Hi! My name is Arleen Cannata Seed and I’m studying Fine Arts here at Montgomery College in Takoma Park/Silver Spring. Originally from New York City, I studied Art as an undergraduate years ago, but chose to spend my career in a totally different field, working for the United Nations and travelling all over the world bringing technological solutions to global problems.
Once I retired, I had the time and mental space to practice Art again, but I knew I had forgotten the fundamentals. So, I enrolled in 100 level courses in drawing, painting, and sculpture at MC. This was just the catalyst I needed! The professors at MC, in both the Community Arts and the regular credit courses, provided a course of study and opened my eyes to the different ways in which Art is taught in the 21st Century.
This blog is about my journey, my transition from working adult to pursuing an earlier dream, and I’m hoping this story resonates with young people thinking about their career choices and older people yearning to rekindle pursuits which have always interested them.
My Posts
Looking Forward
Hello again Montgomery College community! If we weren’t hunkered down with trying to stay away from viruses, we are certainly hunkering down because of the snow. I was so hoping for 18 inches of fluffy…
What it’s been like being an MC blogger
Hi everyone. This is the last blog for this academic year. The 20th blog! I’ve been reflecting on what it has been like to blog for two semesters, and so I looked back to see…
It’s All About Transitions
We started the 2020 Spring Semester at Montgomery College with regular classes. Lectures, lab, studio work, it was all what we were used to. Then with the medical crisis of Covid-19, the college responded by…
Online learning gets mixed reviews
As Montgomery College moved to online courses, educators, administrators and students have all taken the deep plunge into a brave new world of eLearning. Online learning can be very effective, and it certainly brings a…
We must thank everyone!
Lately my heart has been warmed by messages like the following (this one from the Anacostia Playhouse – a really great theatre and music venue nearby in the District): “A special message to the doctors,…
Understanding our demographics
Overall, Montgomery College attracts 50,000 students a year to its campuses Germantown, Rockville, Takoma Park/Silver Spring, Gaithersburg Business Training Center, and Westfield South Center. But have you ever noticed that we seem to have two…
How are you doing?
How are you doing? How are you really doing? Every time I see someone I know these days, we ask each other ‘How are you doing?’ and we really mean it. No one is content…
A little every day
A really long time ago when I was taking Physics at Columbia University in New York, my professor implored us to study Physics a little bit each day, even if just to read a section…
Exciting Museum Visits
One of the best courses offered in the Community Arts program is the ‘Art in DC’ course with Alice Cisternino. In this course, we visit various museums and galleries in the Washington area. The Smithsonian…
Sometimes things just don’t work out
Today I dropped a course. The course was Digital Tools, a very useful course for any Art Major, but it just didn’t work for me. I was excited at the beginning to learn a new…
Learning New Skills
The Spring 2020 semester at Montgomery College is all about learning new skills (i.e., stepping out of my comfort zone) while continuing to practice my drawing skills (i.e., feeling good in my comfort zone) and…
A Final Exam in Yoga Class?
When the professor in my Wednesday Yoga Class announced that there was a final exam coming up in December, I thought it was a very intriguing idea to have a final exam in yoga. But…
Meditation has Benefits
We’re learning how to meditate in the Wednesday Yoga class. Meditation involves focusing attention on one thing, such as breath, a sound or an image. It is done while sitting or lying quietly and is…
Yoga Pose Comes to the Wire
Several weeks ago, I wrote about the difficulty in maintaining a home yoga practice to complement the yoga classes at MC. With lots of encouragement, I’ve been trying to do a little yoga every day.…
The Making of a Mural
Late this past summer I saw a call for artists to participate in the Shade Mural Festival, which was jointly sponsored by Montgomery College and Denizens Brewery on East-West Highway. I inquired about the project…
Make Better Art: Visit Museums
We artists, art lovers and art students are incredibly fortunate to have a thriving DC Art Scene to inspire us. Most museums here are free, unlike those in New York or Philadelphia. But sometimes a…
Student Life Lives in TP/SS
Hi everybody! Have you ever noticed a poster or flyer for Student Life? I saw one the other day and decided to drop by the Office of Student Life in the Student Services Building on…
Yoga for Strength and Flexibility
The goal of Yoga is to quiet the mind so that one can more fully experience the present. It is a system of bodily and mental exercises which help to unite the individual self with…
Up To Our Elbows in Clay, Plaster and Wax
Full disclosure: I love clay. It is a perfect medium in which to create a 3-dimensional object, whether it be a functional piece like a bowl or a work of serious Art. Clay is elemental,…
Can Art Be Taught?
There are two very opposite schools of thought on whether or not Art can be taught. This post will present both arguments: Yes it can. Art is a discipline like any other. No one expects…
Back to (Art) School After 40 Years
When I was first in college, way back in the 1970s, I was an Art major at the City University of New York. Four years of drawing, painting and sculpture in the classic tradition –…