Be Great!

"Be Open-Minded" Alex, Grade 10

I stopped what I was doing and looked across my classroom, an art room crowded with teenagers. Students gathered supplies, dragged stools into place and opened books. Across the room someone knocked a bucket of markers onto the floor. There were pockets of conversation, chatter about the weekend, and laughter at some joke told just beyond my earshot. Then, almost imperceptibly, the room became calm and uncharacteristically quiet as students began to focus on the task at hand.

For the past seventeen years, I have been a high school art teacher in Kamloops, British Columbia, a job I am passionate about! My days are busy, noisy and messy. I am surrounded by teenagers and inundated with tasks, activities, and questions. While some people may find this surprising, a room full of teenagers can be quiet—if they are focused and creatively engaged.

As an Art teacher, I teach students to draw, paint and sculpt. I offer strategies for creating aesthetically pleasing artworks and encourage students to recognize the beauty in the world around them. As well, I think it is increasingly important to empower students with the knowledge that their ideas matter, that their art can communicate powerful messages.

Working closely with teens, I am acutely aware of the pressures students are under. They are navigating family problems, health issues, financial stresses, school grades— the list goes on. By the time students reach high school, experience has already taught them that life is competitive, times stressful, and circumstances not always fair. So it is understandable that teens may become frustrated and react impulsively with negative attitudes and behaviours.

I came up with the “Be Great” project to challenge students to consider “strength of character” as a theme for their artwork. I encouraged them to think about ways in which positive behaviours impact their daily interactions with people around them. In groups and as a class, we brainstormed a long list of possible ideas. Individually, students were tasked with choosing one positive characteristic to represent in a visually compelling painting. Imagery, composition, colour theory and painting techniques were all necessary considerations.

It was only a short time into this process when I discovered that “moment of silence”, the moment when I knew everyone was fully engaged in the process, and creative problem solving had begun. All I had to do was wait for their visual solutions.
   
As this class celebrated positive human attributes, they began to see how people can choose to behave differently. Rather than being competitive, frustrated, disconnected, greedy, or bitter, individuals can be generous, resilient, engaged, innovative, and thankful.The students also recognized that by focusing on positive characteristics and behaviours, they can change not only their own experiences but enhance the experiences of others around them.
    
The students seemed to get it. By creating and sharing these artworks, they demonstrated that we can be optimistic about our future. Being positive and engaged in what we do is fundamental to success and happiness.

Wouldn’t it be great if more and more young people (and adults) were talking about this? And then doing something about it. As if it was the most important thing in the world.

Be Spiritual

The word I decided to try and represent was spirituality. To convey spirituality I decided to paint a girl with long, blond, flowing hair, pale skin and a halo above her head. I wanted her to appear almost angelic, seeing as many people believe in a higher power when talking about spirituality. I painted her hands to make it look like she's in a praying position to try and drive the point home. I decided early on to paint her with relatively cool colours. I felt it would emphasize her golden-yellow hair that appears to be spreading sort of like a bird's wing. To me, spirituality is an important characteristic to have, bringing almost a sense of optimism and contentedness. If everyone adopted this trait, I think the world would be a much better place. We might just be a little more conscious of how we treat others. Hopefully this painting will inspire just a few people to be a little more spiritual in their lives.

Aaron, Grade 9

Be Compassionate

If people practised compassion I believe that the world could greatly benefit.  Compassion is very scarce in our world today.  It seems as though people are always too stressed in their own lives to think about other people.  If we all practised  a little more compassion in our lives, people would be happier and potentially friendlier toward people of other nations.

-Keri-Ann, Grade 9

Be Fearless

For my art project I chose the word fearless. I chose to paint a skier hitting a jump to represent fearlessness because, just like skiing, being fearless requires commitment and going through with what you set out to do. I feel that often people fear things because they have never done them before, even if they are capable. People should follow their dreams and face their fears.

