Lessons Learned in Arts at George School

My experience with art at George School is amazing. George School has so many options for me to try and explore what I like. If I am not into performing arts, I can find something I like in one of the visual arts. For my art course, I chose ceramics for both my freshman and sophomore year. I chose that course because I always enjoy hands-on experience. Although I was pretty terrible at first, I eventually got better through practicing.

How I have grown as an artist at George School is probably my mentality. I remember when my ceramics teacher last year would always say that “half of ceramics is knowing when to stop.” I never knew when to stop on the wheel because I felt like my piece could always be a bit better. But the further I go with the piece, the more I overdo it and it starts to collapse. And when most of my pieces collapsed on the wheel, I told myself that maybe ceramics on the wheel was just not my thing and I should probably just make things with slabs. So that is what I did for the majority of the time.

When projects that required throwing on the wheel came, I struggled because I did not practice earlier on. What I’ve learned and how I’ve grown is that I should never avoid, hide, or pretend my weaknesses don’t exist. Instead, I should step out of my comfort zone and find comfort in discomfort.

Fressa is a boarding student from Shanghai, China.