April - May 2009


"I hear and I forget;
I see and I remember;
I do and I understand."
 

- Chinese Proverb

 The Mind of an Artist

 Out of the darkness of the Middle Ages where the masses dreaded what grim news each day would bring, there remained glimmers of light in the heart of each community – the church. 

Daylight filtered through stained glass windows, moving past the cold, dark tranquility of the church and resting on the walls where there stood an artist diligently painting large beautiful frescoes. 

These artists were the greatest minds of their time.  They were driven to master their craft by inventing new colors of pigment as well as scientifically studying their subjects like nature and people in order to paint them more realistically.  This was the catalyst for the Renaissance and the beginning of our modern age.

During the current recession in the heart of Hobbs, New Mexico – the local elementary schools – there have been thousands of student artists busy mastering their own artistic skills by creating paintings, pastel drawings, sculptures, collages and even stained glass windows.

These students live in a world where it takes the dark cool void of a church building to fully appreciate the beauty of colorful daylight; it takes a dark age to appreciate the powerful mind of an artist that can take a world from despair to renaissance; and it takes an uncertain time to appreciate the confident and bold marks highlighting an elementary student’s artwork.

It is only the artist that can find a bare wall, a blank piece of paper or even shapes of broken glass and metal and create something beautiful.  It is the student artist that can inspire a community in troubled times.

I hope you enjoyed viewing the outstanding merits of our district’s art students' hard work.

Tyson Ledgerwood
Elementary Fine Arts Coordinator
Hobbs Municipal Schools

Website by SchoolMessenger Presence. © 2024 Intrado Corporation. All rights reserved.