Class Question

Question: Is it important to have the right to choose your own materials? How does this help you as a student?... as an artist?

Answer: Yes, it is important to choose your materials because only you can know which materials work best with your strengths and weaknesses. However, you can also look at it in another way that been given materials forces you to play out of your comfort zone, and may unintentionally cause you to grow as an artist. This might be a good thing especially if you do not normally go out of your comfort zone, and might shed some light on new materials which you never even knew of.
An example of this would be somewhat of an experience I had in art class. I normally stick to paintbrushes and pastels but the basics just was not giving me the look I was going for so I was forced to try something new: cotton swabs. Surprisingly, they worked quite well, but I never would have knew there potential if I had not tried something new. I am now benefit with this new found knowledge and confidence to try new things as a student and an artist.