and slowly Dr Andres Peralta will take over the MAE program. So as you come to a new cross roads so do I. What a grand adventure we all have before us.
Sunday, December 14, 2014
Monday, December 8, 2014
Art 5360 My Final Thoughts
As I take this opportunity to review and reflect on blog events this past semester, I would be remiss if I didn't say that I was overwhelmed by the enormity of specialities in Art that my colleagues/fellow teachers bring to their education fields. What a privilege it has been for me to learn from all of you in your own Art journeys and investigations. I feel like the baby in our group (as I didn't come from an Art background and haven't experienced working with many materials as most of you have), and I have so very much to learn from all of you to make my artistic endeavors as well rounded as possible. Thank You all so very much.
Before this semester, I knew very little about fiber arts and textile designs that Carleen has discussed. Carleen's contributions about fiber arts has caused me to think about how I could apply textile making opportunities at the elementary level from her lengthy educational experiences.
Lynn histories of "Home" and the interconnections of the enormity of things that provide refuge, safety and imageries of memories is profound. So many layers of imageries that startle and soothe our soul. I respect the journeys of life and the many things that shape who we are today.
Martha, your explorations in clay and fused glass have taught me to reach further in ceramic design than I ever thought possible. I love how you will tie fused glass design with your ceramic work and how glass and ceramic imageries fuse together so beautifully. The spiritual and imaginary ideals are very strong. I am most curious to see your future developments.
Germain, the realm of your work encourages me with your every post. I too can appreciate Jeff Wheeler's work from his colorful ideals. His class (Experimental Drawing) was my first in the MAE program 2 years ago and I loved every aspect of his drawing requirements. Your graffiti artwork is inspiring and I've so much to learn about that medium that I have virtually no experience in. I truly enjoyed reading about your collaborative work with your Mom to integrate fiber arts into your designs. A beautiful way in which to tie your imageries and histories together.
Ana, I too am saddened that core teachers remain complacent about interacting with the Visual Arts. It seems that the Fine Arts don't exist in their minds, or at least not much. Wow, how can that possibly be. I would think that the core curriculum would be hungry to establish new ideologies to connect with youth through various visual technologies that youth are absorbed into today. That could connect them rather than separate them.
Emily, although I didn't have interaction with you this semester, you really opened up my eyes to the enormity of issues/concerns that affect the LGBTQ community. Societal change to LGBTQ ideals cannot happen soon enough in society today.
Bailey, watching you work tirelessly on your wood carvings (with such detail) in John Hancock's class in Junction was simply incredible. Teaching is such a natural for you, I can learn so much from your learned histories, enthusiasm and genuine love for working with and serving young adults.
Daniel, your work and the manners in which you bring depth to your artistic endeavors is amazing. I could visit with you forever about ceramics. I hope there will be opportunities often that you and I can discuss my ceramic evolutions at the LHUCA Clay Studio. My phone is (214) 636-1190. Call me anytime. I hope I can bisque and fire 3-4 little test vessels with a reduction firing soon. Let me know if you're interested. I think Andrew said they were going to do 1 reduction firing in December, but I don't know when.
David, I really like your concept of doors as forms of societal interactions through Art. There is so much opportunity for imageries to be conveyed. If you're interested in discussing further about architecture as a refuge for art, please let me know. I would be most interested in investigating avenues for creativity. Doors as open, closed passageways, vistas for opportunities, keeping out/keeping in, are all significant with rich meanings. It's all so interconnected to our personal histories in so many ways. I will certainly keep in touch with you about special needs concerns, programs and ideologies that will fortify my beginnings with special needs individuals.
Andrea, Your explorations/developments and your posts with drawing and painting mediums through spiritual imagery has been refreshing and encouraging for me. I haven't much experience in Oils or Acrylics, but seeing your work encourages me to try. Your journeys of healing and forgiveness are significant in your artwork. I loved seeing the graffiti project on Facebook.
