c i t s i t r A s n o s s e L nts e d u t ss e h c a e ieu t ies of ar t L n a V Cindy e possibilit th by
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rt instruction has evolved over the years, and few teachers have witnessed those changes as closely and personally as Loy Norrix High School art teacher Cindy Van Lieu, who has been teaching art since 1971. Van Lieu, whose own alma mater — Constantine High School — didn’t even offer an art class, though she longed to take one, grew up surrounded by a large family of knitters, crocheters, tatters and seamstresses. “My mother was a Depression-era baby, the youngest of 12. All of her sisters, herself included, were fantastic seamstresses.” Those traditional skills now fall into the category of fiber arts, but back then they were considered practical crafts, worthy of praise and appreciation but not necessarily of display. Van Lieu grew up learning at the laps of her relatives and translated her talents into costume and set design for school plays and parades. When she went away to college at the University of Michigan, her curiosity and love of learning were channeled into science — until she took an Art for Non-Art Majors course offered by the U-M Architecture and Design School, as it was called then. (Art students heading to Michigan now go to the Penny Stamp School of Art and Design.) “In science, I was taking all the classes offered and not seeing any potential career. I took a career test, and it said research scientist or artist. Research science was what I was in, and that was boring,” Van Lieu says. “I asked my art professor if he thought I would have the ability to succeed in art school, and he responded, ‘Absolutely. Don’t even question it.’” So her decision was made. “I still use science,” says Van Lieu, who was a ceramics/sculpture major. “I was a good math student, and you see math constantly in art. In graduate school, I studied photography, which is very scientific.” Her background in science and math also prepared her for the cultural shift in art education’s focus. Nowadays, art class often involves design methods. The elements of design — line, shape, form, value, space, color and texture — are explored using the design principles of balance, contrast, rhythm, unity, pattern, movement and emphasis. Students must apply higher-ordered thinking skills to utilize these art concepts in their work, which is often inspired by 30 | Encore APRIL 2014
Theresa Coty-O’neil
photography by
ERIK HOLLADAY
such far-reaching and out-of-the-box thinkers as British artist and architect Thomas Heatherwick. “In the old days you would tell someone you were an artist, and they would say, ‘Oh, so you’re a painter.’ Today the focus is on design. They’re learning to use art in a more commercial way,” Van Lieu says. Consequently, a new breed of artists is being born, which includes students who are entrepreneurial in their approach to art. They design industrial products, furniture, jewelry and costumes for theater and more. A current student of Van Lieu’s has translated a love of art and aquatic life into a desire to become a designer of aquatic habitat, such as what one would find at Chicago’s Shedd Aquarium. Who knew such a job existed? But artists of today are savvy, and, with instructors like Van Lieu who probe, guide and listen, they see possibilities to channel their unique interests and talents into viable, stimulating careers. Add the Kalamazoo Promise into the mix and the potential for young artists is exponentially magnified. “I tell my students all the time, ‘You have no excuse not to major in art if you want to do so.’”
Thinking about art
For Van Lieu, who has been at Loy Norrix for 14 years, art and thought are inextricably intertwined, she says, so that when you create a piece of art, you need to know why you created it. “My students can give you a very precise explanation of why they did what they did,” she says. “’Were you looking at light and shadow? What was the reason?’ They can answer these questions in thoughtful, wellconsidered ways.” “I’m your facilitator,” Van Lieu tells her students. “I can help you figure out what it is you need to get the idea done, but you have to have the idea.” This method, Van Lieu acknowledges, involves “a lot of conversations, a lot of one-on-one conversations to get inside their heads to find out what’s going on, and then working with them for ways to express themselves. “They surprise themselves sometimes. They’re shocked at what they come up with when they really consider their thoughts and their lives.”