Art as a Teacher

Back to school brings to mind images of children at desks, teachers at the blackboard, school buses, parents, sports, bands, and so much more, but did you ever think about how we actually gain knowledge in the first place?
Art as a means of conveying ideas and teaching has been around for over 64,000 years. That’s right! The oldest known cave painting is a red hand stencil in Maltravieso cave, Cáceres, Spain. It has been dated using the uranium-thorium method to older than 64,000 years and was made by a Neanderthal.
Now, fast forward to the 1500’s Michelangelo, Leonardo da Vinci, 1600’s Rembrandt, 1800’s Vincent Van Gogh, Claude Monet, and Pablo Picasso just to mention a few of the most recognizable artists of all time who helped to illustrate to people of those times and even now, current events, culture, history, inventions, mathematics, faraway lands, the galaxies and religion.
Take a space shuttle to present day. Let’s bring the time and place right here to Valley Center and the surrounding area. You will find many artists of all modes in our own backyard. The list of popular local artists may include: Joe Garcia, Barbara Scharnau, Gloria Warren, Julie Schneider-Ljubenkov, David Miller, Cathy Carey, Sandy Zelasko, Matthew Dimakos, Judith Shadzi, Mike Adams, George Speer and countless others.
Yes, art is not just paintings; it includes all representative phases of an idea such as sculpture, drawings/etchings, photography, film, literature, fashion, music, architecture, theater, cinema and beyond.
It’s been said that art in any manner is a manifestation of human creativity, skill and imagination. In the past the arts were recognized for their beauty and ability to elicit emotion, but now they also help to convey social commentary and politics.
Art in any shape or form teaches, shares ideas and discoveries, communicates our visions/thoughts while allowing the observer or student, if you will to study and learn through their five senses.
So, while you may not realize it, we all have learned through art and that’s one of the main reasons the Valley Center Art Gallery is now being developed.
The Valley Center Art Gallery’s mission is to encourage artistic expression by integrating arts into the community at a new gathering place for artists of all mediums. There will be an entire wall designated as the ‘student wall of fame.’ This innovative gallery will provide unique classes and workshops in a setting designed to inspire while providing fun and educational experiences for our area’s multi-generational population…from children to elders, all will be welcomed and encouraged to participate.
Visit their website Valley Center Art Gallery to ‘learn’ about their progress and how you can be involved.