Our forthcoming exhibition Artwork 2000: Maestra! is such an exciting and important show that I've decided to focus this director's message on it.

The relationship of 'teacher' and 'student' shifts throughout the course of the creative process, especially for those teachers and students who maintain contact over a long period of time. There is always the "alpha," the originating influence in the interaction between teacher and student.

I have found that in my own relationships with teachers and students that as we grow more complex in our mutual creative processes the more that the art of educating each other becomes complicated. Sometimes there are tensions, and these are good if we are able to utilize the tension to examine underlying assumptions and approaches. Sometimes there is symbiosis, and these moments can also be useful if there is opportunity to be critically engaged in the process.

I want this show to illustrate the multiple ways in which the creative processes of being an artist influence educational relationships. What makes the exhibition particularly exciting is that we are able to look at the work of Bay Area WOMEN artist/teachers who have been prolific in their work over several decades and have influenced scores of students. Teaching and art making are difficult areas to transverse because they each place such demands on time and the act of being creatively engaged.

I believe that in Roberta Loach, Eleanor Dickinson, Bella Feldman, and Linda Fleming we see outstanding and successful examples of "master" artists/teachers. In the works of the participating artists we see the trace of their influences, but also, and this is the exciting part, the passing on of the creative fire.

Peace,

            María Ochoa    Ph.D.