Liam, Grade 9

Be Active

For my artwork, I chose the title, "Be Active".  I painted a  man crossing the finish line after a race.  Being active is important because a lot of people these days aren't very active and do not include very much, or any, physical activity in their daily lives. This can make people feel tired and lazy.  When people are active they can feel positive and energized.  This is why everybody should try to be active as much as possible.

Alex, Grade 9

Be Empowered

The word empowered can mean a lot; whether you're empowered as one, or empowered as all. To be empowered means to have power; to make things happen for good and sometimes even bad. In my mind, to be empowered is to make something big and good happen. My picture describes being empowered by voting for a president who promises to change the bad things and make everything better, such as clean cities. Although being empowered can be taken the wrong way, I believe we can do good with it. 

-Danya, Grade 10

Be Confident

My artwork shows a guy posing in front of a sun set on a hill. He doesn't have too big of muscles, but his shadow is showing very big muscles. This is meaning he has confidence in who he is. All that confidence takes is accepting who you are. Confidence is a big part in life and needed for many things. It takes confidence to get a job, to stand in front of a crowd, it takes confidence to get through troubles in life. With confidence people have a much greater chance of doing amazing things.

Kelsey L. Grade 9

Be Colourful

I chose the word colourful for this painting. I think being colourful is a good quality to have. Being colourful doesn't necessarily mean wearing bright clothes, or extravagant makeup.  To me, it means being friendly, cheerful and inviting toward others;  being happy overall. Choosing to be happy puts yourself in a good mood, and that can lift the moods of others around you. I chose the colours red, green, blue, and yellow because they are cheerful colours. They are different enough from each other, that against one another they stand out and don't blend together creating one dimensional colour. The woman's makeup adds interest to her face and makes her appear more colourful. The ink details emphasize the image making it look overall more interesting; much like people with colourful personalities.

Jane, Grade 9

Be Creative

In my artwork, I showed representations of creativity. Creativity is used for many different things, from the plays we watch, to the things we invent. Creativity also has an effect on people's lives. If it wasn't for singing and songwriting, Justin Bieber wouldn't be the person he is today. Also we wouldn't have the variety of clothes we have, because designers use their creativity to come up with designs.  People are all interested in various types of creativity.  Some of the creative activities I incorporated into my art include: dance, guitar, drama, photography, piano, and painting. Creativity can help people in many ways; by doing something you love, you will not be tempted to do bad things. By adding creativity to our lifestyle,  people will be happy at the end of the day because they will have done something they love. Creativity has a big effect on our lives - that's why we love it!

Bonnie, Grade 9

Be Brave

My painting represents how we as a community have to stand up and be brave against what we fear the most. In my artwork, the monster represents pollution and how it can take over and wipe fear into people's lives. Essentially, the monster could mean anything, from fearing big things like power, or a small fear like a bully at school.  I wanted my painting to let people know that it's OK to be afraid, but you can't let it run your life and get you down. You've got to stay strong, and be brave.

Maddie, Grade 9

Be Strong

This painting is about people coming together as one, to stand strong against forces that are trying to over-power society.  The large symbol in the background is the symbol of a group which supposedly controls all of the world's affairs and ultimately tries to control the people. This leading to a new world order. I feel that this is not a good thing because we will have no more privileges, or be able to do things we like, and all we would be able to do would be to follow commands. This drawing represents that we can stand strong against forces bigger than us.

Jonah, Grade 10

Be Kind-Hearted

My artwork represents being kind-hearted. In the middle there is a girl with energy flowing out of her heart. Inside the swirl of energy there are words that connect to being kind-hearted. In the background there's a light wash of warm colours, the girl is darker and outlined  making her more bold. She has a big heart which symbolizes kindness. I think being kind-hearted is very important.

Ruby, Grade 10

Be Peaceful

My water colour painting represents that it is important to be a peaceful person in our world. Being peaceful gives us an opportunity to escape from the world we live in and use time for ourselves. In today's society, being an individual is becoming less and less of a good thing. It is important to reconnect with who you really are and what you enjoy instead of being influenced by the "cookie cutter' world around us.

