First Week of Classes

A sight I see at least once a day.

This past week was my first week of classes.  After all of it I'm both excited and scared for the semester.  

On Monday I had my intermediate painting class.  Within 45 minutes there was a model and we were taking an entrance exam.  Pretty nerve racking, but I did well.  After reviewing the course syllabus though, I realized that this class wasn't for me.  So I talked to my professor and after showing her my work from last semester she bumped me up to the fourth level painting class: Advanced Conceptual Painting.  (I'll get more into that later)  I also had beginning Italian on Monday which was very easy.

Tuesday was tiring.  My day started with Stone and Marble sculpture.  My professor had us get familiar with the tools - hammer and chisel - by carving a concave into the surface of some marble.  After 5 minutes of pounding away I developed an overwhelming appreciation for stone sculpture and will never look at it the same.  It is serious hard work and I already know this class is going to take a lot of patience.  I also had my pastel techniques class on Tuesday.  I think I'm really going to like this class.  My instructor is a young artist originally from New York who is enthusiastic and really into art.  I think he will be a good source of motivation and knowledge. 

Wednesday was just Italian again and again it was easy.  

Thursday was a day.  I had my new painting class and we had an exam for this class.  This one was way harder though.  We had two models come in so we had to paint them and a metaphor of ourselves... in an hour!  Not fun.  I totally choked and for the first time, painted something I was embarrassed of.  It was a very humbling experience.  After some discussion and understanding what this course will be, I know this class is going to kick my butt.  It a lot of work, I need to stretch the way I think and I might just go mad, but when its over I think I will come out of it a much stronger artist in what an artist is now days.  

After my painting class I headed off to my cooking class where I am the only guy.  I got these judgmental looks from the girls as if I was in the class to pick up on them.  WRONG.  I'm excited to cook in this course and learn about nutrition and nutritious food preparation.  I made fresh pasta in class and let me tell you that a pasta roller is 10 times easier that rolling out the pasta with a rolling pin.  The other groups made the sauce for the pasta and a chocolate tart for dessert.  When we were done we ate. 

So after spending way more money than I ever have on art supplies I truly am a starving artist ready to start chipping away at my (what already seems like) never ending list of assignments.