Pamela, your wood block carvings, bookmaking abilities, and your drawing and painting abilities of the intricate stories they tell, are amazing. They take me back to family imageries that I can also relate to in some ways. So many layers with so much meaning and inferences. I have seen you grow in Junction the past 2 summers and I have enjoyed learning from your personal journeys, accomplishments and journeys with your talented daughter.
Goodbye everyone. I have really enjoyed the blog interactions with everyone this semester. The blog submittals and interactions have opened my eyes to the big, vast Art world through so many of your fascinating, treasured journeys. My email addresses are rwk582002@yahoo.com and richard.w.kincheloe@ttu.edu
Before this semester, I knew very little about fiber arts and textile designs that Carleen has discussed. Carleen's contributions about fiber arts has caused me to think about how I could apply textile making opportunities at the elementary level from her lengthy educational experiences.
Lynn histories of "Home" and the interconnections of the enormity of things that provide refuge, safety and imageries of memories is profound. So many layers of imageries that startle and soothe our soul. I respect the journeys of life and the many things that shape who we are today.
Martha, your explorations in clay and fused glass have taught me to reach further in ceramic design than I ever thought possible. I love how you will tie fused glass design with your ceramic work and how glass and ceramic imageries fuse together so beautifully. The spiritual and imaginary ideals are very strong. I am most curious to see your future developments.
Germain, the realm of your work encourages me with your every post. I too can appreciate Jeff Wheeler's work from his colorful ideals. His class (Experimental Drawing) was my first in the MAE program 2 years ago and I loved every aspect of his drawing requirements. Your graffiti artwork is inspiring and I've so much to learn about that medium that I have virtually no experience in. I truly enjoyed reading about your collaborative work with your Mom to integrate fiber arts into your designs. A beautiful way in which to tie your imageries and histories together.
Ana, I too am saddened that core teachers remain complacent about interacting with the Visual Arts. It seems that the Fine Arts don't exist in their minds, or at least not much. Wow, how can that possibly be. I would think that the core curriculum would be hungry to establish new ideologies to connect with youth through various visual technologies that youth are absorbed into today. That could connect them rather than separate them.
Emily, although I didn't have interaction with you this semester, you really opened up my eyes to the enormity of issues/concerns that affect the LGBTQ community. Societal change to LGBTQ ideals cannot happen soon enough in society today.
Bailey, watching you work tirelessly on your wood carvings (with such detail) in John Hancock's class in Junction was simply incredible. Teaching is such a natural for you, I can learn so much from your learned histories, enthusiasm and genuine love for working with and serving young adults.
Daniel, your work and the manners in which you bring depth to your artistic endeavors is amazing. I could visit with you forever about ceramics. I hope there will be opportunities often that you and I can discuss my ceramic evolutions at the LHUCA Clay Studio. My phone is (214) 636-1190. Call me anytime. I hope I can bisque and fire 3-4 little test vessels with a reduction firing soon. Let me know if you're interested. I think Andrew said they were going to do 1 reduction firing in December, but I don't know when.
David, I really like your concept of doors as forms of societal interactions through Art. There is so much opportunity for imageries to be conveyed. If you're interested in discussing further about architecture as a refuge for art, please let me know. I would be most interested in investigating avenues for creativity. Doors as open, closed passageways, vistas for opportunities, keeping out/keeping in, are all significant with rich meanings. It's all so interconnected to our personal histories in so many ways. I will certainly keep in touch with you about special needs concerns, programs and ideologies that will fortify my beginnings with special needs individuals.
Andrea, Your explorations/developments and your posts with drawing and painting mediums through spiritual imagery has been refreshing and encouraging for me. I haven't much experience in Oils or Acrylics, but seeing your work encourages me to try. Your journeys of healing and forgiveness are significant in your artwork. I loved seeing the graffiti project on Facebook.
Pamela, your wood block carvings, bookmaking abilities, and your drawing and painting abilities of the intricate stories they tell, are amazing. They take me back to family imageries that I can also relate to in some ways. So many layers with so much meaning and inferences. I have seen you grow in Junction the past 2 summers and I have enjoyed learning from your personal journeys, accomplishments and journeys with your talented daughter.