Alana, Grade 9

Be Unique

My painting is supposed to display the idea of being unique. It symbolizes stepping out into the world and being who you really are, rather than just who you think you should be. I want people to see that just being different can change your whole outlook on life. I showed happiness, in the face of the girl which is unique because the people in the background were not very happy. I want to show the world that it's okay to stand out; to be more than just another face in the crowd. If everyone embraced their uniqueness it could help to bring bullying to its knees, and help to make the world less critical and more accepting. I believe that even just a simple picture can show someone, anyone, that being unique is not a bad thing. In fact, it's a great thing! It can change lives and spark dreams. 

Ally, Grade 9

Be Honourable

My word is Honourable. I chose this word because to be honoured is to be respected. Many people don't get the honour or respect that they deserve and others get honour and respect that they have not earned. In the painting itself, the battle worn soldier lays his hand on the statue of a great king's sword; getting ranked/dubbed as a more honourable knight. To be honoured and to show honour is important because everyone deserves some honour to a certain degree. The lack of honour and honourable behaviour in the world is too great, and it should change.


Dean, Grade 10

Be Grateful

In my artwork there is a girl with her arms outspread taking in the beauty around her. I wanted people to understand that it is important to take a moment to realize the beauty all around us. I represented gratitude. It is easy to complain about our problems and take things for granted, but very hard to count our blessings and be grateful. So I challenge all of us! Gratitude is one of the most powerful motivators, and it is important to feel for the things we are so fortunate to have. If everyone was grateful, the wonders of life would be appreciated and there would be more joy. From this process I have learnt that we all need to take more time from our days just to look around us and be happy for what we have, and to really enjoy it.

Heather, Grade 10

Be Imaginative

In my artwork, I am showing futuristic thoughts - what could possibly happen in the coming years, if we are all imaginative. Some examples are the flying cars, the robot and the rockets to the moon, which has buildings on it.  The lyrics are to help represent the drawings like the giraffe/zebra and the lollipops on the tree. These drawings show things that would probably never happen, but it shows how imaginative a young mind can be. There are also some symbols in my painting: the infinity sign symbolizes that there are endless possibilities when it comes to your imagination. The rainbow cylinder signifies a mind exploding with ideas. The brown stairs behind it corresponds to technology getting more advanced in stages. I chose the word imaginative because I always try to be imaginative in everything I do. I strongly believe if you use your imagination and are open to new ideas, you could be capable of more than you think you are. In this process, I have realized that the world is changing at a fairly quick tempo, and if people put their positive, imaginative foot forward, we have the chance to change the world in more ways than one.

Teghan, Grade 10

Be Spirited

Be spirited. All the stress in your life might be bringing you down and taking away your fun, but that is no excuse to not be spirited. We need people who can have fun and enjoy whats going on. fill your life with happiness and joy. You need to spread your spirit to all those who forgot they had one. All those dull people around you need some colour in there life so let it shine. Remember life has a purpose and that purpose is for us to live to our life to the fullest. So live large. Let your spirit fly.

Kelsey, Grade 9

Be Resilient

I chose the word resilient because it's important that people be resilient against problems big or small. In my art I have shown some large scale issues; like natural disasters, blackouts and pollution, with a girl holding them up.  She is stronger than the problems she faces. The problems in my art are problems that effect people around the world, but there are also other things we have to overcome. Resilience is key to overcoming many global issues.

Georgia, Gr. 9

Be Innovative

The word I attempted to portray is to be innovative.  I chose this word because our world is in constant demand of creative and ingenious new thinking.  These ideas could improve minor details of our daily lives or be a solution to a worldwide problem that would better mankind exponentially.  One example of symbolism in my artwork would be the light bulb to represent the beginning of the change or also the initial idea behind it.  Frankly, it only takes one person to make a change to our world and that person could be you! "The future is purchased by the present." -Samuel Johnson.

Samantha, Grade 10.