the art farm on fri 25 may 01
i am a 24 year old, self taught potter. its been over a year since i
adopted the lifestyle and learned many lessons through trial and error.
recently, i have moved to an isolated farm with an earthenware deposit,
where i am experimenting with the clay...i will start pit firing the
clay once i finish an upcoming art show. i have also just started
teaching pottery basics to adults and children in my community.
i now have the opportunity to go to school, and i'm uncertain whether i
want to persue a degree in art, because i'm afraid it will disrupt my
studio work, which is just beginning to receive public recognition.
i'm leaning toward school for the degree and the knowledge, but i am
very interested in pros and cons from the group.
thanks in advance,
ken
Snail Scott on fri 25 may 01
A BFA is next to useless. It's the access to knowledge
and breadth of exposure that are valuable about art school,
not the degree. A degree of some sort can be valuable, as
a stamp of credibility/respectability if a job, grant, or
residency is sought, but will never be the first requirement
(or even the fifth, maybe.) An MFA is a necessary credential
if you intend to teach at the college level, but again, the
experience is what makes it worthwhile, not the 'sheepskin'.
If you're not doing the sort of thing that a degree would
be required for, then don't sweat it.
I do think that education is valuable, though. Take classes,
especially at public colleges - the prices are often very
reasonable, and you'll learn things you can never find out
on your own. Sometimes being self-taught can feel like re-
inventing the wheel. On the other hand, you'll probably know
more than most of your fellow students, and may feel 'under-
challenged'. It's up to you to get what you can from the
opportunity. You seem adequately self-motivated, though.
Colleges can be a great way to make contact with other artists,
and in some areas, the local college is really the center of
the arts community. Take the opportunity to meet as many people
as you can - they're your future students, and your future
buyers.
A full-time student schedule will assuredly cut into your
studio work. It will be tougher to break away from your work
later on than than it will be now, so if you're going to do it,
this is probably the time. You don't have to be a student full time,
though.
Do take a few classes; not just clay classes, either, or even
just art classes. It will all feed your work. If, at some point,
you get enough credits to be close to a degree, then you can
decide to see it though or not.
-Snail
At 08:58 AM 5/25/01 -0400, you wrote:
>i am a 24 year old, self taught potter. its been over a year since i
>adopted the lifestyle and learned many lessons through trial and error.
>recently, i have moved to an isolated farm with an earthenware deposit,
>where i am experimenting with the clay...i will start pit firing the
>clay once i finish an upcoming art show. i have also just started
>teaching pottery basics to adults and children in my community.
>i now have the opportunity to go to school, and i'm uncertain whether i
>want to persue a degree in art, because i'm afraid it will disrupt my
>studio work, which is just beginning to receive public recognition.
>
>i'm leaning toward school for the degree and the knowledge, but i am
>very interested in pros and cons from the group.
>thanks in advance,
>ken
>
ian vonthaden on fri 25 may 01
hey ken,
school....hmmm......
well let me start by telling you something about myself. I am about the same
age as you. I have been in college for the past five years, prior to that i
worked in construction, on a printing press for a newspaper, as a deck hand
on sailboats in the carribean, and sometimes made a living through some not
so legal means (you probally know what i mean). currently i am taking a
semester off school to live in Albania, no not Alabama, but that small
country in the Balkans that is always on the verge of starting a war with
someone.
I attend the University of North Carolina in Asheville where i study art
with an emphasis on ceramics under the watchful eye of Megan Wolfe. this is
the fourth school i have been too. it took me a while to find a program i
liked and professors who were thier to do more then collect a pay check or
chase skirts.
for me college has been a chance to hide from the real world and find some
new skills, other then illegal ones. when i started college i had no idea
what i wanted to study. i took a couple of art courses to fill my schedule
one semester and have been hooked ever since....but to some extent it is in
my blood. my mother is also an artist, with an MFA. she ran gallleries in
NYC but now grooms dogs for a living (long story).
college will affect the work you are already doing, whether this is good or
bad is a flip of the coin. at school they will teach you that this is right
and that is wrong and tell you you should be doing it this or that way; but
as you already know- if it works and you like the results then its right for
you.
my suggestion is try it, you can always quit if it doesn't feel right. you
should also keep in mind that every school is completely different. I know,
i've been to five and visited over twenty.
you should also keep in mind that getting a degree in art often entails
studying many things outside of your choosen field; i.e. design, drawing,
photography, and several academic areas. these other things often influence
your work in strange ways. my significant other, of seven years, is a poet
and she is often the greatest influence on my work. and because i have been
to college and taken literature course i can discuss and understand her work
which in turn allows me to verbally explore my work. but i'm getting off
topic and philosophical here.
why don't you send me some more information and we will continue this
conversation at a later date. tell me what part of the country you live in,
what school you are thinking about going too and any other pertinent
information.
also if you contact me off the list serv i'll explain the financial aid
process to you and how you can use it to your advantage. if nothing else
college can be a good way for you to get some money in your pocket to buy
some equipment with; yes cold, hard, dead american presidents that you can
use to buy any number of things with. most of mine ends up going to 420.
hope this has been helpful and sorry about the rambleing....i'va had one too
many cups of Albanian expresso. i love the stuff but it makes me crawl up
the walls untill about four in the morning.
see ya,
ian von thaden
vonthaden@hotmail.com
>From: the art farm
>Reply-To: Ceramic Arts Discussion List
>To: CLAYART@LSV.CERAMICS.ORG
>Subject: how cool is school?
>Date: Fri, 25 May 2001 08:58:47 -0400
>
>i am a 24 year old, self taught potter. its been over a year since i
>adopted the lifestyle and learned many lessons through trial and error.
>recently, i have moved to an isolated farm with an earthenware deposit,
>where i am experimenting with the clay...i will start pit firing the
>clay once i finish an upcoming art show. i have also just started
>teaching pottery basics to adults and children in my community.
>i now have the opportunity to go to school, and i'm uncertain whether i
>want to persue a degree in art, because i'm afraid it will disrupt my
>studio work, which is just beginning to receive public recognition.
>
>i'm leaning toward school for the degree and the knowledge, but i am
>very interested in pros and cons from the group.
>thanks in advance,
>ken
>
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