By Julian Hadley
The Scene Staff
Forest Park art instructor Mario Carlos is sharing the gift that was given to him with his students.
Each Friday at 9 a.m. design students ranging in age from 19 to 68 gather in F-409 to become inspired, while learning hands on. All eyes are on Carlos every week as he presents the details of class projects. Students add input to the informal gathering before setting off to complete their interpretation of the assignment.
As a self-professed over achiever, Carlos is right at home instructing a student in one medium, while quickly shifting gears to assist students working on completely different projects. He teaches Design II and Design III simultaneously on Friday mornings and his class is a melting pot of not only different skill levels, but of ages, as well.
This Friday morning graphic design major David Cheatham, 19, and fine arts Damon Jackson, 20, are comparing ideas for a current project using online research and discussing their findings.
“I practiced simple art before, but now I experiment with more detailed works,” Cheatham says.
Jackson is most proud of the opportunity to branch out of his comfort zone and is also thinking of trying photography.
Outside the classroom, visitors are greeted by a toilet placed against a well-lit window complete with improvised toilet paper made from the pages of a romance novel carefully unfurling on the toilet tank. A garden resides in the bowl itself, which contains peppers in the middle, kale on the edges and potatoes along with violas.
Leigh Shawn-Lawrence, fine art major, is the creator of the piece.
“The seat was not included when I bought it from Habitat for Humanity,” Shawn-Lawrence says about the missing toilet seat. “I couldn’t buy one because it would not have been considered a found item for the purposes of the project.”
Carlos already had the table, and the paper resting on it was taken from the trash. The only thing new is the plants.
“Nothing is too far-fetched,” Lawrence says. “If you can think of it you can do it.”
Carlos’ upbringing in the Bataan Province of the Philippines provided a natural playground, which inspired creative thought and early exposure to creating art from found materials.
He graduated from STLCC Forest Park in 2000 with honors. He is also an Honor’s Program scholar.
His experiences at Forest Park solidified his choice to teach here. His first teaching position after finishing a master’s of fine arts degree (FROM WHERE?) was a figure drawing class in 2003. He has taught all levels of painting, drawing, figure drawing and design for the last 10 years.
“The best part for me is seeing the (student) artist evolve and mature,” Carlos says.
Carlos says that each student leaves a clear and lasting impact on him, so much so that his recollection of a student in a wheelchair caused him to pause for a moment. An errant bullet lodged in her spine stole her ability to walk, he recalls, but it did not diminish her thirst to pursue an honor’s project mural, or Carlos’ desire to help her.
“Each student has a different learning style, but I work with them to develop their skills,” Carlos says.
Her hand movements were somewhat limited, Carlos remembers, but he says he worked tirelessly to help her find ways to make unique gestures to help her communicate. She later used those gestures to express HERSELF in a series of photographs taken by Carlos, depicting her day-to-day life.
“Every student deserves individual help, regardless of limitation they can shine,” Carlos says.
Although confined to a wheelchair, the student’s perseverance to complete her assignment and the patience to keep trying when hurdles appeared earned her large-scale drawing, “Best of Show.”
BEST IN SHOW WHERE? In a fitting tribute to her effort, Mario Carlos was there to present her the award.