Art Philosophy

"Art pumps through my heart, flows through my veins and drips from my fingers."

- Me

I wrote this quote for my high school year book. It encapsulates the way that art is a part of me and finds a way to express itself in my life. In my teaching, I believe that students need to be guided, taught to see the world in new ways and to expand beyond the edges of their creative world. Yet, different that other teachers, I do not believe that they should just copy and follow step by step how to make art that is identical to my own. Students need to learn techniques, but they should be the only one touching their artwork and the one to create their own style of communicate their own ideas.  It is from their heart. 

In a world where the focus is on production and instant gratification,  I still believe in hard work, trying again and again until you get it right and having patience and determination and not letting someone do it for you. I am the teacher that has my student look at their artwork...one more time... to see if there is anything else that can be improved, changed, elaborated on. So for the child that says I am done and just one class, I say, " Tell me about the weather, show me how that person feels, make me smell those roses..."

As for the art therapy experience, I believe in process, cathartic release and how one can work through and express themselves through art. Often times we can communicate through art experiences our challenges and moments that we are stuck in, so that we can fix them, find resilience and develop new coping strategies. The paper, the canvas, the clay are all safe places to work through our experiences as an individual, a couple, a family or a group. 

Art can be a pillar or change and canvas for recreating our lives.