Von Allen on sun 4 nov 01
I am the only woman faculty member teaching in studio art at my school =
, more than 80% of my students are female Since I teach at BYU my =
students are often young well behaved Mormon women with typical =
insecurities of young women of that age group..
When they wander into the building that houses the three dimensional =
arts, they have no idea that it will change their lives, but I truly =
believe that it does. They take ceramics and intro to sculpture =
process and they learn to weld, forge and bend steel, load and fire the =
raku kiln ,build sculptures as big as themselves and work with small =
machines. They understand gas lines and drills and back drafts and how =
to hold a hammer.
I can recall dozens of stories of timid young women lacking in =
confidence who ending up barking out commands as the raku kiln lifts up. =
One tiny Asian woman was too light to raise the kiln up and one day I =
saw her leap up and grab the balance weight and haul it down with her =
whole body. She also learned to throw huge gorgeous platters that =
stunned some of the larger men who were convinced that throwing big pots =
was all about upper body strength.=20
I get postcards from women who have graduated and gone out into the =
world to discover that they know more about how their furnace works than =
their husband does.=20
The world is big and full of things we don't understand.. but I believe =
that the ability to work with tools and materials builds a confidence in =
young women that stays with them all their lives.=20
Teaching is all about changing the world.. .. one person at a time..
vonallen1@home.com
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