I taught my first 5th grade Parent Led Art
class on Friday. The scary part?
No, not that some of the students are now taller
than I am. The fact that this class required me to
draw in front of them. Live and without a net.
The class was an introduction to Perspective.
Using my vast knowledge accumulated from my
fourth grade art class and what I've gathered from PBS
art shows, topped off by the two page syllabus,
I bravely drew a rectangle to represent the far wall
of the upstairs hallway.
Oh, it was wonky. So wonky.
I added a door and an exit sign,
and then... while talking way too fast about Galileo,
I added the angled ceiling and floor lines.
Bless their fickle 5th grade hearts,
there was a gasp,
and a cry of "that's so cool"
and *boom* there was depth.
Two dimensions and transitioned into three.
The magic of the single point perspective worked.
I finished up my spiel and sent them into the hall to do
their own drawing, and felt like a shabby magician that
has successfully pulled the rabbit out of the hat.
I wish (as I often do) that I had more actual knowledge
about art. That I actually had a foundation in what I do,
instead of just a mad skill at bluffing.
With so much winging, you'd think I had pin feathers.