Justin Smith on sun 6 jul 08
Not looking for the easy way but a better way for myself.
I am 32, working a job in a kitchen and bath designer showroom, not a bad
job but not what I want to do with my life. I started out wanting to teach
at the college level.
I have my AA but Burnt out on the local University that has a art departmen=
t
from hell. Along with testing hiv poz and dealing with a depression, I
finally dropped out of school for a $18 hour job that did not last
either=85.. Long story short I would like to get my MFA in ceramics and fin=
d a
university to teach at. I can tell I am hesitant if I am going to have to
face all the English, math, religious and social studied all with volumes o=
f
books to read and 10 to 15 page research papers due in 16 week semesters. =
I
am smart but even with practice reading and eseay papers are a challenge
beyond me. I am totally up for the challenge if it related to art classes. =
I
don't mind being well rounded person but come on.
Is there a trade school, university or program that will focus on the arts
and studio classes and by pass the non art related academics?
I am teaching for Clovis adult school one night a week. Have been making
pots since high school, there is not anything else I would like to do. I am
not sure I want to be making a living as a potter, and I enjoy teaching.
Any advice would be great,
Thanks,
Justin Smith, 32, Fresno CA.
--=20
Justin M. Smith
Clovis Adult School, Ceramics
Clovis/Fresno, CA, USA
Potter, Teacher, and always Student....
Tony Ferguson on tue 8 jul 08
Justin,
I appreciate your honesty. I would recommend in the future you do not share your HIV status as this information may cause someone to discriminate against you in your search for jobs, etc. You never know who will be on a committee and why increase the odds against yourself should there be someone who would hold that against you.
You have to follow your dream--and yes dreams change, but you must follow your heart. If you want to make pots, I recommend getting an apprenticeship with an older pro, work in an art center, community college, etc where they value a diverse student base of all sorts of experiences and skill levels. With that kind of diversity, it become a student to student teaching environment.
If you are not sure what you want to do, going to school may satisfy that, but you will go into debt unless you get it paid for somehow. Going into debt because your are not sure what you want to do--will you can be sure of one thing you will have to do, is work to pay that debt off.
Wanting to teach, to pass on knowledge is a very admirable thing if for the right reasons, but before you can teach, you have to be sure you have something of value people will want to know. Are you as or more excited about clay, the process, mystified by the allurement of a new form, glaze, accepting of failures and small victories? When you are all done, completed a firing, wiped out, ready to do it all over again but with some twists, new ideas, new risks ready to take? Welcome to the MAS (mutual admiration society).
Many people will tell you forget about it, too much competition, to little jobs, etc., and they are right and there are other ways to get your teaching willies out such as what you are doing, art centers, if you get really good enough to impress someone maybe even the workshop circuit. Even though I don't believe in luck, a person is pretty lucky to get a teaching job these days--and hard work, top notch work, a fat resume, knowing whose who is a very small part of the equation. As a teacher, you are in the service of people, guiding souls along their creative developmental pathway to enrichment and hopefully some form of enlightenment. Yeah, I really look at that way.
That all said you have to follow your dream. If you are motivated to learn more, then apply to at least 5 schools based on what the program offers and if you feel the instructor has something of value to teach you. It's expensive, I know. I can only hope many of the colleges are now up with the times and take digital submissions as that will save applicants a bucket load in slide costs. It is also a waste of resources to do slides anymore.
Trust yourself. Your life is not over. We all will die eventually one day my friend so why not go for it? Reach and live your potential. You have already done what I would have recommended--work a crappy job and that will motivate you to figure out what you want to do. Now you know. So do it.
Tony Ferguson
Justin Smith wrote: Not looking for the easy way but a better way for myself.
I am 32, working a job in a kitchen and bath designer showroom, not a bad
job but not what I want to do with my life. I started out wanting to teach
at the college level.
I have my AA but Burnt out on the local University that has a art department
from hell. Along with testing hiv poz and dealing with a depression, I
finally dropped out of school for a $18 hour job that did not last
either..... Long story short I would like to get my MFA in ceramics and find a
university to teach at. I can tell I am hesitant if I am going to have to
face all the English, math, religious and social studied all with volumes of
books to read and 10 to 15 page research papers due in 16 week semesters. I
am smart but even with practice reading and eseay papers are a challenge
beyond me. I am totally up for the challenge if it related to art classes. I
don't mind being well rounded person but come on.
Is there a trade school, university or program that will focus on the arts
and studio classes and by pass the non art related academics?
I am teaching for Clovis adult school one night a week. Have been making
pots since high school, there is not anything else I would like to do. I am
not sure I want to be making a living as a potter, and I enjoy teaching.
Any advice would be great,
Thanks,
Justin Smith, 32, Fresno CA.
--
Justin M. Smith
Clovis Adult School, Ceramics
Clovis/Fresno, CA, USA
Potter, Teacher, and always Student....
Tony Ferguson
315 N. Lake Ave. Apt 312
Duluth, MN 55806
...where the sky meets the lake...
Artist, Educator, Photographer, Film Maker, Web Meister
fergyart@yahoo.com
(218) 727-6339
http://www.tonyferguson.net
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