"When I look back on my life, there were definite
moments where the youngster artist began to appear.
One particular event was in kindergarten in Decatur
Alabama when my teacher (Ms Pitts) singled me out in
the middle of class to praise a drawing (coloring
book style) of the earth that the whole class had
attempted. It is still memorable to me, so I know it
was an important "shaping" moment that taught me
that art, for me, could be meaningful and
beneficial. Drawing and painting became a regular
habit, and mostly for those rewards. I didn't miss
out on too much "kids stuff", as this painting might
depict, but I definitely focused on art more than
the others around me. In this whimsical "look back"
in time, the current "me" is the farmer in the barn
looking at these adorable kids (and himself back in
time) as they play a serious game of marbles for
keeps, while the young artist is more "caught up in
his surroundings" - which was another theme in my
life. In either case, as an adult we can learn a lot
from the little ones on the Art of Being Young."
-- Mark Keathley |
