me1 Originally uploaded by dressform.
this is me after teaching.... it was about all i could muster to document [technically it was tuesday since it was after midnight].... i can't sleep right after getting back from teaching [all the talking and thinking on my toes.... my brain is wound up up up - should i have told them that? was i harsh enough on the lazy student? did i repeat the homework enough times??] thank god for ondemand cable... i just watch 3 episodes of sex and the city - easy • brainless • semi-funny.... kath's documentary series is phenominal...
so now i'm thinking about how to convey the idea of work ethic and dedication to my students. i know it's partially just by example, but i've really been thinking about those moments when professors shifted a paradigm... when i saw something different or clearly or from a completely unknown perspective. i find this harder to convey in the design class i'm teaching. design seems so much more technical [and i'm having to lecture lecture lecture...] and at the same time oddly unteachable. i mean i stand there and talk about balance and rhythm and symmetry and i think: but holy canoli you have to have some sense of aesthetics too... and where does that come from? certainly not from the computer [which they are oh so anxious to get on]. i can't necessarily tell you why it is just accepted that eames is a good furniture designer.... that he innovated and used materials in a new way and that the eiffle tower chair is just sublime.... and of course not EVERYONE agrees... so how and where does the consensus happen? and how do you get young eyes to "see"?? part of it is language and having the vocabulary... and the other part?? plus obviously i'm biased... i like certain colors, certain layouts.... mine is not alwasy the best way.... there is not really an objective perspective... [thank god for the other students who can give other opinions] and why do i find it easier to confront these issues in a studio art class?? there i feel much more sure footed.... hmmmm....
I like your little series and kath's new challange.
I love it when you teach. It stirs up your brain and forces you to look at the world in a different way. In response it stirs up my brain too.
My favorite class were those where the teacher cared. Ask them to look for what they are attracted to and what they aren't - they have to learn how to see, and that requires looking.
really identifying with your self-portrait here-- especially since I am presently on the couch watching 'sex and the city'... I am drained. not sure if my own self-portrait will make it in time for tuesday!
interesting thoughts on teaching... so much to think about here! my mind is whirling.
teaching is hard work.
good luck lisa.
I really like your self documentation...I think everybody can identify with that...couch potato-ing...;)
Sometimes I think that other people can't really teach you. They can just sow the seed in you. There are so many things I'm interested in now (arts, history,...) that I know I had as a subject in school but I didn't really care about back then...
Tis true, teaching sure can be exhaustipating, but at least you look cute when you are exhaustipated. (When I am exhaustipated after teaching, I am all covered with soot & grime -- definitely not cute.) Sometimes it is exhilirating & rewarding too though no? Especially when you see that look in the eye of the student - that moment when they are fully grasping a concept for the first time... It is so lovely that you are able help empower others with knowledge & skill! And, your dedication to the self-portrait is most impressive!!! You m'dear, are a badass!
great documentary series!
you are a good teacher just for taking the time to consider how you can better reach the students! you are clearly sensitive to your students needs and desires in the classroom and the very fact that you are concerning yourself with this shows your own dedication. the best way to convey something is to embody it, and it seems that you do.
lisa, thanks for helping us all THINK! it's all very ineresting stuff. i think back to my design teacher and one of the things i remember SO well is how he really didn't care for feminine designs. he was very much into classical, bauhaus and masculine. it was hard for him to be objective and i think, to be honest, he was not the best teacher.
your comments here show me that you are a person striving to be objective. that is so cool & so important to your students. i'm sure you inspire them to think and that will in turn inspire them to have those "a-ha" moments. it's all there.
have a restful weekend... xoxx, mav