A Student Becomes The Teacher   by Andy Spinks

Anyone involved in Arts and Crafts is sure to get their inspiration from hundreds of influences. Whether it's from nature, music, or other artists work, inspiration can fuel some of the most creative ideas and emotions.

I had the great fortune to meet and quickly be inspired by a young artist only twelve years old. The young artist is a student at a wonderful facility in Central Florida that specializes in autistic spectral disorders. Autism is characterized by impairments to communication, social interaction, and repetitive or restrictive behaviors. The staff working with this young artist very quickly discovered his interest and talent in making incredibly detailed figures from common commercial plastic modeling compound. The modeling compound worked well for him, but he communicated to the staff that he would like to try a material that was a bit firmer. By providing samples of various Polymer Clays to the staff, we found the one that he felt most comfortable with. As a special treat, the staff allowed me to spend some time with the young man while he created one of his works. It's rare to be allowed to watch as an artist works, but this was a very special opportunity.

I was almost brought to tears as I watched a twelve year old young man, whose verbal communication skills were virtually non-existent, create one of the most detailed Polymer Clay sculptures I had ever seen. What he lacked in verbal communication skills he more than made up in creative communication skills. Not only was his creation something to marvel at, but his technique was just as impressive. With a photograph as his inspiration, he worked the clay, never taking his eyes off the photograph. He never once looked at the piece as he was shaping it and used no tools other than his fingers and finger nails to make small creases and indentations. He spent less than ten minutes creating his work of art, ten minutes that will be with me forever.

Not only was this a humbling experience for someone with very limited knowledge of autism, but it was also an experience that demonstrates the incredible power that self expression through Arts and Crafts has. A focus group study conducted in 2005 found that teachers and staff gain a better understanding of a student's thought process through the use of Crafts. The staff working with this talented young artist shared that they had learned a great deal about his thought process and in many ways he had become the teacher and they had become the student.

I have never seen anything quite as inspirational and doubt if I ever will. This young artist's ability to communicate in conventional ways was limited, but his actions and artistic results spoke volumes.

About the Author

Andy Spinks is co-owner of The Clay Store - http://www.theclaystore.com. The Clay Store offers a large selection of Polymer Clay Supplies and Polymer Clay Tutorials.