We were lucky to catch up with Derrick White recently and have shared our conversation below.
Alright, Derrick thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. Looking back on your career, have you ever worked with a great leader or boss? We’d love to hear about the experience and what you think made them such a great leader.
Chris Stewart, my former Department Chair at Tyler Junior College
It is sentimentalized in books and movies all the time, the impact another person, especially a teacher, can have on one’s life. I am sure if we all paused for a moment to think there would be a short list of human beings, other than family members, who have helped shape the people we are today, hopefully for the better. This applies directly to my daily life and the reassurance and freedom I have been given to do my job, my way, and with the confidence of knowing someone believed in me and supported my decisions even when he didn’t agree with them.
One of the great things about having had Chris Stewart as my boss is he can be intimidating. He is the precise guy you want in your corner, on your side, protecting your interests, and backing you up, which he does justly, honorably, and faithfully. I am an art professor because Chris Stewart believed I should be one. He gave me a chance when I needed it and allowed me to find my own teaching voice. He permitted his faculty to do their job, expected them to do it right, discover their style, and exercise their strengths. I consider him a great former supervisor and an even greater friend. He has guided me through both professional and personal life issues and has been a source of amazing support and understanding for my family.
Chris Stewart now works as Department Chair for the Department of Visual and Performing Arts at Angelo State University in San Angelo, Texas.
As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?
I love getting lost in the magical zone of artmaking and feel it is therapeutic to my mental health. I began my quest in visual art at Cedar Valley Community College after graduating high school in DeSoto, TX. I transferred to The University of North Texas, Denton, and earned a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree and a Master of Fine Arts degree both in painting and drawing with minors in marketing and printmaking. I enjoy creating with a combination of images and text in paintings and collage works. I want my artwork to contain elements of humor and spontaneity.
What do you think is the goal or mission that drives your creative journey?
My mission as an arts educator is to introduce the visual arts to everyone with excitement and enthusiasm and to encourage all people to engage actively in creative pursuits. I do not urge everybody to pursue art as their livelihood, but I do think there is something powerful in re-discovering the intuitive sense of making we all experience as a child. This can be any imaginative activity like writing, cooking, painting, gardening, or maintaining a fish aquarium. Anything using one’s artistic mind to influence and shape a desired outcome becomes art. I believe all human beings can benefit from these types of activities. I try to encourage students to embrace processes and not worry about outcomes especially when just starting out.
Let’s talk about resilience next – do you have a story you can share with us?
Years ago after the birth of our daughter, I knew I had to do something to better provide for my family and so I quit my full-time warehouse job and began working at the Arlington Museum of Art, Tarrant County College Southeast Campus and teaching night art classes at Eastfield Community College in Mesquite, concurrently. Two years later I applied for a position at Tyler Junior College and though interviewed, I did not receive the job. They hired Barbara Holland, a talented artist and teacher. I knew Barbara because we had recently exhibited our art together in a group juried show where she took the second-place award, and I got third. I was determined to keep trying. Fortunately, due to continued growth in the TJC art department, another full-time position opened up the following year and I was hired. It was an honor to get to work with Barbara for many years before her retirement.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.canvashead.net
- Instagram: @canvashead
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/DerrickWhiteRuinedMyLife/
- Other: https://www.tjc.edu/art