Within days, I got in touch with Jay, told him about my background in design and how much I love incorporating unique, process-oriented projects into my curriculum, and asked him if he would collaborate with us. He said “Yes!” With the help of our MAD Society, we were able to bring Jay in to work with our 8th graders (class of 2021) last spring. He taught them the art of mobile making – the meticulous, hands-on, balancing act of this amazing craft. What I loved the most was how this art lesson tapped into a completely different side of the brain than, say, drawing or painting. Students who were usually quick to lose interest in class were totally engaged and completely lost in what they were making. It was wonderful! This was exactly what I was hoping for – to spark the interest to create, to think like a designer, to incorporate other subjects like math and science into art. How exciting it was for students to be focused on the actual process without being worried about a predetermined idea of what the piece would look like at the end. And, by working through this unique design challenge, they were able to practice problem-solving skills and learn the value of perseverance. The day after Jay’s mobile-making lesson with the class, five student volunteers and I worked with Jay for a day at his studio in downtown Greensboro to design a large mobile to be installed in our McMillion Media Center. It was important to me that the student designers use what they learned about concept development and design thinking. The students, Jay, and I had a mini design charrette which involved talking about ideas, sketching conceptual images, and cutting mini cardboard mock ups for what our mobile would look like. Ultimately, the students developed a Bengal- inspired design that Jay brought to life and installed in the library in the McMillion building. I’d like to end with a quote from one of my favorite architects, Mies van der Rohe, which I feel sums up the creative process so well, “We do not evaluate the result but the starting point of the creative process. Precisely, this shows whether the form was discovered by starting from life, or for its own sake. That is why I consider the creative process so essential.” Ninoshka Boylston is an art teacher and interior designer with a deep passion for teaching art and design. She is an allied member of the American Society of Interior Designers. She has presented nationally and state wide to educators on how to incorporate design into the art classroom, including this past October when she presented at the North Carolina Association of Independent Schools Annual Educators Conference in Concord, NC and the North Carolina Association of Art Educators Professional Development Conference in Wilmington, NC. GDS Magazine | 15