I conducted workshops during the two day Hunterdon County Teen Arts Festival last week. There were a lot of talented teens from middle and high schools in the area, who participated in an array of workshops, critiques and showed-off their Art, Music, and Theatrical abilities. Teen Arts was special to me when I was in high school as well—I had my first painting displayed in a museum because of the program. I was blessed to have great art classes and teachers throughout my education.
The lack of arts education in most schools these days really saddens me, there are so many talented students who would get so much from the kinds of courses that I was able to attend. The Arts build character, self-awareness, self-expression and imagination. Balanced education to me is not Academics only, it's like overworking one side of the brain without paying attention to the other. Creativity and imagination must be nurtured, not only to build our culture, but also our progress, you can't invent things if you cannot imagine them.
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