Sometimes it would help to Read

Where I teach, there is another instructor, Loran, who is a very nice man, and I hear wonderful things about his teaching. But Loran is a little clueless at times about me. One of the first times we met, he told me I couldn't participate in the first wood-firing that we were having, because it was only for teachers. Let's try this again, Loran, I am a teacher here, too.



Well, that's a couple of years gone, now, and I see Loran from time to time, and he is very complimentary of the projects I do with my students, like textured mugs, or stamped and sprigged pots, or the sculptural figures I make with my hand-building class. My hand-building class is basically a sculpture project I have been teaching for almost a decade, since I was teaching in academia, and several years ago a clay manufacturer asked me to work up a lesson plan for them to distribute to educators around the country. We did a three day photo shoot, and I wrote out the directions for the lesson, and it is printed up in a full-color glossy handout, lots of pictures. Very spiffy.


The piece on the cover of the lesson plan. Self-Portrait Bust in the style of William Blake.


On Monday I came in to class, and found a xerox of the fancy printed lesson plan on my class shelf, with a note from Loran:




Cara -- I saw this and I thought of your work. Have you seen it?


I circled my name on the front of the lesson plan (right under the title of the lesson plan) and made a little arrow and wrote back:


Loran -- It IS my work. Thanks.

I ran into him later and he said "Oh, I didn't read the lesson plan ..."



I'm considering printing out my resume and leaving it for him.


Me at Amaco for a demonstration for the Indiana Art Educators Conference.