Discovering Your Inner-Artist with SHP’s New Studio Art Teacher: Rachel Kaye

Many students might argue that art takes natural born talent — that one has no high hopes in art if they are not perceived as artistically inclined, or if one is not immediately skilled in their respective art form. While these are easy statements to make to excuse any feelings of inferiority or frustration around a piece of work, it’s also a widely accepted mindset amongst much of the student body. But Ms. Rachel Kaye, SHP’s new Studio Art teacher, argues the exact opposite. In her class, she not only teaches the obvious subject matter and studio art basics —crucial aspects such as composition, value and color theory, or perspective — but also the lifelong lesson that anyone, young or old, familiar or foreign, a natural or a newcomer, can be an exceptional and successful artist. Some areas of the argument above may not be entirely incorrect. Certain things just happen to come easier to some than others. But the whole reason for a teacher’s guidance and class time is to help the observer learn and improve, not to automatically shut down and welcome defeat. Art, like any other school subject, is something you have to give extensive attention and work to.
Kaye, a graduate of the California College of the Arts in San Francisco and a long-time local Bay Area resident, relates this back to her own childhood, reflecting on her learning in Mr. Rushton’s art class during high school. Previously immersed in visual arts through dance until she was sixteen, switching over to traditional drawing in Junior year proved to be slightly more challenging than expected, especially with no prior experience. Although she had always loved the space and was grateful for her incredible teacher, she “didn’t exhibit any inherent skill,” and “was definitively surrounded by people who naturally did,” meaning she often had to work harder to get there. But over time, she found her personal key was to treat it as a sport, to hone her competitive spirit for further learning and experimentation. “I went to dance practice every day after school, and it was all about practice, practice, practice, something I was able to take into the studio with me,” she recalls. Her curiosity soon drove her to the Palo Alto Arts Center to partake in the drop-in figure drawing classes, as well as night classes at the nearby community college. She firmly believes that these skills of revision, editing, keen observation, and openness are important to everyday life, no matter if one aims to have a career in art or not; in the end, she hopes students can “use art as a tool for learning and understanding” and “a freeing outlet they may not have access to in other academic settings,” rather than letting the desire for perfection control the experience.
From then on, Kaye began working with more local artists and teaching workshops in her studio, eventually coming to Sacred Heart Schools. Today, Kaye creates many abstract paintings and sketches using common imagery to capture the beauty of everyday objects and ideas, seen with the repetition of various tranquil and flowing shapes. You may have unknowingly seen her work for Google, walked past her mural Lines and Waves down Irving Street in San Francisco, or spotted her many temporary installations ranging from as far as Paris to Tokyo. Her current major project is a series of one hundred 8.5”x 11” drawings that will eventually be displayed as one full wall piece. Even the most well-versed artists and experts push their boundaries of improvement, and Kaye’s uplifting teaching mindset can benefit all students at the Prep.