A SELF REFLECTIVE JOURNEY THROUGH MY ARTISTIC DEVELOPMENT Nicole Beck ARE6933: Artistic Development Summer 2015
I am currently entering my 10th year of teaching art to students grades K-12. For these past 10 years I have worked for the Kaukauna Area School District, in Kaukauna Wisconsin. Today, I can easily consider teaching art one of my passions. However, not once in my childhood did I ever claim that I wanted to become an art teacher. How did I get to this point? The following pages will help you uncover my journey into becoming an artist and teacher.
My earliest artistic memory is working on specific skills in the dining room of my childhood home with my mother. Taped to the walls were various shapes and colors for recognition when I was young. Eventually, this became a gallery-like space artwork from school was displayed. I remember my mother and I would sit at the kitchen table and practice cutting, holding pencils and markers, and coloring in the lines. Nothing was messy, and everything was very controlled. My parents would enter my work in various coloring contests when I was young. When we went to restaurants my mom would bring out pens from her purse and we would flip the placemats over and trace our hands while waiting for our food. The drawings often included detailed knuckles and fingernails from observation. In her own way, this was my mom’s way of encouraging artistic endeavors.
Me, at 4 years old, holding a coloring contest image.
Elementary School Years My elementary and middle school art experience was very similar to many other public school children. I participated in the creation of ‘schoolart’ or ‘cookie-cutter’ style art projects, very few in which my parents saved. What remains is a small collection of clay projects from 3rd, 4th, and 5th grades (shown left). Various Clay Projects, early 1990’s.
Interesting to note during this period is the work I created with an art therapist. After the deaths of two close grandparents, my parents struggled to help me deal with and overcome these events and asked the art therapist employed through the school district to provide counseling services. Eisner (1978) alludes to the benefits of art as therapy when he states, “there are ideas, images, and feelings that can only be expressed through visual form,” (p. 4). While he does not directly draw a connection between the benefits of art therapy, he claims that the ability to express ideas through art is one of the advanced forms of learning and communicating the arts can offer.
Secondary School Years I continued to take courses in art while enrolled at Preble High School, in Green Bay. I took them, like many other students because they were an easy ‘A’ and I simply enjoyed the work. There were two art instructors at the high school, neither of which I remember fondly. Assignments were given, and both instructors could usually be spotted behind their desks during the remainder of the class hour. They tended to assist students in which they saw great potential; I was not one of those students. I became lost in the mix of other students. The curriculum for the art courses was generic and included a small taste in various mediums; studies consisted of the usual color theory unit, grid drawings, and portraiture. During my senior year I took an independent study in art class with another student, and independent meant just that. He and I worked together and experimented with thrown pieces on the wheel and with various painting mediums, including oils. I do not have any substantial work to share from those classes. There were no end-of-the year art shows or significant events to prepare for. As I reflect upon it now, I believe there was a lack of support and encouragement during my high school years and because of this my artistic development was minimal.
College Years While I enjoyed art, I never considered exploring it as a career path. My post high school plans consisted of attending flight attendant schooling, then attaining a job working international flights. I had toured a few state schools, specifically looking at their art programs, but found nothing of interest. I had very little guidance; my parents did the best they could with the little resources they had. My plans changed when I was invited to play volleyball for Lawrence University, in Appleton, Wisconsin. Untitled Observational Drawing, Lawrence Chapel, 2002. 18x24� Charcoal
While Lawrence is a liberal arts school, I still knew I needed to concentrate my studies in an area of interest; art again becomes a focal point in my life. During my freshman year I took the Introduction to Studio Art course. I would consider this class the first step in my actual artistic development. This class explored concepts and skills side by side and challenged my perception of what art is. This was a dramatic shift from my previous art education experience and I felt light years behind my classmates. My development as an artist was fairly insignificant up until now. During the summer in-between my freshman and sophomore year at Lawrence University I worked as a camp counselor for inner city and disability students at Camp Hidden Valley in upstate New York. During the daytime activity sessions I would assist in the arts center. Among the many things I learned during this summer was that I had a passion for working with kids, and art. Following this experience, my studies at Lawrence took a more distinct path. I immersed myself if studio courses such as drawing, printmaking, ceramics, photography, digital processing, and painting. Art history and education courses also flooded my schedule.
