Celebrate National ARTS IN EDUCATION WEEK!

September 12-18, 2010 has been designated National Arts in Education Week! This is a time to celebrate visual and performing arts education for students of all ages.

I feel very fortunate to be teaching students in my hometown about what I love most: ART! I wouldn’t be an artist and teacher today if I hadn’t had a chance to learn about the arts when I was young.

When I was growing up, there were many teachers that helped me learn about the arts and influenced my life, even to this day. Mrs. Harding was my art teacher at the Acushnet Elementary School. I still have some of the projects I made in her class! The very talented and patient Dianna Couto gave me oil painting lessons from around age 10 through age 15. My high school French teacher Pierre Paquin taught me about art and music history and brought our group to my first-ever Broadway show. In college, Dr. Theodore Davidovitch allowed me to sing with the Chorale at W.S.C. We even got to travel and perform in Europe one semester. Walter Korzec was hands-down my most supportive college art professor and one of my teaching role models along with my cooperating teacher Diane Allen at Juniper Park School in Westfield, MA. And of course, I can’t forget that during my childhood, my parents made the effort to bring my brother and sister and me to all sorts of museums, including the Boston MFA (even though I cried because I was afraid of the mummies)!

There have been many other people and arts educators in my life who’ve made me the artist, musician, teacher and person I am today--and I’m still learning!

So today, thank a teacher you’ve had in your life, and thank your administrators and school committees that support these programs because they know THE ARTS MATTER!!

For more information, the web sites below explain how and why arts education and experiences are important for all students.
Arts Action Fund
National Arts Education Association
ArtsUSA
Why the Arts Matter from ARTSEDGE
...but Don't Forget the Arts from ARTSEDGE
Americans for the Arts

And for more about supporting arts education, check out this informational flyer from the NAEA:


FYI- In support of Art Ed., I have posted this same entry on my classroom and studio blogs!

Hometown Art and Floyd News

This past weekend I had the pleasure of judging the 51st Annual Art show in my hometown of Acushnet, MA. A very dedicated group of arts supporters has kept the show going for many years. They believe in encouraging young artists, and some of my students’ work was featured there as well. Along with local artist and teacher Sue Wilson, we had the difficult task of deciding the winners in each of the categories.

One of my favorite pieces was a quirky and beautifully painted portrait signed "Duckworth". I think I actually recognized the models from around town. I also loved the O'Keeffe-esque flower by Susan Lawrence and the two interesting landscapes done with a linear colored pencil technique in the mixed media category by Simone Dalton. There were several pieces that I especially enjoyed seeing since they were created by my childhood painting teacher, Dianna Couto. She still has such a beautiful touch with detail work, as shown on her peony still life and covered bridge landscape.

It made me appreciate how so many people out there create art every day, for enjoyment, self-expression, therapy, and fun in addition to professional work. I’d love to see more young artists submit art works next year, so I’ll be getting in touch with some of you out there next spring (you know who you are!).

In Floyd news, my husband Matt will be heading into the studio Thursday to record the final music cuts for the Floyd DVD. The recording will be made at PBS Studios in Westwood with Peter Kotrimas, who has done the sound engineering on most of Matt’s CDs. Stay tuned for more about the DVD soon!