Artist Talk: Mike Benjamin

Local Immersion

Ever since Mike began telling me about his ideas for an outdoor education program at SMCM, I have been extremely interested and enthusiastic. What could be better than getting back to our roots and relearning how to be creative and survive outside? Thiis program seems to have so many possibilities, and I am very excited to see what happens.

Mike's exhibit was pretty intense. The chalkboard writing led to a harsh realization of what is to come if we lose touch with our natural world. The way that he discussed his project made many realize that we are losing touch with our natural world at a rather fast pace. Our creativity seems to be diminishing, as he reflects in his artist statement: "It is a profound admission to say we are losing our creativity. But it is not the fault of any individual; blame can only be placed on the stale warmth of our galleries and classrooms. It is comfortable to wait inside with all our friends. It is the world we know." In his presentation, Mike reflected back on boyhood and playing outside and entertaining himself with what nature had given him, not being confined by indoors. His homeschool education gave him the opportunity to learn creatively and freely.

I think that this is a great idea for education. I often find myself feeling limited by classroom experiences. I often feel limited by my inability to adapt to what nature throws at us, because I have never been taught sufficient survival skills such as building a shelter (other than a tent) and providing myself with a means to eat (other than building a fire and cooking store bought food). I think that it will be very good for students to have an opportunity to do this. It is so important that we do not forget where we come from. Just the other night, I had a girl freak out on me for telling her to pee outside . That is ridiculous.

Mike explains that the classrooms will not have desks or chairs, it will actually be our own natural world. This is a great idea to get us back to our roots. We often find ourselves victims of our own consumption, completely attached to our materials and unable to free ourselves from the thought that we need more when we already have so much. It takes some form of escape from society to realize this and to rid ourselves of so many things that we do not need. My only fear for this project is that it could potentially breed a bunch of dirty hippies in the woods that think they are cool and radical, rather than people that are interested in changing themselves and helping the community get back to its creativity and roots. I am sure that Mike will address this in his future with the project so that something like this will not happen.

Having this escape will teach us a lot. It will teach us to live more simply. It will teach us that happiness does not lie in materials. It will teach us to survive with what we are given, on our own, for ourselves. Mike is right and brings up a valid point when he writes "What we need is here, but we do not know it."