I love art. I mean, I really, really love it. I think my love began through exploring art museums with my mom. Growing up we had the chance to travel a lot, and my amazing mother took me to art museums all over the place.

I remember one visit in particular. It’s not the museum I remember, it’s just one painting that’s vivid in my mind. It was a painting of a huge landscape with pilgrims leaving their homes and extended families to go overseas. It wasn’t the beauty of the painting I remember, but the fact that I stood in front of it with my mom while she was reading the description to me, tears welling up and spilling over her eyes thinking of those pilgrims leaving their dear friends and families they may never see again. And as I stood there next to her, I realized art is amazing. It can create something so much bigger than itself…such emotion, such feeling. I think it was right then and there I realized it: I was in love with art.

I went on to take this Art History class at Boston University that almost convinced me to major in art. I’d spend hours and hours at the Boston Museum of Fine Arts (my very favorite museum) gazing at paintings and writing papers about every minute detail I found. I even loved the tests where we sat in a huge auditorium and had to name hundreds of pieces of art (and the artists who created them) that came up on the projector. I loved writing the essays. I loved thinking about what that artist may have been thinking. Why he/she painted the way they did. What emotion were they trying to evoke?

One summer (when I was eight months pregnant with Elle) my mom took me and my sisters to Italy to see all the famous works. I will never forget that time we had together drinking in things like the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel and Michelangelo’s “prisoners” escaping from their marble prisons.

But I didn’t major in Art. I’m not a docent at a famous museum. Instead I’m settled down in the middle of suburbia with five little kids. And really the only “famous” original art works I’ve seen lately are the ones my kids have made, hung proudly all over our laundry room.

BUT, I do get to be involved in the creation of art because I get to be the Art Masterpiece volunteer for each of my kid’s classrooms. I sign up every year. What this means is that I go into each classroom once a month and help the kids study out a famous art masterpiece, then we do a project to go along the same lines as what we’ve studied. I’m not the mom who signs up to chaperon all the field trips. Oh I wish I could do that, and so do my kids as evidenced by their begging. But I still have two little kids at home I need to be with. So I do art. And we all love it.

We just had our big “Art Walk” last week. And the fact that everything that could go wrong trying to get these bulletin boards up and ready for the big night did go wrong, it was all worth it because guess what? I got to share what I love with my kids.

I love art. I love that my kids love it too.

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11 Comments

  1. Hi, I’m one of Kara(Pothier)’s friends. I’m not usually one to make comments on people’s blogs that I don’t know, but I just have to tell you that this entry was so beautiful to me! I love art, too, and you so eloquently articulated some of my exact feelings about art! I actually even got a little teary-eyed reading parts of the entry. I majored in Humanities and have been to Europe to see all the major works, but being a mom sometimes makes that world seem very distant. So, thanks for your touching entry – it’s inspired me to make sure art is a bigger part of my and my children’s lives!

  2. If I hadn’t been pregnant, and if I hadn’t wanted to graduate before we moved from St. Louis, I would have majored in art history too. Instead I settled for comm and filled all my electives with fine art and art history classes. In fact, for my internship I curated a local art show and I loved it. Being able to work directly with the artists, hang the artwork throughout the gallery and be apart of the whole museum/gallery atmosphere was amazing. I will one day work at a museum, even if I just volunteer while the kids are grown and are at school. It’s a beautiful, inspiring place to be. I wish for my girls creativity and originality, because I think that it is a beautiful talent to posess. I love that you volunteer for your childrens class in that way. I’m sure it’s just wonderful to see your children enjoy something you feel so passionate about too.

  3. Art rocks. I took an art history class in college also and have been fascinated ever since. Why I have not been to the Art Institute of Chicago yet I do not know, since I’ve been there a million times. My goal is to go next trip and my second goal is to get to Europe to REALLY immerse myself. Thanks for getting me pumped up to do it! So glad you have those experiences in your life.

  4. Oh I just love this post! AND I love art too. I’ll never forget the first time I saw Van Gogh’s “Sunflowers” up close. The textures are so amazing. There’s nothing like seeing the real thing and trying to imagine what motivated and inspired the artist.

    I just have to get to work in that art room of mine! Thanks for a little motivation!

  5. I love art, too. I went to school in London for a little while and spent the majority of my days inside a museum or two. I had paintings that drew me back day after day.

    I majored in fine art, but like Jamie took as many art history classes as I could.

    My oldest two seem to love art and it thrills me. THey have very different ways of expressing themselves. One is more detailed, and the other more patter and color. I can’t wait to see what they do when they are older.

    Good job on your school project. The art looks awesome!

  6. So I was just checking out your Mom and Dad’s site — who was on the cruise from Montpelier, ID? My husband is from there — his Mom always talks of your family going to church there. Also, I lived in the cul-de-sac in Logan near where your grandma and grandpa lived. I kindof feel like a crazy stalker — but honestly —your Mom and Dad pop up everywhere in my life. Crazy weird.:)

  7. Hi,
    I have just entered the world of blogging and want to stay connected with you and your family. My blog is dchuish.blogspot.com. Is this how I am suppose to connect with others to get more bloggers on my list? I spend hours , I probably shouldn’t admit to that, reading everyone’s blogs and I have decided that I am a very boring person and have to get out more and maybe snap a few pics. By the way are you already booked for family pics in the fall? It was fun to chat at the park last month. take care!

  8. Okay, one last comment and then I’ll quit this — but, if you ask me, it’s FUNNY.:)
    Last night I was chatting with my husband about how someone from Montpelier was on your parents cruise(this could be GREAT dinner conversation with those Montpelierites:)) anyway, he said “I remember chopping A LOT of wood for her grandma” — I had NO IDEA. The Eyres strike again.:)

  9. You know what…all growing up if you were to say the word ART, I automatically would tune the rest of the conversation out thinking nothing could be more boring. Boy have my thoughts changed on that as I have grown. How neat you were raised with such a passion for it. You are so well-rounded with so many interests. I love it. Darling pictures below.

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