Musings

Just saw this great video posted by Anne P over at Digital Art Education. Fantastic and inspiring video that your students might appreciate. I espcially like the last quote from Einstein: I want to do things that are great and wonderful, but I must start by doing little things that are great and wonderful".

I can recall many conversations around the placement of emphasis in the art classroom between teaching skill and expression- and finding balance.  I've recently been working on curriculum for my AP Photography class for next year, and familiarizing myself with the AP guidelines and goals. I'm looking at an old teacher's guide right now, and there is one sentence that I really like in an example class syllabus:Skill is learned as the facility or vehicle through which individual expression is realized.

Here's the problem that a lot of art teachers have with Deviant Art: a lot of the images are violent, exploitive, juvenile, and very often - really bad.This is of course, only a problem in the context of students logging on in the classroom. We're trying to teach Rembrant and the students are looking at images of scantly clad busty women with swords that are dripping with blood.

The excitement of having a new material to work with is nowhere more evident than when kids get to build their first snowman.  Now, imagine what happens when a city that rarely sees snow and almost never gets any accumulation suddenly gets a good coating?   Well, yes.   It is *very* hard to get around, since there isn't a snow shovel in sight, and people are on the streets clearing the snow with regular shovels and brooms.  

“Inspiration is for amateurs. I just get to work.” — Chuck Close

I'm going to post that in my classroom.

43 Folders, a productivity blog, has some great observations that riff off of Terry Gross' interview of Chuck Close on NPR.

Back in 2005 when I started this blog I had an idea that I'd try to make it a goal to get into the city (meaning New York) every once in a while to do a post about some interesting exhibition or gallery show. New York City is a great place to be an art teacher- its never hard to find a field trip opportunity, and there is always something new to see.

Well, it didn't happen. It's amazing how hard it is to find the time to get into Manhattan sometimes, even when you're living in Queens.

Because there's a lot of cool stuff going on!

If you're participating in the Olympic Artist Trading Cards exchange, don't forget to send in your cards. Today is the deadline for mailing!

If you're in the Shanghai area, check out the Shanghai Student Film Festival. The website now has downloadable forms and posters.

Lainey Voom's The Dumb Man, is an incredible realization of the possibilities of Machinima- videos that have been made from video game environments.