Goodbye everyone. I have really enjoyed the blog interactions with everyone this semester. The blog submittals and interactions have opened my eyes to the big, vast Art world through so many of your fascinating, treasured journeys. My email addresses are rwk582002@yahoo.com and richard.w.kincheloe@ttu.edu
Final Thoughts on our Roads Less Traveled
Final Thoughts on Roads Traveled alongside other Fellow Travelers
This journey of Independent Study alongside all of you has been a delightful, motivating and all-together wonderful experience. Living alone, not having a community of artists nearby to spend time with, to share and discuss personal artwork has been difficult. Many of the artists in the past as well as many contemporary artists today have gained support and encouragement from interaction and personal relationships with fellow artists, writers, poets, etc. Junction has been the only community of artists that I have been able to spend time with since my college days. I have learned so much from reading the blogs of my fellow travelers, hearing your thought processes and interests, watching as you shifted directions for various reasons. I have had the privilege of seeing break-throughs in personal lives, hearing you talk about your relationships with mothers, great-uncles, grandparents and children. I have watched videos of great teachers doing what they love, seeing their playfulness as they encourage others to enjoy the magic of art. I have gleaned information from those of you who have extensive knowledge in areas with which I am unfamiliar. Your comments to myself and others have been thoughtful, insightful and on occasion, probing. Your personal journeys and comments about mine have encouraged me to continue pursuing the path that I see in front of me with less fear and trepidation.
Many roads diverged and criss-crossed in our woods. There were times when it seemed like many of us were on the same road; our paths would cross and for a while we were going in the same direction. Other times we would meet up, and one would have been down a path before and was able to give insight from their experience which, in turn, helped me to navigate a little differently than I might have without those words. The shared experience of reading about your lives, seeing your artwork as a response to your life story helped me to see beyond the limited vision of self and connect with you in a way that I would have never been able to without this format of shared art and words.
I sometimes was frustrated as I tried to follow each of your stories as we wrote in and around each other's posts. There were many excellent journeys to follow as each of you traveled down your individual path. I have read and re-read many of our past posts and find there is much wealth within them. I see depth of passion and desire to create. Individuals who want to share thoughts and who want to encourage and motivate others. It has been a treasure.
Thank you all for sharing your journey with me.
This journey of Independent Study alongside all of you has been a delightful, motivating and all-together wonderful experience. Living alone, not having a community of artists nearby to spend time with, to share and discuss personal artwork has been difficult. Many of the artists in the past as well as many contemporary artists today have gained support and encouragement from interaction and personal relationships with fellow artists, writers, poets, etc. Junction has been the only community of artists that I have been able to spend time with since my college days. I have learned so much from reading the blogs of my fellow travelers, hearing your thought processes and interests, watching as you shifted directions for various reasons. I have had the privilege of seeing break-throughs in personal lives, hearing you talk about your relationships with mothers, great-uncles, grandparents and children. I have watched videos of great teachers doing what they love, seeing their playfulness as they encourage others to enjoy the magic of art. I have gleaned information from those of you who have extensive knowledge in areas with which I am unfamiliar. Your comments to myself and others have been thoughtful, insightful and on occasion, probing. Your personal journeys and comments about mine have encouraged me to continue pursuing the path that I see in front of me with less fear and trepidation.
Many roads diverged and criss-crossed in our woods. There were times when it seemed like many of us were on the same road; our paths would cross and for a while we were going in the same direction. Other times we would meet up, and one would have been down a path before and was able to give insight from their experience which, in turn, helped me to navigate a little differently than I might have without those words. The shared experience of reading about your lives, seeing your artwork as a response to your life story helped me to see beyond the limited vision of self and connect with you in a way that I would have never been able to without this format of shared art and words.
I sometimes was frustrated as I tried to follow each of your stories as we wrote in and around each other's posts. There were many excellent journeys to follow as each of you traveled down your individual path. I have read and re-read many of our past posts and find there is much wealth within them. I see depth of passion and desire to create. Individuals who want to share thoughts and who want to encourage and motivate others. It has been a treasure.
