John Battle

Medium: Multi-media

Mrs. Georgia George taught Art at Reed City High School. I do not know her maiden name; however she married Sam George, who was our shop teacher, and, thus, she became forever Georgia George. Her course was thorough and interesting. Clunky, garishly painted papier-mâché jewelry was the fashion for a while in 1966, so she had us learn how to make it. We did the usual things: drawing and painting and working with pastel sticks. We discussed Art History, and she brought in large books to show us what she was talking about, the motifs of Picasso, the look of surrealism, Op Art, and Pop Art. I went on from her class to take a two-year program in Commercial Art at Ferris State College. We practiced lettering by hand and we painted still-life settings until we knew how to place objects and render them in a full range of hues. We created magazine ads and newspaper ads, and we made mock-ups of potato chip bags—it was commercial art. And, here I am today, a part-time artist who lives Paris—no lie. I went on to earn a degree in Philosophy at Aquinas College in Grand Rapids. Do not ask me what mathematical logic is because I don't know—I skipped that one. People who earn degrees in Philosophy, earn a living doing something else: I taught English conversation for ten years at corporations in Japan, and now I work online for an academic testing company. John Battle