Harvey Sadow on wed 13 nov 96
Karl David Knudson wrote:
>
> ----------------------------Original message----------------------------
Try it yourself, sit down and
> name who you thing are the most influential, famous, wonderful, keen
> ceramicists. Most of them teach I'll bet. Either we've got the best
> people in positions of educating or there's a heck of a conspiracy going on.
Perhaps the point is simply that university faculty members,
particularly those in large or highly visible programs created their own
apostles and sent their own PR marching out the door every year, whether
intentionally or not. This is not an indictment, just a reality check.
>It seems also that the best school to go to for learning to make a living makin
>and apprentice with him/her. Does anyone know of a program that would
>contradict that statement?
There is far more to a college education than learning about
clay. My undergraduate education contributed significantly to my
ability to step into widely varied situations with company as diverse as
local farmers, captains of industry, poets and presidents; and to be
comfortable while sharing with and learning from them. It has helped me
to solve problems of all kinds, including the ones associated with
making a living as a non-production oriented studio potter and workshop
leader, outside the academic community. Think about the value to a
studio potter of such subjects as chemistry, physics, creative writing,
art history, advertising design and economics, to name a few. These
things, as well as some role models and true friends have been among the
great gifts of my education. In fact, I first became interested in CLAY
in college. My MFA was another matter, entirely, although still
incredibly useful. For some, an apprenticeship would be valuable, for
some it would be even more valuable after a college education. The same
might be true for sculptors, painters etc... .
I have always tried to make my viewpoint as broad as possible,
and seek to broaden the viewpoints of others. There will surely be
poeple, in the course of time, who will try to narrow yours or even
blind you if they can. Twenty years ago, in a lecture at NCECA, M.C.
Richards stared directly at one of our great hero artist/teachers and
said: "The brightest lights cast the darkest shadows."
Regards, Harvey Sadow
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