Do you know who Durer is? This is an artist who has never seen a rhino in his life but painted it using eyewitness descriptions. For three centuries, people have been convinced that the rhinoceros is exactly what it is artist imagined. Agree, an interesting story told by Katya Regenel, artist, teacher and owner of the DURER School of the Arts. Catherine told Zhytomyr.Travel about art, good teachers and the best examples of painting to inform people
«The name of the school must inform people. Well, of course it is also a marketing move – the word of a foreign origin of five letters is easy to remember, always on hearing. I like the artist himself as a person, but I really wanted people to ask me, «Why DURER?» I immediately told her who he was and why he was. Rhino for me is one of Albrecht Durer’s favorite works … The artist himself did not see with his own eyes the living nature, and his drawing is the embodiment of the power of human thought and imagination. It has a historical, cognitive and aesthetic basis. It’s cool when not only Michelangelo and Leonardo da Vinci are in people’s heads. Durer is already placed there, and then there will be somebody else»
«My inclination for artistic creativity has been evident since kindergarten. I believe that a person may have an inclination for any activity, I am sure that it does not determine the life path of a creative person. Teachers in my childhood said that I did well, but I draw. I was educated by my grandfather and in every way contributed to the development of creative abilities – to arrange additional classes with teachers, so that I would be engaged as much as possible»
«A diploma by itself does not make any difference. I can work in at least seven areas, an architect, designer, urban planner – these are three niches. I was a practitioner, I worked as an architect, because I have more creative looks, and precision for me was lost in the beauty, and when I look at some new buildings, I think that it is possible to be more beautiful … Drawing in parallel, held workshops. Then I decided to do graphic design: doing logos, advertising, website design, doing some work for IT companies. I also taught and organized workshops for children and adults. During my teaching career I grew- studied the history of the arts. I studied for a portfolio, but not engineers»
«The financial component is important: I invested in my studies, gained knowledge, and of course I would like to make good money. But I want to work, create and develop here. Of course, you can just say that everything around is wrong, but you need to do your bit for change. Wherever you can think of only your comfort, but it is much more fun to create comfort yourself. And on this side in Kiev it is not much better, just there is already someone to create. And there is much to be done in Zhytomyr – something that is not here»
«I enjoy working with adults. This is much more difficult than working with children. When thinking is formed in a person, there is an education, it is necessary to work with the brain of the person – to open the world of art. It’s easier with kids, you just have to find an approach. And then they are like plasticine: they remember everything, they repeat it. Children are the future of the country. No matter how eloquent it may sound, but so it really is. I am frightened by the attitude to culture, art. Often, people just don’t know commonplace things … There is a lot that can be changed in society if there is an attentive and conscious attitude to art. And children are the bearers of art. When parents see what their child is capable of, they begin to treat their own children differently and think differently»
«I study the history of the arts in depth, I want to be an expert in this field, to spread my knowledge for children and for adults … I wonder how the processes of painting are connected with the processes of literature, music, cinema. It is very important for me to understand, because in the future I want to continue education in the field of art science for a long, long time, and it is important for me to understand the course of the processes and to see the picture of the world as a whole»
«Scientist Tatiana Chernihivska states that we live in a world of amateurs. I think that if we continue to live in such a world, it will not bring us anything good. We believe that if a person has received a diploma, then it is in the case of course. I do not think so. If you want to be a specialist, you need to spend at least 40 years in training. Then something can be conveyed in one’s own mind not to the narrow circle, but to the masses. Usually, they listen to expert opinions, and it is important for me to be an expert to influence the processes in art»
«History is not numbers and dates, it is a way of thinking of humanity. I agree with the opinion that over the last 20 years we have gone through so much, but probably not over the past 2,000 years. We have done a lot, invented, our thinking has changed. Looking at history, I am fascinated by how people have acquired knowledge and how valuable that knowledge has been. If you look at the times when you lived without mobile phones, TVs and constant awareness, it becomes clear how important true knowledge is»
«Art is a kind of psychology. At least, that’s how I’ve always been concerned with it, because there is everything in creativity: science, psychology, and many other processes involved. Studying those processes can even predict something, as trends and trends are similar. All this helps people to understand themselves»
«It is likely that 80% of the professions will soon be replaced by robots, even the medical and teaching professions will be replaced by robots. And art is something machines can’t do. At least at the level where people do it. Machines can draw, but the ideology of creation is only human».