Thank you all for sharing your journey with me.
Books, Books, Textiles, Silkscreen, Woodblock Prints and more Books
This has been such a wonderful journey. I started out with a basic idea/direction of what I wanted to research and focus on, then found myself having to make decisions as to what to hone in on. I chose to incorporate my new found interest in printing with my previous textile interests and the additional processes of bookbinding. I began by choosing books and artists who did printmaking and bookmaking. My journey began in Oak Cliff, then moved to Houston, New Jersey, New York with two additional trips back to Houston. I have found that there is not enough time in my evenings and weekends to complete all the work I hunger to do. Part of my choice to focus on bookbinding came as a result of a purchase last year of three very expensive hand-made leather art journals. I have enjoyed just the experience of holding these hand designed books, and creating art in them seemed to be more pleasurable than working in manufactured books. I decided that to make the book along with working inside it had to be the ultimate of joyful artistic expression.
I have made ten books in the following sizes:
6.5 x 9.25, 6.75 x 9, 6 x 8, 6.5 x 7.25, 7.5 x 8, 4 x 8.5, 4.75 x 5.75, 5 x 7, 3.5 x 4.75 and 2.5 x 2.75
My favourite is the gray one, which was the last one created to date. The casing is leather, the paper is watercolour, pages are almost square (7.5 x 7.25), and it has four signatures. The first two signatures turn and open in a traditional fashion so when two pages are open, the total dimension is 7.5 x 14.75. The last two signatures have the papers folded into each other, so that when they are completely open, the total length of the page opened up is 7.5 x 29.
This book will be sent to my daughter as a birthday gift. I have painted a dedication on the first page.
The class that I took on dying fabric was wonderful, and I had hopes of making a hand-bound fabric book using some of those pieces as well as textiles I had created this past summer at Junction. After viewing Louise Bourgeois' beautiful hand made fabric book at The MOMA in New York City, I realized that I did not have enough time to create one for this class. This will be a future project.
Back to the Drawing Board
The next part of my journey was to try my hand at silkscreen printing. I decided I wanted to hand bind my own book using some of the woodblock prints I made this past summer in Junction, some additional woodblock prints I made during this Semester as well as silkscreen prints inspired by screen printed books of both Louise Bourgeois and Pat Steir that I was able to view at The MOMA. I took my class and created a silkscreen based off of the 24" x 48"woodblock print I created this past summer at Junction. Here is the silkscreen I made at the Print Center of New Jersey. The Red and Black version is an edition of 7, the teal and black versions are each mono prints. Unfortunately the screens were not mine so had to remove the image from the screen before I left New Jersey.
Upon returning from the workshop, I made some additional mini-screen prints at school to see if I could create a small hand-bound book with my prints. I did not make the screen correctly and so the images would not sit in the right place when trying to put together. I had to step back and begin designing the book with a mock-up of dummy papers to see where to place images on the screen for correct printing location. Time was now running out. I had one more workshop to complete as well. I wanted to be able to make my own books and create all the papers inside. This last class was paper marbling. The class was only one day, and it was a 4 hour drive each way for the class (this past Saturday). I did not arrive home until 10 Saturday night. The marbling papers were not completely dry until this morning so I have not been able to complete a book with my own marbled papers for this class. Below are some of the papers I created. I learned several different techniques and got quite messy in the process. Lava soap to the rescue!
The timing of my workshop classes has been a premium issue. I was unable to make the signatures with my silkscreen and woodblock prints, add the marbled papers to the front and back as well as bind a book before class ended. I look forward to completing one during my Winter Break from teaching.
