Art has an infinite number of meanings. It is a way for people to express their ideas and create something that represents them. Through art, students can learn many lessons, values and problem-solving skills. Art teachers help students take their creativity and produce something of their own.

“We live in a visual culture but we’re not necessarily visually literate,” Art History and Drawing 2 teacher  Douglas Darracott said. “A large part of what I do is teach visual literacy.”

Darracott has had a fascination with art ever since he was a child. His interest arose from school, books and visits to museums and art galleries.

“I remember as a young child, looking closely at paintings created by an elderly woman who displayed them at a Jehovah Witnesses’ kingdom hall,” Darracott said. “I was fascinated by how she applied paint to the surface of the canvas and created such illusionistic vistas.”

Darracott’s position as an art teacher gives him the platform to influence students’ lives, similarly to how art affected him.

“I remember what an impact it made on me when I was in high school,” Darracott said. “I love teaching art history. I love to see students make connections between art and their daily lives.”

AP Drawing and Art 1 teacher Sarah Depetris’s  life revolves around art. She has always had an interest in art since she was a child. Her parents actively ensured that she would not lose her drive to create art. She later pursued art in college by getting a Bachelor’s degree in Fine Arts and in Printmaking.

“I fell in love with art in kindergarten with finger painting,” Depetris said. “I teach it, I make it, I studied it. Art influences my life by what I do and what I share with my students.”

Depetris not only teaches art in school, but pursues it outside the classroom as well. She makes art and displays her pieces through group shows.

“I have a studio and I paint, so I pursue art outside of school all the time,” Depetris said. “I make it and then I try to exhibit it.”

AP 2-D Design and Art 3 teacher Ted Kincaid has had a lot of experience with the art world. Not only is he a teacher, but he is also a professional artist.

“I have worked as a professional artist for over a quarter of a century,” Kincaid said. “Every day when I leave school, I drive to my studio to start my second eight-hour job.”

Art encourages creative problem solving, which can be used in school and the real world. “Whether you decide to pursue a career as a banker or an architect, every industry is looking for someone who can think outside the box and be successful at problem-solving, which is what visual art teaches,” Kincaid said. “It teaches that more so than any of the other arts.

With music, there’s a sheet in front of you. In theatre, there is a script. But in art, there can be 10,000 answers to one question, with all of those being correct.”