Brazosport Art League opened a new exhibit this week, “Education: Idealized Never Realized” by artist and art educator Jennifer Lehnert. The show runs through Saturday, October 16.
Lehnert received a Master of Arts degree with a studio arts concentration from the University of Houston-Clear Lake last year and currently teaches art at Hood-Case Elementary in Alvin.
Her love of art began during childhood, thanks to her mother, grandmother and a few television shows.
“Early on, I learned to draw from watching television shows like The Secret City on PBS,” she said. “My Grandma was a painter and we enjoyed watching Bob Ross together. She always encouraged my artistic talent. When my mother struggled to cope with life, she turned to ceramics as a way of connecting with me, her first child, and I have a very deep connection to it because of her. She taught me many fundamental art skills and I am grateful to her for that.”
The art displayed in Lehnert’s show reflects her personal observations after negotiating her first experiences as a public school teacher.
“My artwork attempts to portray the contrast of how a child’s education should be and how it is,” she explained. “It is my hope that viewers feel the conflictions that my pieces are trying to evoke. The Hebrew proverb “A child is not a vessel to be filled, rather a lamp to be lit” was the foundation of my would-be teaching philosophy. Now it is the underpinning of my compositions. My wish is for my body of work to create an awareness and stir up a desire in all who view it to make positive changes to the current state of public education.”
Lehnert uses the experiences and challenges in her life as inspiration and a source of creativity.
“I find bringing my concepts to life very therapeutic, exciting, and rewarding,” she said. “As an adult, I have advanced my skills under the direction of the excellent art professors at the University of Houston-Clear Lake. Collaboration is one of my favorite endeavors and I adore teaching children to find their inner artist.”
Tickets to the art gallery are free, but reservations are required and can be made in advance online or once you arrive. Hours of operation are 11:00 AM – 3:00 PM, Tuesday through Saturday.
The views and opinions of this artist are uniquely her own and do not reflect the views or opinions of The Center for the Arts & Sciences, Brazosport Art League, or its staff, volunteers, or board of trustees.
