Philosophical Epiphany

Today I was thinking about my philosophies of art education, and I came to a realization. I place an incredible importance on community, and I feel that as an art educator my goal is to pass that on to my students. Which brings us to the point of "What is community?". Community to me is, broadly, anything that is larger than self. We are not here to solely better our own existence. We are here to make as much of a positive impact as we possibly can. We have each been given gifts and it is our responsibility to employ those for highest good. As a more narrow definition, community can be anything from helpng your neighbor jump start their car to volunteering to serve in a soup kitchen to running for political office or spearheading an environmentsl movement. In art specifically the theory translates into working with students in ways that increase awareness of local, ethical and global issues. I hope to inspire my students to be good citizens, first and foremost by being one myself. Much love artists.