As I walked to my favorite class, I wondered what we would be doing. Improv? Or maybe something along the lines of studying different blocking, and memorization techniques. But as I entered the doors of the Theatre classroom, I was met with a less-than-enthusiastic Ms. Harshey.
Little did I know then that we would be having a meeting about the future of the arts at the school. And most classes would be cut from this department.
The fine arts department is stunning. It allows the students here to showcase their talents without having to worry about scoring a touchdown on a football field, or making a basket as the final buzzer sounds.
Sports at the school are important and they are often the highlight of our school with daily announcements about how semi-state and state competitions are going. They allow students to announce their skills that they have trained and work fairly hard to accomplish.
There’s another type of skill that doesn’t get shown all that often. The only event that is held strictly for the arts department is Fine Arts Night. This event is almost completely overshadowed by the constant promotion of various sports matches. Many students simply don’t know of its existence.
Are students as willing to spend their free time enjoying art as much as they enjoy a good baseball game? I’m not trying to make it seem like the sports here at Carroll are bad, they are beneficial and very entertaining.
I’m just merely trying to shed some light on our fine arts department, because the work they do isn’t done on a field (disregarding color guard and band) but rather on a canvas, a stage or even a computer.
students can learn so much more than just the core subject being taught in fine arts classes. It’s a matter of getting the students into said classes that’s a problem.
Some people may hold the belief that fine arts don’t do a student any good when it comes to preparing for the real world.This perception is completely wrong. Adele Freistroffer, a sophomore, told me about how theatre helped her “step out of [her] comfort zone and learn to be a bit more confident in [herself],” so to say that acting is useless is incorrect. As a student in the theater department, I directly see the effect that these classes and extracurricular activities have on students. My theatre 1 class went from being a mixed bag of students to being a community.
Having a class that doesn’t require complex equations or historical essays are the best ones for growth and development.
Photography can allow you to develop a keen eye for the beauty around the world, as well as good composition for photos and tech skills. Art classes such as 3D art or Ceramics can test your patience but they can also help you develop a creative mind.
Truly, I could go on forever about the benefits of art classes, but I’ll save that for another article. So, as I said before, the art department is beautiful, and my personal opinion is that others should take it to not just have a free class but to learn.
Sadly though some people don’t want to. As technology becomes more common and people are more comfortable generating art rather than actually creating it, there’s a shift in passion for learning and understanding.
Suddenly art classes become too “difficult” because you can’t use a computer to solve problems. People see an assignment for really any and don’t want to do it; saying it’s “too much work” or claiming that “they can’t think of anything” and automatically go to AI resources for help.
So if that’s you, I ask you to put down ChatGPT, and just try. Take a chance and sign up for Intro to 3d Art. Or take piano! Try an art class, because it might be more than just that art class.
You might find yourself enjoying the arts here! And what’s more you might find yourself making new friends, finding new interests. I know I did!