Sunday, December 7, 2014
Semester analysis..My personal discoveries, special needs inspirations and clay evolutions (Rick Kincheloe)
Hello all. This semester has been a whirlwind of activity and events for me from the beginning of the semester. In late August, I was cordially invited by one of my Thesis advisors (David Driskill A.I.A) in the Texas Tech College of Architecture (from years ago when I obtained my B.Arch) to be the September Guest Artist at Urban Tech (College of Architecture facility) in Downtown Lubbock. I had about 2 weeks to gather drawings, paintings, a buon fresco painting, ceramic sculptures and fused glass artworks. I made a trip to Dallas to have my artwork framed by a framer that I trust. When I returned to Lubbock with my artwork, I learned that I needed to make 4 pedestals (2' x 2' x 3' tall) to display my work. At the College of Architecture wood shop, I was able to make and complete them in 2 days with help from Fred (manager), Gio, and Mark (wood shop technicians). My exhibition "Eloquent Meld" began on Friday, September 5th (see pics). On that Friday evening, a Lubbock High School senior art student interviewed me about my exhibit. I explained to her about my ceramic and buon fresco processes. I think I lost about 2 weeks of school time at the beginning of the semester for this exhibition and my costs escalated almost daily. I made 250 invitations (5"x7" color cards) and had new business cards printed. Future was right about 50 things you need to know before having a show. I was privileged and honored to have the opportunity to display my artwork at Urban Tech however, it became an expensive venture with many twists and turns. This experience taught me how to best exhibit my work with existing display conditions and minimum requirements that I will request to represent my work professionally and effectively.
As I stated earlier in a post before I started the MAE program in Junction, I drove a school bus for McKinney ISD for 6 months (Route 38) taking 18 autistic children to/from school daily at McGowen Elementary. That was my 1st opportunity with special needs individuals and children. That opportunity changed my perspective of children with special needs. I wanted to learn more about autistic children and their rationales for learning and developing with their peers. This semester, I have researched ideals that will assist me if and when I interact with special needs children/young adults in school(s). I was enamored with the ideal that these individuals need guidance and patience with their aspirations, but that they are essentially treated no different than you or I. Next week, I am scheduled to interview Chris Ramos, Learning Specialist/Job Coach at the Burkhart Center for Autism (at Texas Tech) and Susan Venhuizen (Von's wife) who is an elementary school teacher in Lubbock who deals with autistic children. If you are interested to hear about the results of my interviews, please contact me via my yahoo email: rwk582002@yahoo.com.
My book readings this semester have been on/off with my ceramic sculpture work at the LHUCA Clay Studio here in Lubbock. Many of the books I've read are "how to" books with descriptions and photos of processes. I enjoyed the book Hand Building by Shay Amber where I learned a lot of processes/procedures with various materials. The Potter's Bible by Marilyn Scott taught me about the different clays, forming methods, molds and texture types and processes. I also learned about burnishing, slip decorations and slip painting, underglazes, lusters and enamels. Wheel Throwing by Emily Reason, taught me to further investigate how to form pots and cylinders. I have so much room for experience in wheel throwing. Daniel Rodriguez can attest to that ideal. The book on High Fire Glazes by John Britt has taught me about oxides, colorants, mixing glazes and firing kilns with reduction firings. The Craft and Art of Clay A Complete Potter's Handbook by Susan and Jan Peterson is an excellent reference book for throwing and footing pots, pulling/attaching handles, creating hand built human figures and creatures, learning about types of clays, glazes, firing procedures and histories of clays and the beautiful portfolio of works. I was unable to investigate and analyze whether I want to pursue Mold Making and Slip Casting by Andrew Martin. I also reviewed 500 Raku Dynamic Ceramic Techniques by Lark Ceramics, Mastering Raku by Steven Branfman and Architectural Ceramics by Peter King. Lastly, but certainly not least, I studied ceramic processes from A Meditation of Fire by James Watkins.
Lastly in this blog submittal are my experiences of working with hand built and thrown clay forms at LHUCA. I have sincerely enjoyed every moment spent at the LHUCA Clay Studio, and I can't seem to get enough. I could easily spend all of my time there, and I hope that I can continue work with my sculptures over the Christmas Break and next semester. If anyone is interested, I will be happy to post my progress pics to my yahoo email address (rwk582002@yahoo.com) or possibly my Google blogger site (rickkincheloe91).
