Week 3

This week I continued to talk to Mr Wallace some more about his carving and watch him work. Some of the middle school students were working on their shoe projects and other were starting a 2 piece molded project. They had to use mold forms to create a piece. Whether it be two bowls to form a UFO or different bowls/plates to make a salsa/chip set. It was up to them what to make from the "idea". The idea was to make an object from two molds used together, but it was up to the student to choose "what". I like the idea to give the students an open ended project such as this. You may have ten different pieces by the end of the project. This is a choice-based method. One thing that I noticed bout Gary's introductions or demos are the large amounts of examples taht he has. Most of them are past student's works. I find this interesting considering how a lot of students, at least in my experience in public schools, want to keep there work and it is hard to pry it form their hands. This is great considering the variety of pieces and experience levels that are available for view. It is also a catch 22 since some students may want to copy an item verbatim.

Also this week, Colquit Tanner came in to use some Raku clay on the wheel. The US students where using the wheels as well. Mr Tanner helped the students with centering the clay on the wheel. This is an important technique that even Mr Tanner is still trying to master after 3o years of ceramics. I learned a lot as well since I am not good at the wheel at all. When I subbed a couple of weeks ago I made a coil pot and a human head, but when it comes to the wheel, the elementary students can run circles around me. This is probably how the 4314 students feel during the semester when having to draw. I am considering taking one of Gary's adult classes so I may at least make an ashtray or something before I begin teaching.

This week I learned that I need to have many examples to show students, not just one or two and that I need to learn a lot more when it comes to throwing clay. An art educator should be a well rounded individual in all aspects of fine arts, not just painting or sculpture. Gary didn't have a clue about the wheel until a few years ago and now he is teaching adults on the weekends. Being diverse is important when wanting to have a good art program. If there is an artform that a student is interested in, it is the teacher's responsibility to educate themselves on the topic to encourage the student's growth.