Disha Murugupandiyan - Week 12: A Calming Art
When I first signed up for Sculpture & Ceramics during course requests last year, I thought that I would suck at it. Yes, I’ve taken art classes before (as we all might have at one point in our life), but that was years and years ago. Even now, the highest level of art of mine is tracing pictures off of my laptop screen.
I chose this class because although I had taken IED in freshman year, the art credit ended up being invalid, so I needed some type of art class to get that F credit. Art 1? No way. I can barely draw a tree. Digital Photography? Nope. All I can think of are all the times when my sister would get frustrated at me for taking bad pictures of her. And so I landed on Sculpture & Ceramics. I’ve always wanted to try to work with clay. There’s so much freedom involved with it, since you can mold and shape it any which way you like. We’ve all seen those videos of potters using the wheel and making it look so easy, simply urging the clay to move in the way that they want.. In no way did I think that was going to be me, but I thought, “Why not give it a try?” And so I did.
So far, I’ve made some projects that I’m pretty proud of, including a London telephone box made out of cardboard (that you might have seen displayed in the library earlier last semester) and a clay mug. My first clay mug. Although it can be pretty frustrating working with clay, I’ve found that it’s also really calming. If I have enough time, I spend it smoothing out the surface of whatever new project I’m working on, enjoying that satisfying feeling of watching a spot blend in with the rest of the piece.
With a decently tough schedule and constant work, it’s really nice to have a class in which I can just relax, sort of like a break from everything else. Personally, I think the best part about the class is that I have so much creative freedom. I can make whatever, choose whatever color, and there’s no harsh restrictions. I honestly never expected this class to be that kind of place for me, but I really enjoy it.
In truth, I think I just needed a break. As juniors, we have pretty crazy and constantly moving lives. We all need a break, or a way to relax, or we’ll go crazy. A real life example of this is Alysa Liu, who took a two year break from figure skating and then came back to win Olympic gold on her own terms. Every interview I see with her, she’s asked about the break and she always replies something along the lines of “everyone needs breaks and should take one.” Although we all can’t simply take a two year break from life or school (not just yet), we should still slow down and find something that helps us relax. Who knows, maybe you’ll find it in a place you least expect.
On the anchorings we did, do you remember how Mrs. Smith would always have us make a drawing? I drew the exact same 2D house with some clouds and a sun (haven’t updated the repertoire since second grade) five out of five times that we did that assignment and hoped it would work. I’m also horrible at art, and like you, find my relaxing space somewhere else. For me, that’s mostly reading and for some reason board games. However, with the second semester of junior year now in session, I’ve been finding less and less time to engage in those activities: I love how you remind us that it’s still important to take those breaks from time to time, and that you then give an example of taking those breaks through ceramics. Time is money, and money is power: if we can’t spend time doing the things we love, does that then make us powerless against the daily hustle? In the US, especially in the Bay Area, that form of power is taken away from not just students but even workers who work long hours in hopes of higher wages and promotions. It’s kind of like someone’s always holding a carrot in front of us and we keep chasing it, but because of that we leave a stack of apples behind (if that makes any sense). On your writing, I love your use of personal anecdotes, as they make the blog much more relatable and interesting to read. It also achieves your purpose of getting us to reflect on taking breaks because through your self-reflection, we’re encouraged to do the same. I also really like your effective use of rhetorical questions when discussing why you ended up choosing ceramics above other options, as it makes it clear why ceramics is therefore important to you. Thank you for an amazing piece!
ReplyDeleteHi Disha! I think it’s very brave that you’re going out of your comfort zone in taking an art class that you feel inexperienced in. I really admire how you try to improve in your art journey, because I feel like many people who are not skilled in something can easily feel unmotivated to progress in their talent, and thus do just enough work to get that A in the gradebook. Your telephone box looks great, by the way!
ReplyDeleteI totally agree with you! Thank you for emphasizing the junior workload, because at least for me, the amount of free time we got in freshman and sophomore year compared to junior year has dropped to an all time low. The gap between sophomore and junior year is not talked about enough! That’s why FLEX is such a nice implementation to the school day, because whether you’re taking a small phone break off of lectures or doing small projects, it’s relaxing to have the freedom to do whatever school work you want to do, and you can often choose when you want to have that break. I really hope FLEX stays next year, because it’s honestly how a lot of students including me get most of our small assignments done without piling up once we get home.
Yes! Art definitely seems like a relief to the traditional assignments you have to do during the school year such as notes, lectures, essays, and all that we have done since elementary school. I’m so glad you pointed out how art has creative freedom, because any day I look at any form of art whether that would be a painting, digital art, or a musical composition, my mind gets blown to pieces. People are so talented and it’s so astonishing every time seeing how each artist interprets and expresses their feelings or passions.
Wonderful blog, Disha!
Hi Disha! I took Art 1 hoping that it would be a similar experience to what you described with Sculpture & Ceramics. However, I feel like in my class, I spend more time doing slideshow presentations about topics that are tangential to art instead of actually doing art.
ReplyDeleteThis blog has persuaded me to take Sculpture & Ceramics but I have too few slots to take it. Instead, I will just vicariously live through your experience with the class. Hearing from a person who believes that they cannot “draw a tree” but then are able to produce amazing works like the “London telephone box” highlights how everyone can do anything as long as they persevere. My art teacher always tells us “never say you cannot do art because you can.” I realize that this statement in my opinion is very accurate because we can do practically anything given enough time and resources. The biggest limiter is our mindset which is why I would assume ideas like growth mindset continue to grow in popularity. Understanding that we can continue to grow is an essential part in our power because we can do incredible things after making mistakes and trying again. I also wholeheartedly agree about how we as juniors have “crazy and constantly moving lives” which is why we “needed a break.” It does not matter what the break is as long as we have it. Speaking of breaks, I am extremely excited for Spring Break where I finally will be able to relax more after several stressful weeks. What are you going to do during the break?