Monday, September 14, 2009

Art...



My little man recently started kindergarten. Can you believe it? I know! It seems like just yesterday I was in labor for 28 hours, begging the anesthesiologist to put me out of my misery, and yet here we are...5 years and a trillion budget cuts to the education system later...which brings me to Art! You know, when I think about kindergarten, I think about two things: sorting different macaroni shapes, and art! (neither of which seem to be part of the curriculum anymore)

The San Jose Unified School District actually has a wonderful Art Vista program, run by the parents and funded by the Parents Association. And in fact i am the Art Docent for my son's classroom. Don't I sound important? Really what this means is that once a month I get to discuss famous works of art with a group of 5 year-olds, and then I get to turn them into famous artists in their own right. I give my first lesson in October and I am way looking forward to it.

In preparation, I thought it would be good to get myself into the artful mood, and attempt to expose my son to those things that are sadly missing in school these days. With that, I give you: ART DAY! What is Art Day? It's really just my way of pumping my son up so that he looks forward to our day together at the museum. I chose the San Jose Museum of Art because it's located close to us and because it's CHEAP! $8 for adults (me) and free for kids 6 and under (him). We'll pack a little lunch, eat out on the patio, and discuss all the great art we've enjoyed. I'm especially looking forward to Alexander Calder's colorful, animated “mobiles” like the one pictured here (Big Red, 1959).