My 1st sculpture that I had started (from clay leftover from Junction Summer 2014) began early in the semester but I lost the piece because I had research and writing to do and I couldn't get back to the piece for 1 week. By then, the clay had stiffened and there was very little moisture in the clay and I lost the piece. I salvaged the clay (by resoaking) and it's ready for me to work it after my 3rd sculpture piece. If I use that clay, the piece will be smaller than the others. I may investigate how I can repurpose it. However, I can't mix it or fire it with the architecture clay that I'm using presently at LHUCA.
I have flipped my next sculpture, cleaned it up and I will add shapes, undulate the surface also. I have also included a picture of the next sculpture (revised picture) that may stand on it's end with the handle left. I've added a kidney shape (dashed line) below handles that will be a cutout in what will be the 3rd level. 1st level is the raised heart shape in lower left, the 2nd level is the guitar shape in the middle and the 3rd level is the handle and gear portions. I'm also considering the original orientation of the piece but to make the form such that it will not rest on the gear spoke.
Thank You to all for your comments/suggestions that will make me a better artist and designer.
As I stated earlier in a post before I started the MAE program in Junction, I drove a school bus for McKinney ISD for 6 months (Route 38) taking 18 autistic children to/from school daily at McGowen Elementary. That was my 1st opportunity with special needs individuals and children. That opportunity changed my perspective of children with special needs. I wanted to learn more about autistic children and their rationales for learning and developing with their peers. This semester, I have researched ideals that will assist me if and when I interact with special needs children/young adults in school(s). I was enamored with the ideal that these individuals need guidance and patience with their aspirations, but that they are essentially treated no different than you or I. Next week, I am scheduled to interview Chris Ramos, Learning Specialist/Job Coach at the Burkhart Center for Autism (at Texas Tech) and Susan Venhuizen (Von's wife) who is an elementary school teacher in Lubbock who deals with autistic children. If you are interested to hear about the results of my interviews, please contact me via my yahoo email: rwk582002@yahoo.com.
My book readings this semester have been on/off with my ceramic sculpture work at the LHUCA Clay Studio here in Lubbock. Many of the books I've read are "how to" books with descriptions and photos of processes. I enjoyed the book Hand Building by Shay Amber where I learned a lot of processes/procedures with various materials. The Potter's Bible by Marilyn Scott taught me about the different clays, forming methods, molds and texture types and processes. I also learned about burnishing, slip decorations and slip painting, underglazes, lusters and enamels. Wheel Throwing by Emily Reason, taught me to further investigate how to form pots and cylinders. I have so much room for experience in wheel throwing. Daniel Rodriguez can attest to that ideal. The book on High Fire Glazes by John Britt has taught me about oxides, colorants, mixing glazes and firing kilns with reduction firings. The Craft and Art of Clay A Complete Potter's Handbook by Susan and Jan Peterson is an excellent reference book for throwing and footing pots, pulling/attaching handles, creating hand built human figures and creatures, learning about types of clays, glazes, firing procedures and histories of clays and the beautiful portfolio of works. I was unable to investigate and analyze whether I want to pursue Mold Making and Slip Casting by Andrew Martin. I also reviewed 500 Raku Dynamic Ceramic Techniques by Lark Ceramics, Mastering Raku by Steven Branfman and Architectural Ceramics by Peter King. Lastly, but certainly not least, I studied ceramic processes from A Meditation of Fire by James Watkins.
Lastly in this blog submittal are my experiences of working with hand built and thrown clay forms at LHUCA. I have sincerely enjoyed every moment spent at the LHUCA Clay Studio, and I can't seem to get enough. I could easily spend all of my time there, and I hope that I can continue work with my sculptures over the Christmas Break and next semester. If anyone is interested, I will be happy to post my progress pics to my yahoo email address (rwk582002@yahoo.com) or possibly my Google blogger site (rickkincheloe91).
