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I would recommend finding a liberal arts college/university that has a good art department vs going to an art school. If she goes to an Art school and finds it really isn't what she wants there really aren't any other options where as if she goes to a college/university with a good art program she has many, many other options. Unfortunatly I can't help with any suggestions.
Thank you - I soo needed your reply .. as a mom this is what I have been saying to her............as a teenager shes going to drive me half crazy!! lol
I keep saying expand your areas of interest ..don't limit yourself!!
Now that I think of it, the Art School at Washington University in St. Louis designed the City Museum there. That in itself says a lot for that program. That might be a place to look into--I am assuming by your name you live in Missouri.
Okay...this can be kinda tricky. I went to a state university, whrere I had to study other subjects in addition to art. I think that's important in order to be well rounded. But there is somethign to be said about the people who go to the Private Art Institutions (SVA, RISD, SCAD, etc.) Those guys come out KNOWING THEIR STUFF! Not saying state art programs don't compare, but those schools focus on art. You come out eating and breathing that stuff.
Personally, if I could do it all over, and money wasn't an issue, I would go to either School of Visual Art (NYC), Parsons (NYC), Pratt Art Institute (Brooklyn), or RISD Rhode Island School of Design (Providence). There are plenty of others, but these are some really good ones. Many people I know go to the regular state programs, then maybe do Grad studies there.
If she's into painting, I would encourage her to take some Illustrations classes and learn the business. If possible, tey out some Graphic Design courses as well. Painting as a living is a hustle. You might be the next Basquiat, nut more likely you won't. Being the artsy, creative, free-thinking, free-loving painter won't always pay those medical biills. I quickly learned that having insurance is a good thing. Graphic design is still the arts...and in my opinion more challenging because it's not just doing whatever you want, but you have to be creative inside a box, within guidelines a parameters. I think that's the uptmost challenge. And not everyone can do it well. I still paint on the side, and plan to really attack it full-time once I get married and have my freelance work going well. Watch the movie Basquiat. It gives a great overview of the art world. It can be a beast. When I was painting a lot, it began to sicken me at how people began to only see Investments, rather than the art I was creating. Also, you have to pay rent and eat. So that means you have to sell work...and a lot of them! SO you find yourself eventually just cranking out work like a factory. So choose your poison. Also be prepared to endure the posers. Those rich kids whose parents take care of them while they live in this dream world thinking they're artists. They give art a bad name. The ego and all that crap.
I could talk about this for hours. You really have to find that balance of reality and the love of creating art. For me, Graphic Design was the outlet I needed so my love for painting didn't get tainted by trying to "paint for a living". The beauty of being an artist is that if you know your basic principles (Color, composition, balance, rhythm, etc) you can really do anything. You don't have to focus on painting. I played around with Design and became addicted. Now I'm wanting to get into fashion and architecture. I also love mosaics and culinary. If you really love art, you should be able to find an appreciation for all of it's disciplines. They, in turn, will only further enrich your own art.
Private art schools are costly and a student needs enough money for supplies. I would suggest finding out first the area of art that interests your daughter and with that research the schools that excel in that major. I attended Otis/Parsons in Los Angeles, CA. I graduated in '91 and have a BFA in Illustration. I remember the first auditorium assembly where the dean told all of us 'newbies' that one third of us would quit, and few who made it to graduation would find work within their major. Not good news when you've just paid for the years tuition! He also said that the few working within their major would be lucky to earn 30K a year. HAH! I vowed to 'kick butt' and prove that this b.s. wouldn't apply to me. It didn't. My last month of school I showed my portfolio to a headhunter who was visiting to interview the design students. She liked my work and one month out of school I was a temp at Warner Bros. Consumer Products. That position became permanent and I worked 10 years, left for 5 years heading my own design business (SAHM, my daughter was very small) and returned to WB in '05.
Basically school is what you make of it. The people there have an opinion, not a crystal ball. I have not worked outside of my major, aside from two weeks on the prop crew for '90210', right after graduation.
Like hew2a I could go on and on. You are welcome to email me if you've any questions. Art has been a very well paying career for me. I understand the fear, I was scared too, but there are so many opportunities if you know where to look. Good luck to your daughter!
The one in NY is the one she reallllllllly wants in ... NY and one IN Chicago.
Seems like just yesterday the spice girls were everything ..........now it is amazing to see these young ladies sit in my living room having discussions on what school is the best choice for them and why ..and how they are going to get in! (I had 15 girls in my house the other night discussing this) wow they have lots more going on inside those heads than I thought!
We have never had normal teen parties at my house ..they are always ART related!
Let me see if I can find some of her work!
Thanks for all the advice ... Sometimes it feels like mom has to do all the labor to get the kids where they need to be going ..........
The chair she painted when she was 15 ..the others were done when she was 16.
I have self portraits, comics, oil, water colors... I need a studio just for her!
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