My Painting Teacher

I know the caption sounds like some class 1 favorite teacher essay but don’t worry it isn’t. My painting teacher, Ms. Priyanka Sharma has changed my perspective for art and life altogether so I thought to write about an incident that I remember from my old painting classroom diaries. 

Painting was one of my main subjects in class 11th and 12th and what I have learned from it needs a new post, which I will surely write someday. Now as it was one of the main subjects, I had a lot of pressure to score well in boards as my sister was a topper so I was also expected to get a big smiling picture on the board of merit list. 

But I can never ever study under pressure, I need a relaxed mindset. Moreover, with such helpful teachers, how one cannot succeed. 

So one day when the painting lecture was going on, Ma’am took our test about the paintings’ names, their mediums, artists, courtesy, etc. Although I scored very well but majority of the students scored below average as for them painting was just a passtime subject. Ma’am being a very sincere teacher got really disappointed upon that. What happened next was amazing.

Ma’am told us to arrange the chairs in a semi circle pattern. Our painting room was not like usual classrooms with a blackboard and benches, but was a big matted room, with a slab attached all along the two parallel walls. Madam’s dice and table was placed in the centre and we would sit on the chairs facing that slab and do our paintings. That day Ma’am asked us to turn our chairs towards the centre and arrange them in a semi circle manner. We all were curious and confused at the same time, because we were expecting a scolding for getting bad grades, but here Ma’am is arranging something like musical chairs. 

After we all settled, ma’am asked the first student at the right end to speak the name of the painting and the next one to say out it’s artist name. This went on until all the names of the paintings and it’s artists were not completed. Once it was completed, we all looked so excitedly towards each other and smiled like preschool kids. Then ma’am gave us a few minutes to learn the chart where all these names were written, and then again the second round of the game started and this time we also had to clap after and before we spoke the name of the painting and an artist. Ma’am too was so delighted to see us in this form, she took out her cellphone and made our video. 

It was the last lecture of the day but we felt so fresh and energetic. At the end each student had the names of the paintings and their details on the tips. 

That day I learnt how the hard work of a teacher can change the whole game. Just a few minutes back students were sitting and talking around with sulky faces and later we were just ecstatic. She has been my favourite teacher. She would teach us painting and other creative techniques out of our syllabus. She has a bachelors in Psychology and I’m sure she used that in her painting career too. She would connect with every student sitting in the room. And there’s a lot about her, which can’t be written in one post…I will write another post someday completely dedicated to the painting and how my teacher gave me a new set of eyes towards life. 

At last, I just want to thank her immensely, as I think teachers are the builders of the nation and they can turn a stone into a diamond if they wish and my painting teacher was one of those teachers who have this potential. Lots of love to her.