My 1st sculpture that I had started (from clay leftover from Junction Summer 2014) began early in the semester but I lost the piece because I had research and writing to do and I couldn't get back to the piece for 1 week. By then, the clay had stiffened and there was very little moisture in the clay and I lost the piece. I salvaged the clay (by resoaking) and it's ready for me to work it after my 3rd sculpture piece. If I use that clay, the piece will be smaller than the others. I may investigate how I can repurpose it. However, I can't mix it or fire it with the architecture clay that I'm using presently at LHUCA.
I have flipped my next sculpture, cleaned it up and I will add shapes, undulate the surface also. I have also included a picture of the next sculpture (revised picture) that may stand on it's end with the handle left. I've added a kidney shape (dashed line) below handles that will be a cutout in what will be the 3rd level. 1st level is the raised heart shape in lower left, the 2nd level is the guitar shape in the middle and the 3rd level is the handle and gear portions. I'm also considering the original orientation of the piece but to make the form such that it will not rest on the gear spoke.
Thank You to all for your comments/suggestions that will make me a better artist and designer.
Course Inspiration
This semester has been a time of rebirth for me. I have
gained enough confidence in my work and technique that I can create work fairly
quick. This summer in Junction my classmate Justin Clumper told me “It is
easier to make something then correct than sitting there and thinking about it
for two days.” I took that thought process home and began to create regardless
of how bad it looks. When I started this course I had a small idea of what I
wanted to create and I believe that I have found it. I am satisfied with the look of my final
project. I learned a lot about myself as an artist and what direction to take
my work in. My fellow classmates have inspired me to become more active in my
classroom. I am so proud of various people in this course. As a class we have
accomplished so much for art. Every week I read and saw how powerful artwork
can be in the classroom. From group projects, art shows, artistic revelations,
to brilliant artistic research. There were days that I felt down after work and
the blog always cheered me up and inspired me.
My readings taught me so much about the art of graffiti and
also explained some techniques I have always wondered about. The art of script
has inspired me to better my letter work and create cleaner and balanced
letters even when I hand write letters and handouts. I am still not brave
enough to mark my artwork with script but with a little more practice I would
love to take a crack at it. I have a better understanding of how and why
graffiti and street art are two different disciplines. I have learned how
galleries are viewing the street art movement as the next great art era and how
the work is seen as much more than lowbrow.
Independent study has helped me connect my uncle with my
work. Since class has started I have conversed with him once a week. He explains the process of his work and tells
me stories of how he created graffiti during the 80’s with friends. We speak of
art and how creating can make a difference in peoples lives. Being
incarcerated, my uncle gives me an inside looking out point of view when it
comes to life situations. When it comes to Art he has always been willing to
explain and nurture my curiosity. From the age of 8 until recent he has always
been the main source for my work. My master thesis show will have
collaborations between the two of us. He will begin the work in prison and mail
it to me to finish. I am also having him explain and hand write his biography
and art philosophy for all to understand where both of us come from and why we
create. Because of this course we have
become closer and my Uncle has found new inspiration to create.
Final thoughts and research!
Going into my fifth year of teaching, one thing has always remained the same: my ultimate goal of integrating the core curriculum into class art projects. In the past I have worked on lessons on environmental science, world history, United States history and English. One year, I jumped on board with a program through a neighborhood art group that placed local artists in the core classroom to lead art projects aligned with the teachers’ lessons. I felt that this was such a great idea and attempted to market this program at my campus. Unfortunately, I have found it difficult to interest the core teachers enough to want to collaborate with the Visual Arts.
On the other hand, gaining interest from the student population is simple. Design of video games, clothing, shoes and other consumer items prove that the current generation of kids thrives on visual aesthetics. As a matter of fact, if you walk through stores targeted for teenagers/young adults, you can see how modern design is vital in all the product being sold. One of the major clothing designers, OBEY, today is not a clothing manufacturer at all. Obey the Giant was actually founded by American street artist, graphic designer and illustrator Frank Shepard Fairey.
