Created as a final project for my Art Education Foundations course, I embraced the idiom, “Out With the Old, In With the New” to symbolize the transformative potential to be found in contemporary art education. The artwork, a self-representational ceramic bust outfitted with various bits and bobs, reflects the cyclical nature of learning and the need for educators to adapt, akin to riding a carousel. A metaphorical stuffing process can be found taking place, old pieces chained to a birdcage that is a literal chip on one’s shoulder, being discarded in the continuous evolution of knowledge and pedagogy. 

As a neurodivergent person, I often feel like I am a bit all over the place, built up and carved away layers at a time, my brain being stuffed by whatever flights of fancy strike my interest on any day the attention-deficit fates have deemed to make it so. The bust thus features gaping holes at the entry point of the upper right skull and the exit point of the left eye, with the intention of metastasizing this enjoyable yet somewhat violent expulsion and admission sequence. The piece juxtaposes the constraints of the education of the past, represented by a blackout poem on the “old” side: “The old days. Rigorously scheduled children, work experience, ‘I’m told she’s quite well known, in England,’.” In contrast, the liberating philosophy “art is making lovely” is more freely integrated onto the “new” side. This contrast highlights the potential in embracing creative freedom and abandoning the more rigid structures found in education’s less than inclusive past. The evolving nature of my teaching philosophy mirrors my artistic process, emphasizing the importance of continuous revision and engagement to achieve meaningful outcomes for all involved.