Emory Continuning Education

I started my art class last night and everyone in my class learned a few things about me...........Here is the play by play (will post picts later)
I left work and because it is spring break in my area traffic was a lot lighter than usual so I was at the campus an hour early. I decided to go to Starbucks and call Jason. Jason made Tuna Casserole while I was in class.........delicious! Anyway, I went to class and there was only 1 other person there so we were chatting and it turns out he is very artistic and wanted to take this class for fun. He works with computers and this class is a way he can get away from all of that. Then another gentleman entered - he is an attorney who is going to retire and is also taking this class for fun. I can't wait to start - the instructor enters in and out of the room several times. He seems pretty nice but he has not said anything yet.
Some time goes by and other students trickle in - only 1/2 of the class attends this week and two people are late because of traffic or they got lost. The instructor asked everyone to introduce themselves, explain what we do for a living and if we have any art background. Only two people had art experience so I thought to myself this is not so intimidating.

The instructor starts instructing and places a few objects on the table - a mug and a small tea pot or something like that. We are to follow the LINES of one of the objects very slowly with our eyes. Then do it again. We are now supposed to follow the lines and draw what we see (our pencils moving at the same speed of our eyes). This does not seem hard but it is. I can't seem to slow down enough to get it right. What am I doing wrong? Slow down I keep telling myself and finally I get to a speed (which is still not slow enough) but it works for the time being.

The instructor goes around looking at each persons drawing - although you really can't call it a drawing at this point but I digress. We are each doing well. I am very happy with this because this means I am doing it correctly. This is very important because I want to do everything CORRECTLY. I am a task oriented person and a very organized one at that. We move onto lighting. He places a larger more detailed teapot on the table - We are supposed to continue drawing these objects and follow the lines but this time we are supposed to outline where the light hits the object. "Don't draw too small" the instructor says. He said people tend to feel self-conscience when they are doing something new and in the instance of art they start to draw small in case they make a mistake or is looks wrong. He said you need to relax, just follow the lines and use your entire page.

As we are drawing these objects I feel myself get more and more uptight and stressed out - I look around and other people are getting so much more out of these little objects than I am. Does this mean I am so closed off to things and can't get my mind to think outside of the box? Do I only see the surface? Surely I can be an out of the box thinker, I can accept things that are not traditional. OR CAN'T I? UH! I am filled with panic that I am not as open minded as I thought I was and just as I start to lose sight that this is an art class and supposed to be fun, the instructor comes around and says to me (in front of everyone) "YOU NEED TO RELAX! You are showing everyone through your lines you don't know what you are doing". He might as well have been yelling this through a megaphone as far as I was concerned. He was not being mean at all but it was completely humiliating. Then he through out "you are never going to get it right. there is no such thing as getting it right in art so you need to relax or get through what ever other issues you have." Laugh, Laugh......

I am mortified and want to hide under the table but I laugh with him to show I am a good sport and EVERYONE can tell how uncomfortable I am. I never knew art could be so stressful. Very quickly, I took what he said and do my best to apply it to what I am doing at that moment. So, I start a fresh page, start drawing the table scene again and this time keep in mind to "Be Relaxed" Don't worry about messing it up. And what happens? The instructor walks by and says "that is much better"! and goes on to say some other things but I forget that part because all I needed at that point was something positive. I am excited to go back and I am excited to keep trying until I feel I have given it everything I have. I like the instructor very much and I have to keep in mind this is a completely new world I dove into but it will be a lot of fun. And apparently emotional but that's cool. I feel everyone should try something completely foreign from their own comfort zone.