WHO IS AN ARTIST?

Genesis 1:27 tells us that we are created in the image of God. John 1:1-3 explains that all things were made by Jesus, the First Artist!  Everyone is an artist; everyone is a creative individual - it just comes out of us in different ways. Some people sing, dance, play a musical instrument, act, or paint and draw. Others like to cook, sew, write stories and poetry, or work with wood. To be human is to create! 

"Art class is how we teach students to keep their creative powers strong.The world needs creative solutions to problems; being creative is vital to being human. Just as we don't expect every student to be an Olympic athlete, we don't expect every student to be a professional artist. But if you have a body, you need to exercise it to keep it healthy. And if you have a brain, you need to exercise it to keep it creative and flexible. Big problems will keep on presenting themselves and it's the creative people that will be able to solve them. And that's how it is. No joke. It's that serious. And I truly believe that." Rosanne Walsh

What Does It Mean To Be An Artist?, video by Kayla Marie Ohlms, YouTube

WHERE WOULD WE BE WITHOUT ART?

All of us have heard someone say that art is a waste of time, it's not necessary, it is just something to do when you are bored. Is Art class really just a "frill?" 

Actually, we would all be naked and living in a cave without art! 

Without art we wouldn't have clothing, jewelry, shoes, houses, furniture, cars, televisions, movies, books, magazines, the Internet, video games, theaters, stores, amusement parks, museums, schools, cell phones, cameras, and the list just goes on and on! A creative artist had to invent all these things at some point for us to enjoy them. 

HOW DOES ART BENEFIT YOU?

There are three main ways: 

1. Art makes you smarter! “Creativity” means “problem solving,” and in Art class you are using your brain in ways that you don’t get to in your other classes. On this chart of higher order thinking skills, “CREATE” is at the TOP! It can be a real intellectual challenge to come up with ways to effectively communicate your thoughts, ideas, and feelings! It can also be a challenge to figure out HOW to make whatever it is that you have envisioned! Creative problem solving is what we do all the time in Art class! Studies have shown for years that students who take art actually score higher on standardized tests such as the ACT than students not in an art class. 

2. Art helps you communicate! When you hear people say that they can “express themselves” through art, what they really mean is that art helps them communicate. You can say things through colors, lines, and shapes that cannot be said in any other way. An image is extremely powerful…a picture is worth a thousand words!

3. Art brings beauty to the world!
 As artists, we have a "Super Power;" we have the ability to find beauty even where there is ugliness. We can show others the beauty we see! 
Also, it is often relaxing and therapeutic to create with art materials like paint, or clay, or paper mache. Scientists have shown in studies that people who practice an art form actually live longer! 
Here is a short video clip of Alabama potter Larry Allen in his studio...he describes his ideas about beauty: 

Encourage Creativity; Teach the Arts, Americans For the Arts

Art Speaks, Springfield Public Schools

Genesis 1:27 

So God created mankind in his own image, in the image of God he created them; male and female he created them.

John 1:1-5 

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was with God in the beginning. Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made. In him was life, and that life was the light of all mankind. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.