The Question that Makes All of the Hairs on the Back of Your Neck Stand Up

“This is pointless, why do we have to do art anyway?”

 
I know I am not the only one who hears this throughout the school year, in fact; multiple times.  In that moment those words hit your ears, the anger feelings come rushing towards you like you've discovered all of the markers in your classroom without the caps, or EVEN worse the silver sharpies you had to special order are lidless and left in the corner to shrivel and dry.  Yet, every time you hear it you have to bite your tongue and stay cool, calm, and collected as you begin your rationalized speech (that you've memorized because you've said it so many times).  At this point the class has probably stopped working, not because you told them too, but because they are either scared or just curious.  This might be the quietest the class will be all year so you know they are listening.  The speech will usually start like this:

"Do you like video games?"

Most respond yes.

"Well, that's interesting.  Now how would you play those games if someone didn't know how to draw?"

Silence.

"How did you know how to pick out that color of shirt to wear with those pants?"

Someone will respond that they know what colors look good together.

But then someone will mutter under their breath that their mom picked it out.

"Well, how do you know what colors look good together?"

We've learned about color theory and the color wheel in art.

"Raise your hand if you've ever owned a shirt that has been screen printed on or has a logo."

All hands go up.

"Well get this,  someone had to design that...WHOA I know."

and the list goes on...

Fashion

Graphic Designer

Animator (designing and creating drawings for cartoons, movies, and video games)

Movie Special Effects Artists

Art Gallery Owner

Art Museum Manager/Curator 

Book Illustrator

Comic Book Artist

Cartoonist

Teacher

Art Therapist

Visual Artists: Sculptor, Painter, Ceramic(Clay), Printmaker

Interior Design

Architect

Photographers (Fashion, Studio Portraits, Sports, Outdoors etc.)

Art Historian

Police Sketch Artists 

Screen printers (t-shirt design)

Advertising

 By the end they get the point and they know not to ask the question that should not be asked.

Of course, I'm the art teacher so I am going to defend what I am passionate about. Still, each time it does hurt a little bit inside.  It kind of saddens me a little bit because art class should be a time for students creative minds to run wild.  Lately, I've been coming across students that want me to tell them how to think while creating their own work.  It's like all the creativity has been sucked out of the world or as a 2nd grader told me today maybe they have "so much stuff in their brain that it hurts."  

Now, don't get me wrong do I expect everyone to LOVE art--no.  However, like my 6th grade teacher always said "Life isn't fair," she hit that one right on the head.  Being life that it is, sometimes we just have to do things we don't want to do like put the silverware away from the dishwasher, or make your bed, or mow the lawn, or go to art class--that's life.

Here are some articles I encourage you to look at that may give you some art education inspiration: 

Here

Here

Here

Here

Here

On that note, I hope your weekend has BIG things in store...

One can only hope as big as my glasses.

***Attention Muggles: I did not wand this to be Harry Potter themed, it just happened.***