Wednesday West of the Divide

Another great day on the road! I had three presentations today. One with a young group of Kindergardeners...so uninhibited and inquisitive, yet the attention span isn't all that lengthy. Great kids though. It's neat to see the craving for knowledge that most young kids have. I wish that hunger continued...and in some, thankfully, it does. The humor of a 5yr old, usually not purposeful, but it is brilliant and fresh and I absolutly love it. Bring on the 5yr old comments!! The big groups were 1-5th grade and then 6-12th grade.
Teens, oh boy. I wish I could help the teens realize that learning is cool. Or maybe that they can be an individual...I don't miss those years of trying, somewhat desperately, to figure life out. That combined with the seemingly invisibility of that age group. With each grade level, comments definitely decrease for the Art Mobile. It's like with each year, we learn that there is pain associated with throwing it all out there. Are we learning to be inhibited? Yes, you could be horribly wrong- but trying, THAT is the most important thing. Being comfortable in situations where you are uncomfortable, also important. Yet I can feel the high school kids sizing me up to see if I'm a "cool" kid. Or sizing the art up to see if it is "cool" to like. All in all the teachers are all very excited to see and learn new things. It's great to see educators who crave and get amped up on knowledge; extremely inspiring. What I don't quite understand is the few teachers that nod off or obviously zone out during my presentation, okay, maybe only one or two...but still. As if the students don't learn what is appropriate based on seeing the actions of adults. That's frustrating, especially if they sit in the front row. :) But the day went well. I would say that the native art pieces and Steve Glueckert's drawing machine drew the most inquisitive and out of the ordinary looks. The strength of the exhibit makes it difficult to perceive any favorites. I think the variety and technique shown by the Montana artists makes my ramblings about their work somewhat easy and natural. I love thinking and talking about the why and how's of art...so very interesting and never the same answer. Even when an artist uses the exact same materials, they can't help but to make it their own. Love it. On to a more northern site tomorrow. Until next time-