The Statue
First off, I spoke to the guy who heads up the commitee which is sponsoring the miners statue. He is of the opinion that it should feature a more modern miner. This is to reflect the fact that the kind of conditions experienced in mining are just as prevalent today as they were back in the 18th and 19th centuries.
Artistically this makes the study less appealing as far as I am concerned. Like a lot of things in art, old fashioned stuff is more interesting. An old galleon in full sail for example looks visually more pleasing than a modern ship. An old wooden barn more so than a corregated metal one. A worn and weathered fence more interesting than a chain link version.
Although the consultation isn't until March they want the submissions in by the end of this month. Also the original artist who designed the first model, is claiming rights to the actual statue. Despite all this I'm still going to go for it.
Family Life
Issues with my son's education have pervaded my thoughts this week. The education system is failing him at a vital stage. We have had major rows about it. It seems that the standard of teaching has hit rock bottom to the extent that we have had to pay for extra tuition. The method of teaching at his college involves regurgitating verbatim the text from a book onto a whiteboard and getting the students to copy that into their exercise books. What's the use if that? I thought the role of a teacher was to inspire and explain, not just to jot things down on a board.
First off, I spoke to the guy who heads up the commitee which is sponsoring the miners statue. He is of the opinion that it should feature a more modern miner. This is to reflect the fact that the kind of conditions experienced in mining are just as prevalent today as they were back in the 18th and 19th centuries.
Artistically this makes the study less appealing as far as I am concerned. Like a lot of things in art, old fashioned stuff is more interesting. An old galleon in full sail for example looks visually more pleasing than a modern ship. An old wooden barn more so than a corregated metal one. A worn and weathered fence more interesting than a chain link version.
Although the consultation isn't until March they want the submissions in by the end of this month. Also the original artist who designed the first model, is claiming rights to the actual statue. Despite all this I'm still going to go for it.
Family Life
Issues with my son's education have pervaded my thoughts this week. The education system is failing him at a vital stage. We have had major rows about it. It seems that the standard of teaching has hit rock bottom to the extent that we have had to pay for extra tuition. The method of teaching at his college involves regurgitating verbatim the text from a book onto a whiteboard and getting the students to copy that into their exercise books. What's the use if that? I thought the role of a teacher was to inspire and explain, not just to jot things down on a board.
Comments
Strangely, when I was still in teaching, a psychology teacher who only taught 'A' Level was rather gobsmacked because the kids wanted less class discussion and debate and 'more dictation'!
My other son said that his class had asked one of their teachers to stop just writing on the whaiteboard and to actually teach them the principles. From then on she got them to write out passages from their books. I despair!
I hope your sons teacher does better in 2009.
Penny.
Kids: don't worry, they all come out in the wash, it just requires nerves of steel in the meantime and in my case a large glass of wine!
I appreciate the comment Sarah. The sculpture you mentioned looks great. But the man I spoke to at the council sounded like a real traditionalist.
He wants to see a miner at work with a modern drill etc, but he may draw the line at abstraction. I'll give it some thought and see what I can come up with.