BREAKING SILENCE #1!

EXPOSE YOURSELF TO ART!

Study in Paradise with Acknowledged Masters

Website:   missa.ca

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I've always been an organizer of things and people in the arts. I learned about the power of organizations from my parents who were both very active in a number of directions. Since moving to Canada in 1968, I have developed nearly a dozen organizations in the arts and crafts field. There is both strength and power in numbers.

Student Accommodation - Japan House - One of five accommodation centers.

Student Accommodation - Calgary House

I have also traveled extensively as an itinerant educator in the ceramic arts and been able to view international art education at the tertiary level of colleges and universities around the world. I have often been surprised at how little basic disciplines were being covered in most media. I had thought of starting my own summer school in my own studio to teach glaze and color development, but the space was inadequate, so I shelved the idea. I was asked to teach at a Summer School at MacGregor College in Toowoomba, Queensland, Australia where they used a college campus that wasn't being used in the summer.  

Dining Hall

BINGO! I realized that the college that I had been teaching at for four years also rented the facility in the summer time. I talked to the Director to find out how many students was the minimum to open the dorms and dining room. Twenty-five was the answer.

Too many for me, but there are many artists in Victoria who I thought might be interested in a multi-medium short intensive summer school to teach specific disciplines. Several thought I was out of my mind and that it couldn't possibly work. However, there was positive response from four artists to give it a try. We all agreed to teach for about half of what we would normally expect, just to see if it could work. We offered five courses, Painting with Flemming Jorgensen, Textiles with Carole Sabiston, Chilkat Weaving with Cheryl Samuel, Creative Writing with Rona Murray and myself with Ceramic Glaze and Color Development. My wife, Judi Dyelle, agreed to be Administrator. It was a roaring success and this year is in its 28th session. We now run many courses over a three week period. There is most definitely a need for art education at this level. A high percentage of participants are professional artists coming to learn new skills, but there are also many who are new to working in the arts.

The Campus is like a small village on the side of an inlet from the Strait of Juan de Fuca, on Vancouver Island, Canada, just outside Victoria in the Pacific Northwest. 

Pedder Bay and Floating Classroom

Outdoor Kiln Area - Pottery Studio

This blog posting is to give my readers an opportunity to see the School before activities start. Over the next few postings, I plan to show activities in action. I hope to have the next posting on Saturday Morning, 7th July 2012.

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