«Art is not only a way of knowing, it is a way of reproduction and processing, it is a great complex. The definitions given in textbooks do not usually define everything. It’s like giving a definition of «love». You can describe in a dry scientific language, but you can give a philosophical description. As with Art – many factors influence its definition»
«We are now at the stage of amateurism – remembering the past. In this case, it is necessary to create a new one, reviving Ukrainian culture, art, and architecture. I think many will agree with that»
«In my opinion, a good teacher is a personality. With normal self-esteem – not underestimated or overpriced. This is a service worker because it is the teacher’s job to convey information to the child. In this case, it should be explained so that the child is clear, and therefore the teacher must be a psychologist … A good teacher is a methodologist who can move away from any plan, present knowledge qualitatively, feel another person; a person with high emotional intelligence; B is sacrificial because he devotes time to a child or an adult; a growing man. I used to think that a teacher is a person with a pedagogical education. This is not true at all. I have no pedagogical education, but I can teach no worse, because my treasure trove of knowledge is constantly replenished. I’m constantly working on learning how to best provide information»
«My job is something I cannot live without. If I wanted big money, I would work in another country where I was offered to be a designer. But I am attracted to more complex processes: when you influence personality formation, you participate in the education of a new person. This is much better than a new machine or something else material»
«In our museum of local history are wonderful examples of painting. There’s the “Annunciation” diptych, and I noticed that the kids were paying attention to it. In general, I like all the pictures there. I like Michelangelo’s portrait in the burgundy hall, and portraits of a young Shoduar with his wife, another «Amur Study», where a small child and three graces. There is no favorite picture, because all the collections are pleasant. It’s a shame that few people know about this, and the museum has something to show, what to tell»
«It is necessary to work with the history of the city, with its architecture. We have a lot of fun, but little is known about it, little is said about it. Our place is small, and when tourists or friends from other cities or countries come, they can only be taken to one location. They do not enjoy walking around the city, because the unique atmosphere is created by architecture. I am very sad when the leaves fall in the fall and then the gray sky and dense facades. We can, with a certain budget, influence this. Yes, reforms are needed – one person cannot change everything. What is radical reform, which is difficult. Even the murals we have are part of the facade. Why does each person do what they like – their «squares» of insulation, plastic construction? It seems that we have some laws about advertising, but … Somehow, in other countries, they have decided to do so. Someone may not be paying attention to it, but it’s hard for me: I want to look away»
«Culture needs to be promoted. Thank God we live in a world where information is easy to convey. All you have to do is show it»
«I want to give children a tool for knowing the world, because ART is the ability to see light and shadow, to know space, geometry, to be attentive to details. Even if one does not become an artist then, he or she will have some knowledge of the world»
«From the early childhood people are used to stereotypes, some basic things that are then deeply ingrained. Through art, you are an adult learning to see the world anew. I have a lot of tasks: to learn to start and finish work, to position myself, because any job is a manifestation of personality. This is not a moment of destruction, not imitation, but the creation of something new»
«Zhytomyr is a peaceful city. The very tempo, mood of the people is pushing the allegory of the American suburbs, where everyone lives in cottages on the same street and everyone knows, walking slowly through the streets. Here I would very much like to not be such a city! It may be cool, but we need more thirst, intellectual development. To live only our own lives and to think only of ourselves is primitive, but to create something … We differ in what we can create. That’s what we want to be creative, we want change, and something radical. We want people to strive to create, update what it is, take into account trends, and then nurture this for children and future generations»
