The memories that shaped the artist I became...
Where My Love of Art Began
My first art teacher was really my mother, Pearl.
When I was little, Mom and I would doodle and play drawing games together. We were always coloring or drawing. Later, she taught me how to sew. I like to say that she put the art bug in me, and from there it just took off.
When I started grammar school, my favorite teacher was Mrs. Moore. And yes, she was the art teacher! I even recall winning a “Look Before You Cross the Street” poster contest.
In 1976, at my graduation, I was awarded a four-year scholarship to study art at the Nutley Art Center under Vivian Noyes Fikus. I can still picture that day. My mother was there for my graduation, but she couldn't walk and was in a wheelchair. She wasn't sitting up in the stands; she was off to the side on the grass. I remember receiving my art scholarship and believing that they presented it where she could see it. Nearly fifty years later, that scholarship certificate still hangs on my wall.
My four-year scholarship to the Nutley Art Center, awarded in June 1976. I studied under artist Vivian Noyes Fikus (1915–1981), whose teaching and encouragement had a lasting influence on my life as an artist.
Studying with Ms. Fikus opened up a whole new world for me. She exposed me to many different mediums—drawing, painting, pastels, watercolor, ink and more. I remember her sending me into her little library to look through magazines, books and pictures for something that might inspire me. I spent so much time at the Art Center that I became almost an apprentice as well as a student, helping and being there while she taught her classes. Ms. Fikus even taught me macramé!
Throughout the years I've sometimes thought, Oh, I wish I were happy with just ONE medium, because it seemed like I had more art supplies than room for them! But I know that having this creative ability has truly been a blessing in my life.
Art was never about competition for me. I wasn't interested in becoming a competitive or commercial artist. Art was simply part of me. It was joy.
And I think I learned something else from my mother that became intertwined with my art: the joy of giving.
There is a special kind of happiness in making something with your own hands and giving it to someone who genuinely appreciates it. Seeing something I created bring another person joy has always meant more to me than recognition or awards.
My mother gave me that, too. She taught me that there is great happiness in being a giver.
All these years later, I'm still creating for much the same reason that little girl doodled with her mother: because making something brings me joy—and sharing it allows that joy to become someone else's, too.
And now I have the opportunity to share that love of creating with others. For the past five years, I've had the pleasure of teaching craft classes to the seniors at Cedar Glen Lakes. Somewhere along the way, I grew to love the people I was supposed to be teaching. I enjoy coming up with projects for them, sharing what I've learned over a lifetime of creating, and watching them discover what they can make with their own hands.
But my favorite part is much simpler: I get to put smiles on their faces.
Maybe that's what art has always been about for me. My mother shared it with me. Ms. Fikus nurtured it in me. And in turn, I nurtured art and creativity in my three children, Donald, Michael and Emily. I'm sure there will be many stories here about those moments, too!
And now, all these years later, I find myself wanting to share that creativity even further. Living with Alzheimer's has made me more aware that none of us really knows how much time we have. For me, that makes the time I have now even more meaningful.
I want to create. I want to share. I want to teach. And I want to reach as many people as I can while I can.
Maybe that's another part of the gift my mother gave me all those years ago. She passed the joy of creating on to me, I passed it on to my children, and now I hope to pass a little of that joy on to anyone who finds their way here.
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