Week 1 - Chapters 1-3

Insights, epiphanies, surprises, and questions...

As I read Chapters 1-3 I could not help but feel as though another piece in the great endeavor to become a better art teacher puzzle were falling into place. (Please indulge my fascination with the way things fit together, I'm a bit of a relationship junkie.)That being said, it's no wonder that I am completely sold on VTS, and I believe I will become a huge fan of Walker's book.

Those of you who know me will probably recall that my undergraduate education, a hundred million years ago when dinosaurs roamed the earth, was heavily steeped in Lowenfeld and art making experiences evolving around creation and self-expression. Sadly, between trying to cram in state GLE's and local curriculum over the years I felt compelled to rush along in a rapid pace, students executing piece after piece. All of this time students were learning processes, but more often than not, most of the time that art was probably produced without a lot of meaning. I have read Stewart and Walker's book Rethinking Curriculum in Art so the concept of Big Ideas is not new to me. Little by little I am completely revamping my lessons, tossing some out completely and reworking others in attempt to infuse them with opportunities for establishing personal connections. Old dogs CAN learn new tricks! The format of Walker's book is very user friendly. It seems only natural that VTS be a part of building the knowledge base for art making. Questions running through my mind:

               Will I select artists to best convey my big ideas? (The examples of what not to do, while insightful, did make me wonder!)  

               What changes do I need to make in order that my students have the opportunity to research subject matter?

              

My major epiphany moment was completely on a personal level, reading the Donald Lipski's quote on the collection of objects ~"If I'm walking down Canal Street or looking through a hardware store in Sweden, if there's something that appeals to me, if I think something is substantial enough as an object, has enough resonance, I bring it home, not for the sake of collecting, but to expand my palette." AHA, thank-you Lipski! At long last you have completely validated the reason I have moved a massive rock collection literally around the world, the reason I purchase supplies, the reason I go to great lengths to procure found objects! When the urge to create strikes me it is comforting to know that the supplies are readily available and now I know why - I am continually expanding my palette!!!