Ava Eisenband Week 2 - The Secret About Art

The Secret About Art

       I discovered my love for ceramics class in eighth grade, and have been taking the elective ever since. Some ceramicists prefer to just make pots and cups on the wheel. I, on the other hand, am a sculpturist. I have built all types of animals: a bear cub, a Golden Retriever, a frog, and so on. 

    For my first project in 11th grade as an AP Ceramics student, I decided I would make a lioness. But over the two weeks I spent building the lioness, I found that I built it way bigger than I had to, and it was just not turning out to look like a lion. My teacher, Mrs. Hasson, allowed me an extension to take it home over Labor Day weekend and finish it. So on Monday, I spent the whole day desperately trying to finish it and make changes so that it would look, well, like a lion. Despite my efforts, I was unsatisfied with the finished product.

    When I came into the ceramics studio on Tuesday, I confided in Mrs. Hasson about how I felt like a failure, and how my sculpting skills must have completely wilted away over the summer. Mrs. Hasson, being the amazing teacher she is, reassured me that I was a good student and there was still hope for the sculpture. However, I still wasn't very convinced until a freshman boy walked into the room and said, "Hey, is that a French Bulldog?" I looked at the boy, then at my sculpture in consideration, and then back at the boy. He was a genius because my lion did in fact look way more like a French Bulldog. That's when Mrs. Hasson convinced me that I should make my sculpture a bulldog instead. All I would have to do is change the face; I already got the body down. My hope was already returning.

    So here's the secret about art: there is no such thing as mistakes. If something goes wrong, you can turn it to your advantage. If you can't make a lion, make it into a French Bulldog! Have you ever had an instance where you turned a failure into a new opportunity for success?

(This is my black panther from ninth grade.)

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