Art school is always fun. ...Or perhaps, art school is always great and usually fun. The difference should be noted.
But nomatter how great or fun, just like any school or job, it can be draining. Perhaps different than most schools or jobs that I can only imagine are mostly thought of as monotonous, being in art school can be emotionally, mentally and physically taxing as well.
I can't speak for everyone enrolled at SCAD, but at least for myself (and most of my SCADdy friends that I've talked to about this), I/we do our best to put a lot of thought into projects on top of just meeting the requirements on a generic syllabus to make whatever it is a little more personal and meaningful in the hopes that our efforts would be able to be seen in the final product.
This is easier said than done.
Sometimes, the idea of what you want in your head and what turns out is vastly and discouragingly different. Or instead of life outside of school adding to your work, the pressures and stresses only distract you from the potential of the finished product. Or all of your emotion and creativity was spent on a project that you just turned in the day before and the idea of starting from scratch in two other classes seems terribly daunting. Or inspiration just simply doesn't ever come. Or it feels like you are the only person in the whole entire world who can't simply pick up a paintbrush and bust out a beautiful fashion illustration. (Hypothetically speaking-- not like that relates to me or anything...) Or you're tired. Or you're hungry. Or you would just rather sit on the couch and watch Dawson's Creek on Netflix for 10 hours instead of working on your Illustration homework. (Again, totally hypothetical.)
I have found that the cliche of the moody and introspective artist in reality is quite accurate-- and understandably so. The constant contemplation and self analyzation would make anyone moody and introspective! Everyone. Including you. I promise.
But then, there are moments. Like this week. When through the hands covered in India Ink and pants stained with watercolors you feel the little spark. A spark that makes you want to re-do and re-do and re-do again the project that for some reason has you excited. And the fact that you know your work will never in a million years be the best in the class doesn't matter and you find yourself (at 3:00 in the morning watching Sleepless in Seattle) trying to get to that perfect place of expectation in your mind of what you know this project could be.
Because, this week, you get it-- the reason why you're here. And the reason that has your coming back, quarter after quarter, to continue to learn, at the base of all of the career aspirations and beneath the competitive students is just simply art.