Image Credit: Centerbrook Architects and Planners http://www.centerbrook.com/projects
Untitled Still Life in Monochromatic, 2004. 24x36” Acrylic on canvas
Untitled Nude Study, 2004. 18x24” Charcoal
Window
Trough 4x5” Silver Gelatin Contact Prints Samples from Senior Exhibit
Grandpa’s Barn
The most pivotal moment in my artistic development occurred during my junior year in college. I was introduced to Professors Julie Lindemann and Johnie Shimon during my Photography course. Little did I know it then, but these two people would become two of the most influential people in my artistic development. Lindemann and Shimon co-teach all of their assigned courses and embody all of the desirable traits of an effective teacher. They are very actively involved in the local art scene and connect with their students on a personal level. With their assistance, I developed a passion for traditional film photography, developed a critical eye for composition, and came to realize how my identity impacts the work I create. They pushed me to understand why I was creating art, and what that art meant to me. I began to develop a series of images of my grandparents farmstead using a 4x5� view camera and was able to pursue this study in depth, resulting in a collection of images that were displayed during my senior exhibit. Lindemann and Shimon continue to be artistic role models, as their body of work continues to gain exposure in notable venues.
Untitled Self-Portrait, 2004. 30x30� Acrylic on hardboard.
The image on the left, “Untitled Self Portrait”, was created during one of my painting classes senior year. I have always found selfportrait assignments to be frustrating, but looking back on it now this image is incredibly telling. Sometime after college I was clinically diagnosed with depression. This particular self-portrait was created in the middle of one of my low periods. I was unaware that what I was feeling was depression, but this image depicts a heavy weight falling on me and the dark colors suggest a rather somber mood. Again, art became therapeutic, although this was realized years later. Carroll (2006) argues, “the construction of self-identity is an essential concern that can give life-long purpose to making art and the learning about art,” (p. 24). She continues to suggest that learning about one’s self is a critical aspect of a holistic art education. I would consider my learning experience at Lawrence very similar to the holistic approach that Carroll promotes; the learning environment and structure of learning reflect Carroll’s teachings.
Post College/ Professional Career
Untitled Photographs, 2015. Digital Photographs. (Son, left; Daughter, right)
My love for art started when I was really young, although I never recognized it then, nor did I ever believe it would lead to a career. My parents have always been very supportive of my choices, although seriously questioned whether a career in the arts would allow me to successfully support myself. Teaching art was initially my way of proving to my parents that I could support myself in an artistic field, and it has slowly turned into one of my passions in life. As a teacher, I strive to serve my students better than the nonmemorable, unsupportive teachers from my past. My goal is to pass on to my students an appreciation for art, if even in the smallest capacity, as there have been many opportunities art has helped me personally.
Hosta, 2006. Acrylic on hardboard
Currently, the artwork I create focuses on my family; portraits of my children while playing and images of my husband’s family homestead clutter my SD card. Art is personally gratifying and therapeutic for me. I do not necessarily make art that creates a statement. It is the act of creating that I find centers my soul and makes me feel whole. Gude once said, “what is important here is not ultimately the uniqueness of the artistic product, but rather the deeply felt connection between self, process, and product,� (2009, p.1). Occasionally, I am asked to photograph a wedding or do small portrait jobs. Rarely do I find the time to paint, but when I am inspired it is the act of painting that interests me more than the product outcome.
Various Commissioned Portrait Photography, 2012-2013. Digital Photographs
My journey through the University of Florida art education masters program has also given me opportunities for artistic growth and I look forward to my first intensive summer studio week on campus. I enjoy learning, and as an educator I feel it is important to possess the desire to be a lifelong learner. My artistic journey is far from over, as I know my art will become increasingly important to me once my children have grown.
Untitled/Unfinished, 2016. Acrylic on hardboard
REFERENCES • • •
Carroll, K. L. (2006). Development and learning in art: Moving in the direction of a holistic paradigm for art education. Visual Arts Research, 32(1), 16-28. Eisner, E. (1978). What do children learn when they paint? Art Education, 31(3), 6-10. Gude, O. (2009). Art education for a democratic life [NAEA Lowenfeld Lecture]. Retrieved from http://www.arteducators.org/research/2009_LowenfeldLecture_OliviaGude.pdf