It's been awhile...

Summer is carefree and exciting. During the fall there is a lot to do. Now that winter is coming, it's time to be reflective and spend more time close to home. I realize that I am prone to the winter blues so this winter I have several projects to focus on as I while away the weeks and await the spring.

Last Saturday our ArtsAPS professional development group met for the last time. It was bittersweet. It's always good to see my colleagues. Art teachers understand the world in a unique way. I love these people but I generally only see them when we have to meet for work. It was so good to see them. We were all smiling. Another treat for the day was the art exercise of creating a project that John had for us all to do. It was fun! The whole day inspired me and lifted my spirit to carry me through the dark nights of the cold winter. Thanks to APS and the program that made it all happen.

Bon Jour, Mon Cher.....

Paris is an amazing city. I had the opportunity, so I went for four days during spring break. A friend of mine was there studying and invited me to come and visit. With just a bit of hesitation I said, "Ok". I have a passport, I just like to be ready to go anywhere at the drop of a dime. And as an artiste I have always wanted to see the city of lights. I couldn't resist. It was great to be there on the first beautiful days of spring. And my friend, L'erin, was a great tour guide. We had a ball. Cruising down the Seine (in picture), touring the Louvre (of course), riding the Metro, sitting in a cafe, speaking French, sauntering down the Champs d'Elyses, shopping, meeting real French people, etc. It was great, and very inspiring. I am planning an art piece dedicated to France. They love art there, it's everywhere. If you ever get a chance, go!

My Inspiration

My son Mercury is my greatest inspiration. This is him on his 18th birthday with my two neices, Maya and Mikayla. He is now 22 and plays bass guitar in a rock band. He makes me proud everyday.

I Had an Amazing Dream

I had this amazing dream last night. I was doing my thing, happy, standing with some folks. Then this train went by. It was moving fast, like what is that? A train! And the amazing thing, as I realized it was a train, I felt myself on the train. In fact it felt like I was the train. Makes you wonder. Why do we have dreams? Is it a message? a riddle? or is it nonsense? That train was HOT!

Pinkie and the Brain

Daniel Pink... (you know the kids teased him in school). Pink's ideas are resonating with me. I've heard similar concepts before, about ten years ago. I read a book called "The Alphabet Versus the Goddess" by Leonard Shlain, MD. It was/is a fascinating book that literally jumped off the shelf at me. The subtitle, "The Conflict Between the Word and Image" is what really pulled me in. The writer has powerful stories; check his biography: He is a brain surgeon who decided to study anthropology. He wanted to not only understand the mechanisms of the brain but also the multifarious products of it throughout history. The book is amazing, deep and mind bending as he illustrates the many examples of left versus right through time. Intellectual, articulate, and provocative, Shlain presents the argument that Pink endorses; that the brain is changing. Where Pink's focus is on the marketplace, economics and people's practical lives; Shlain illustrates his concepts using historical figures and concepts to show the conflict between left and right, male and female, yin and yang, birth and death. Shlain's book was/is so deep that I never fully finished it. Now I want to go back and soak it all up.
Shlain was traveling the Mediterranean, touring some of the many ancient ruins of Greece, Rome, Libya, Egypt, etc. Each site had a familiar background. They had been built to pay homage to a female deity, then at a certain time was transformed to a place to worship a male deity. He wondered what world shifting events caused the people, their brains to worship male deities at about the same time?

Thanks! I needed that.....

I was on my way to the SouthWest Art Center, off Cascade. It's a beautiful facility. The African-Americans for the Arts was having our first meeting of the year and I wanted to get there early. On the way I stopped at the Publix on Cascade to get an apple and some juice. Someone called my name, "Ms. Jeter". Looking up, it was one of my old students from Carver High School. He had a name tag on, Derrick. I gave him a quick hug. He was so glad to see me. He said that I had been on his mind, and expressed his appreciation for all the time, lessons and laughs we shared in class four years ago. That felt so good. He had a twinkle in his eye as he spoke and looked off, speaking of a particular lesson, and how it helped him then and now. "Art helped me see the world different, thank you....." Wow! That was nourishment to me, I needed to hear that. I've been in a slump, not connecting to many students because of this situation here are Crim, so serendipity helped me. I told him that I needed that, thanking him and encouraging him to keep art in his heart. He's a father now, with twin sons and a wife. I walked away from him with a renewed love for this profession of teaching art.

Rip Van Artist

I woke up the other morning and it seemed like I had been sleep for weeks. I guess I've been depressed. My mind just got tired of the malaise finally I woke up this morning with new eyes. My depression was brought on by many things; loneliness, isolation, workplace challenges, frustration with the status quo. At heart I am a radical, the world is changing too slowly for me.