Creating an interesting curriculum may be easier for the visual arts but the same cannot be said for the core classroom. I have heard it from too many students that they are simply NOT as involved in their core courses as they may be in mine. Like I mentioned, every year I have done a visual arts project centered around a core topic. In order to succeed in this, my students are given all the information and supplemental references to teach them about the subject (WWII, U.S./Mexico War, Holocaust, etc.). At first, I felt that I had to do this because my classes vary in grade levels and not all students have taken certain courses yet. When I am searching for the information to give to them, I look for something that is either visually appealing or written short and to the point to help make the reading/lesson shorter and more interesting. During this stage of the project, my students ask me questions like, “You should be a History teacher!” and “Ohhh!! That makes more sense, why didn’t my teacher teach it like this?” But why do I always receive these kinds of reactions every year I teach these types of lessons?
One of the main problems in the core curriculum is obviously peaking the interest of the students. I have always felt that the easiest solution is simply to choose or re-design the adopted textbooks used in these courses. Since I have a background in graphic design, I decided that I wanted to take a crack at it. After checking out a few textbooks from the textbook clerk at my school, I chose a chapter in a Freshmen Science book about Photosynthesis. Using examples of appealing designs I found online and in my favorite magazines, I developed a few ideas on how I wanted to re-design the chapter. After creating a mock-design, I revealed the chapter to a number of my students by first showing them the chapter in the textbook they currently use. All students were clearly more interested in the newly designed pages. All of them asked me why their classes didn’t have textbooks that looked like my designs.
As a teacher, one of the main concerns and goals of a lesson is to promote and keep the attention of the student. Because my students thrive on the visuals we use in the art classroom and the fact that they can find connections of these visuals in their own lives, I find it easier to gain their genuine interest. Through my research an, I feel that this generation of students really need something different to motivate them to learn. The current design of their references in the classroom are clearly outdated and boring. I strongly believe that the educational system needs to take advantage of the many talented artists/graphic designers and revolutionize their sources…starting with the modernization of the core classroom textbook.
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This class has definitely done so much for me and this reflection is probably going to go off into many directions, but…here it goes! All the courses and connections I have made as a student in this program is priceless. It is remarkable how much I have learned through everyone in this class and beyond. What was beneficial in this class is to be able to really see where everyone’s passion lies. Because we were given the freedom to do research on anything, our true concerns and obsessions were revealed.
Another aspect of this course that I truly enjoyed was the fact that we were all able to follow each other’s research and artwork from the very first day to the last. When one of us was in a rut (which I was in a few times), several solutions were suggested by fellow classmates. Not only did the feedback help me fix the problem, but it allowed me a number of directions to work with and even more ideas to work on! Just the genuine interest and feedback from everyone helped push me through my project.
Now that we are nearing the last week of our class, I have been looking through everyone’s final research and artwork and have been left with many personal questions. Rick’s ceramics, Germain’s paintings, David’s doors and everyone else’s amazing work has pushed me to really think about my future as an artist. My research for this class centered on how to better education using the visual arts does project my interest in educational reform, but I want to push my own artwork in that direction as well. Since college I have toyed with the idea of communicating strictly education information through my artwork, but my own disgust (yes, disgust) with the educational system has never been a topic of mine. As a matter of fact, I have only recently discovered my bitterness towards the educational system recently.
The remarkable work of my classmates for this research course has left me with the desire to take my research on a more personal level. I honestly felt this a couple of weeks ago, but was afraid to go off into a tangent so late in the semester. I also felt a little embarrassed of this new interest, but I can see now that almost everyone has also felt this way. I understand now that my sudden change of interest is due to everyone’s research. Hearing about the various ideas and how they have developed over the last few weeks has inspired me!
Honestly, this course has done more than I thought it would. I only have two more semesters in this program and I have been shifting through many topics for my own research and artwork. Following my classmates’ own investigation of interests has urged me to further examine my own. Because of this, I am very eager and excited to begin a new phase of artwork that will correlate to the research I have done in this course.
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