Day 7 - Keith Mistler, Burlington High Art Department

This year I am teaching a Fashion Design course at Burlington High School. There was a demand for the discipline and students wanted a course that could prepare them for an arts career in fashion. With fashion saturating the media with shows like Project Runway and everything on MTV, we decided in the art department that it was a good time for the course. And I volunteered to teach it. Studying the topic, I was surprised at how much I didn't know about fashion design. When I was in high school, my clothing choices were extremely questionable. I once sliced a pair of jeans so much that my physics teacher asked me if I was attacked by a flock of birds. What was I thinking? Although the illustration aspect is similar to other art disciplines, I still had a lot to learn. Thankfully I knew how to sew (thank you Mom for teaching me to mend those holes in my shirts!), but I wanted to learn more, to be better.

So today I am still learning. Still experiencing. And most importantly, still making mistakes. This fall I decided to take a course in clothing construction at Mass College of Art + Design. It is difficult, and there are times when I'm pulling my hair out because I can't understand clothing patterns (what do all of those geometric shapes mean?!), but I always pull through because I know that I can do it. I feel at ease with technology, but this craft that has fallen to the wayside is so new to me. We all need some incentive to keep going and I don't think I could have learned so much without the wonderful support system from our faculty. I often get support and encouragement from our faculty, staff, and even students. I do struggle, and I will continue to struggle with finding the solutions. Learning isn't easy but it's worth it. It helps me to understand and appreciate what my students go through on a daily basis. It teaches me patience and I hope to continue to find new things to learn about in my teaching career.