“Art is not what you see, but what you make others see.” Edward Degas[1]

I am a practicing artist, a teacher, and a parent; I love to share all I know with other eager minds. My goal for teaching is to let students experiment with as many different styles and media as they can in order to find their creative potential. I believe that by showing my students how make art, they will find their individual way to communicate with their audience. I tell my students that by the time they leave my class at the end of the semester, they will see the world differently – through a more detailed looking glass.  To quote Georgia O’Keeffe, “I found I could say things with color and shapes that I couldn't say any other way, things I had no words for.”[2] I hope that when my students look into a field after having my class, that they should be able to see the details in the vibrant colors and alluring textures that they might have simply overlooked before having took my class. I push my students very hard, and in doing so, I strive to unlock their creative potential. I believe I am showing my students how to see the world from a more critical point of view, which will in turn open up doors that may never have been seen before.

Art is a class that is designed to help promote creative problem solving skills not only in the artistic realm, but also in all academic areas and in real world scenarios. “Art education can, and should be a social instrument for improving people’s lives.”[3] Both Aristotle and Plato saw the power that art had to evoke feelings or persuade convictions. I believe that this “power,” should be used to show the community and the students how they can help people through art. I have explored this idea through the creation of The Student’s League of Artists (NOHS art club).  The Student’s League of Artists is a dedicated group of students who meet throughout the year to create their pieces and at the end of the year they donate all of their work to a silent auction that will benefit a non-profit organization of their choosing. The silent auction is an event that the whole community participates in – the local businesses donate food and merchandise for the auction and reception, the students mat and hang their own work, dress in formal attire and showcase their hard work proudly, while their peers and parents and other prominent members of the community buy and contribute to the cause. Visual arts can convey a message without saying a word. I have shown students that the work they do could help bring their community together. The students have made art an integral part of the Oconee County community.

         “A teacher affects eternity; he can never tell where his influence stops.”[4] Every teacher leaves an indelible mark on their student’s experience in that class, and I know that I have at least given my students another way to communicate their thoughts, ideas, and dreams to anyone who will listen. Through this experience, they should be proud to be the most creative in all that they pursue!

Cathi Warren

North Oconee High School

1081 Rocky Branch Rd.

Bogart, GA 30622

[1] http://www.artquotes.net/categories.htm retrieved 11/30

[2] http://www.artquotes.net/categories.htm retrieved 11/30

[3] Anderson, T (2005). Art for Life Authentic Instruction in Art, McGraw Hill. Pg xxii

[4] http://www.artquotes.net/categories.htm retrieved 11/30