Thursday, August 09, 2007
I may end up teaching
Getting your Master's in Fine Arts is neither an easy, nor an affordable task. In fact, earning a MFA from Savannah is said to be a massive amount of work, and I know for a fact that the money is no trivial matter. That said, holding that MFA in my hands is exactly what I intend to do, so the money and the work will have to be expended. The thing is, a MFA doesn't go far in the "real" world, where MBAs are a dime-a-dozen and our soulless, corporate overlords scoff at the very idea of art having any value beyond wall adornments to be shown off to friends at dinner parties. Art, to most of modern America, is a joke, but that is more a statement on what a joke our supposed culture has become, than on the overall significance of art as a form of human expression.
So what do you do with a MFA? The first thing I plan to do is walk around and tell all of my friends that I have one. Next, I will have to start looking very seriously at teaching what I know about art to others. Now, it was not ever my goal to be a teacher, but after talking to a couple of profs with their MFAs, it is probably the most viable option for making a living and using the degree for something other than a conversation starter. After thinking about it, and a conversation or two with mom, I came to realize that teaching has its perks.
It can be steady work. In fact, my drawing prof has a steady flow of classes at Eckerd, as well as the Dunedin and St Petersburg Fine Arts Centers lined up for this term. Getting on staff full-time is a difficult proposition, but art is a flexible world and as such, one must remain fluid within it. The big bonus is, of course, Summers off. In my mind, this means travel. Assuming I find steady work at the collegiate level, I should be able to squirrel away enough money to evacuate Florida each Summer for parts of the world as yet unknown. I plan on hitting Europe next year, and am seriously thinking about a trip to Egypt in 2009. Beyond that, there is more Europe, perhaps a trip to Alaska, Australia, maybe even Hawaii someday. Who knows, that's the beauty of it. Each year I want to make it a goal to visit different locations around the globe.
At 30 years old, I'm nearly as free as most people are at 18. I have come to understand this as a gift from the Fates. They have given me a chance to live the life I should have in my 20s, but granted me an opportunity to grow in confidence and wisdom, so that I am now better able to understand and embrace said offering. No children to feed, no wife (or ex-wife) to check myself with, and no mortgage to pay. For someone who couldn't imagine surviving my teens while living them, I would have to say that I am in a fairly fortunate position. At 18, I was too busy wishing for the Big Sleep to bother planning for what was to come, and it cost me. The rest of the world has passed me by, and I waved with a smile as they steamrolled at breakneck speeds down life's one way highway. But in rushing past, they have opened up other avenues to understanding. They are out of the way, which means I'm free to explore the scenery that I might have otherwise never noticed. My 20s weren't a total waste after all.
I have to tell you, it's a nice feeling. The subliminal pressures to achieve standard benchmarks are totally gone now. Let the material and tangible measures of a life be someone else's problem. Of course, there will be a price to be paid, but if never marrying, or living a more traditional life, means I might be able to see the world, it seems a small price to pay. Scott and Laura have the repopulating-of-the-Earth thing handled, and honestly, I'm not sure this world has a use for any other examples of my genetic code. In reality, sacrificing that form of stability is the one potential downside. I'll eventually do all those important things, like paying 3 times my current rent for a shithole apartment that is exactly the same size, or smaller, than my current living quarters. I'll have a girlfriend to kick bruises into my soul from time to time, and might have a car payment again one day, but that's the extent of the concessions I am interested in making to modern conformity. If I am going to live a finite existence, I'll be damned if I am going to fill it up with ordinary. There's enough of that going around as it is.
Read or Post a Comment
yep, i'm going to australia next year and italia the year after, and egypt is up there on my list, as well as our very own grand canyon. i think you've got the right idea. you are where you are in life for a reason. take advantage.
I'm jealous! You've got the right idea. Do it now, and travel as much as you can. I'm on the same plan!