A Different kinda journey
Associates in Art Degree
On the previous page I told the story of my trip and experience (i.e. journey) at a Provence Art Workshop.
That trip inspired me to “formalize” my knowledge of art to a deeper level, so I enrolled at GSU for a “quick” Associates degree in Fine Arts. Cool, I thought, “I’ll develop the other side of my brain”, the more creative side. I felt this was a good direction as I already have my bachelor in Business Administration and several other Certificates in business arenas such as CMMI and Project Management.
Well….. by “formalizing” my art via a University program, also meant satisfying the University curriculum. After reviewing the university credits I required, and transferring others from previous colleges, I found that GSU still wanted another science as well as political science credits. Not so “quick” after all.
Lacking one science semester, I jumped into Astronomy only to find out I needed two in the same field. These turned out to be my favorite classes. It even inspired me to paint two painting of Nebulae. (great use of color). One of which I gave to my professor as a token of thanks for a great experience and for seeing the beauty Saturn through the campus’ large telescope. What a beautiful and “artistic” planet all dressed-up in its colorful rings.
Another good class was American Government – 2019/2020 semester – what an appropriate time in American history to take this class – lots of stuff happening politically during the year. The definition of impeachment, civil rights, voting and elections took on a realistic meaning, not something just read in the pages of a dusty text book.
How about also needing the credits on Global Issues – yup - another good class to understand that this world is actually quite small, that all countries are our neighbors, and that our earth needs to be appreciated and protected.
In my past academic life, I had my language requirement satisfied by “CLECping” Spanish; but the CLEC records were no longer available to transfer. Therefore, I needed two semesters of another foreign language. Il ne pas de problème. J’e pueve étudié le français! This could tie into future trips to Provence, n'est-ce pas? Loved that class too. In one of my assignments I interviewed my cousin who lives in Paris. That was fun -- she was so accommodating and the whole class enjoyed the interview as well.
Okay, I’m sure you are thinking what about the art classes? After all, this is an Associates in Fine Arts degree. Well theses classes led me in new directions. It was not so much of “formalizing” art theory or techniques as much as learning to be more creative in different ways. Of course, Art History was a key class – what beautiful art to explore, -- what great stories to learn about --- what wonderful artists there have been with such rich and sometimes dramatic lives -- what a good way to get an understanding of what art does to history and what history does to art.
The other art level classes included Drawing : the beginning art forms. Studio : thinking outside the norm of what art is, the inspiration of art, including Performance Art, 2-D Design : foundational knowledge and various technique to making art. Its balance, it’s theory, it’s color, it’s impact on the viewer.
Photography: an art form in its own right, how to look at what we see, finding material to transform to other art media. All these classes were great and taught me to engage further in my new found passion.
In this new journey, which I just finished this December, the seeds of new ideas have been planted, knowledge has been gained, and, techniques and tools have been exchanged. Will my art be better? Different? Only time will tell. The reward to “formalize” my art knowledge became SO much more than a goal just to make art. I made new friends, expanded my understanding of science, language, people and truths. It was fun and I became a better person. I owe this to perseverance and to my awesome teachers at GSU – thanks!