WHEN I WAS 17, IT WAS A VERY GOOD YEAR.....Well, that was 17 years ago and now I’m 34. It just hit me like a ton of bricks the other day when I was talking with a friend whose family went on an adventure with me to Russia back in 1990.  That’s the year I graduated high school!  I didn’t think anything of our 10 year class reunion in 2000, but Dios Mio, my 20^th is just around the bend. Holy.....!

 The summer of 1990 was an interesting one for me because 5 interesting events took place in a short period of time.  I graduated from 2 high schools around Memorial Day; Bishop Guilfoyle High School and from the Commerical Art program at our technology center. I worked on a mural and discovered I was allergic to certain oil paints, by the first of summer, which put me in the ER. Good thing to know before going to art school that autumn. I began teaching art at summer camp by the 4^th of July and I did the Russia excursion towards at the end of summer, when Gorby was still hanging out there. And, my first year at the Art Institute of Pittsburgh began on the very last day of summer.

 I got 5 stories to each of those 5 stories. But the one thing that I mentioned and want to narrow in on for this article was that I began to teach art.  Now, there’s a profession that can make you feel ancient. Especially when the students you’ve taught over the years, now have their children as your students.  I  haven’t gotten my art teacher’s degree yet, but I’ve been fortunate to have instructed at certain schools and camps ever since.  Right after art school, I started my own after school arts program called THE ART FUNSHOPS.  They were a huge success. I started with my former elementary school and before I knew it, I taught at 5 different parochial schools in a week.

After all of these years of going to the students, by having my art classes in schools, churches, rec centers, art museums and libraries, I am finally going to try having the students come to me.  I have managed to make a little art studio in the front of the house and I absolutely love this room.  Lots of windows, which makes it very bright and sunny during the day, and quite peaceful at night.  I’m going to limit my classes to small groups and finally, by request and popular demand, individual lessons have arrived.  I’m very excited and quite thankful to the Cooleys for encouraging me to pursue it.

  My forte is cartooning. Fortunately, for me, there aren’t too many art teachers that zoom in on Cartoons, Comics and Caricatures.  The neat thing about cartooning is I can teach the novice about the basics of drawings through lines, shapes and squiggles.  Comics, like the funnies, and Comic books are still huge today, thanks to the cinema.  These students get a great lesson in both illustrating and writing in the comics department.  And, the art of caricature is quite interesting, fun and gets people to laugh at themselves a lot more.

My new classes start in February, and I can hardly wait. Call me if you want to sign up 814-937-4815 Teaching K-12 Grade Small Groups and Individual Lessons Mondays, Wednesdays and some Fridays