My First Blog Post

For my first Blog posting I have been asked by my Fundamentals of Art Inquiry professor to answer the following questions, so here goes!

1. How was the process of creating the GMail account and setting up the Blog?

The instructions for the process of creating my Gmail account and setting up my Blog were very straightforward and easy to follow. I have a website for my artwork (which badly needs to be updated), www.morganstreetdesigns.com, and have always wanted to add a Blog to it. I was very intimidated by this, thinking it was beyond my expertise, but I now realize that it is definitely something I can accomplish.

2. What do you expect to learn in this course?

One of the things I expect to learn in this course is an expansion of my vocabulary, particularly when it comes to discussing a work of art, including a work that I myself have created. As I continue to travel on my journey as an artist (and future educator) I find that I am now being asked to talk publicly about my work. I was invited to give a 10 minute 'artist's talk' about my pastel painting Renée this past Spring at the Buffalo Society of Artists show held at the Kenan Center in Lockport. I agonized over what to say and over-prepared. I was speaking not only to interested art patrons, but also to highly talented and sophisticated local artists, and did my best to speak intelligently about my painting process. By taking this, and other Art Education courses I will definitely gain confidence in my abilities not just as a creator of art, but as an artist who can effectively communicate, as stated in the syllabus for this course,"...art theories, concepts, design, tools, and materials..."

3. How do you feel about taking an online course?

I am excited about the flexibility an online course offers. I took a class on Adobe InDesign in Ken/Ton's Continuing Education Program and was able to learn a lot more than I had anticipated. The online instructor was very easy contact; she was readily available to help troubleshoot any technical issues that I ran into.

4. What three things in the Growth Mindset (from Step 3) videos do you believe most apply to you?

Renée, 12"x16", soft pastel on paper, 2016

1. I believe that my creative talent was given to me as a gift from God; one of my favorite verses of the Bible is 1 Timothy 4:14 (King James Bible) 'Neglect not the gift that is in thee...
Just because I have this gift does not mean that I haven't had to work very hard to hone my talent. In the second video we watched, singer John Legend spoke of how for 6 years he was unsuccessful at getting signed to a record label. He may have been born with his talent, but he also has worked very hard to reach his ultimate goal of success in a very competitive field. From a very young age I enjoyed creating art, but over the years I have studied with different artists, practiced extensively on my own, and been rejected many times from shows and groups that I wanted to be a part of. I am finally to the point where I am receiving more acceptance than rejection letters. It is rare that someone is an overnight success, regardless of their talent, there is much hard work involved 'behind the scenes'.

2. Learning should be a lifelong activity, the more you use your brain, the stronger it becomes. Every single day you have an opportunity to increase your knowledge, you are never too old to learn a new skill, read a book, listen to a classical piece of music, etc. I received my BFA in Art History from Buffalo State College in 1995. It is now 2017 and I decided I WANTED MORE, so I enrolled in the Post-Baccalaureate Art Education program offered by Buffalo State. When I first considered going back to school I worried that I was 'too old' - I'm 45, married, two small kids - how could someone like me go back to college? But I want to learn more, so here I am, and I believe that I can do anything I put my mind to. Another example I would like to cite is my journey back to music. From 5th grade until I was a senior in college I played the bassoon. After graduation I had to quit because I did not own a bassoon, I had always borrowed the school instruments. Then about 5 years ago by chance I found a used bassoon, in need of work, on CraigsList that was being sold for $500.00. Bassoons are extremely expensive, this was finally my chance to actually own one and play again! The seller even accepted my offer of $400.00. It had been over 16 years since I had played, so I contacted one of my music professors from Buffalo State and she recommended that I take lessons with a professional bassoonist. Thus began my journey with Ellen Barnum (who is also a professor of music at Buffalo State and Canisius colleges), my bassoon teacher and friend of the last 5 years. I can now play better than I was ever able to play - but I also have had to practice almost every. single. day. I'll never be a professional musician, but it's something that brings me great joy, and I truly believe that reading music and playing an instrument strengthens and exercises your brain in a unique way. I credit it Ellen with bringing music back into my life.

3. It is unbelievable to imagine that Albert Einstein was a bad student and was told, basically, that he would never succeed in life. This reminds us to never let someone else dictate what we can and cannot achieve. We are in control of our own lives, our own destiny; if Einstein had listened to what his teachers told him and accepted their judgement of his abilities, the world would have been cheated out of one of the finest minds of the 20th century.