[Jewelry making - Article 00172] - Re: [Orchid] "Retraining" help wanted

[Michael Honeycutt]

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    Hi Sojourner, Wow... sounds like a truly useless class. Sounds to me
    like the "Designer Debutante" needs a strong lesson in both manners
    and life in general. She seems truly impressed with herself in a way
    that no mere ordinary human being will ever be impressed with her. I
    spent quite a while in high school education, college, and
    semiconductor maunfacturing. Throughout that time I found myself
    encountering the Prima Dona crowd and I came up with a phrase to
    describe the arrogance of their youth. It goes like this, "Any man
    that is full of himself is filled with the need for an enema."
    That's a direct original quote and it's all mine, but you can use it
    if you want. It seems appropriate. Another was, "Arrogance
    diminishes excellence." So goes my philosophical reasoning in this
    matter. 

    As far as retraining goes, I can only advise what my original
    training was and still is. Lots of reading and asking questions
    about techniques, materials, and yes, even design. Lots of time in
    the shop (originally used as a woodshop/blacksmith shop/general
    workshop) whacking away on metal and trying out technique advice
    I've gotten from Orchidia and others. I also spend a great deal of
    time planning and then giving myself an honest critique. Sounds a
    lot like you already do this. It just seems to me that getting your
    hands back on the tools and materials will be your best option until
    you find that dream class. I too am on the low end of the financial
    scale and as a result I work primarily with copper and brass because
    they are somewhat cheaper to learn on. I have done and still do some
    work with silver. I want to do more with silver and other metals
    because I know that every metal reacts in its own unique ways. I
    think it'll take some time getting used to things again but I
    seriously doubt that your learning curve will be as steep this time
    as it was the first. You'll regain your skills more quickly than
    when learning them for the first time.  Be brave and go for it. You
    might find a workshop or something that you can attend that will
    help. 

    Only two torch stations in a college metal class sounds like a lack
    of forethought on the part of the department head. So does useless
    or faulty equipment that isn't getting fixed or replaced. I suppose
    it could also be a lack of funding in the school. 

    One of my pet peaves with our modern educational system is the
    reduced emphasis on artistic endeavors and having all the emphasis
    on math and science. What most folks thinking this way are missing
    is that art and science go hand in hand. Math is a useful tool in
    both areas. Art classes promote problem solving ways of thinking.
    Especially in an Art Metals class. In my own decidedly humble
    opinion, the failure to promote art _AS_ a science will result in
    drones that fail to think creatively or think outside the box to
    find new ways of dealing with new issues. Note that a great deal of
    the people that have come up with truly great ideas were artists as
    well. DaVinci comes to mind. Art metals classes should be prepared
    to teach hands on, not just "suggest" possible ideas that one may,
    in the great someday, possibly maybe think about doing. I'd advise
    getting your money back and checking out videos by Alan Revere,
    Charles Lewton-Brain and many others for reuseable learning
    resources, and also getting yourself back in line with the tools and
    getting busy. Just my own view of the world as I see it. 

 Mike

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