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|| the dynamics of life | CREATIVE MINDS
something they did not want to do?
It gets down to creative approach: I invent different
things to make my lessons fun. My goal is not to push stu-
dents to do what they do not like to do. I make them want
to do what they thought they would not want to do. In other
words, I bring them to a state of wanting to do. I reverse
their feelings toward a subject.
What are your principles?
I have three major principles that I always practice: DO
NOT EXPECT, ACCEPT, AND DO ONLY YOUR BEST.
Who in your life influenced your vision?
Marcel Marceau, Arkady Raikin. My friend George
Gots. He was my right hand when I started my pantomime
company. My parents—my father as well as my mother’s
second husband, Boris Fleitman. He helped me create a
soundtrack for my pantomimes.
What inspired you to found the afterschool art
program “Arts on the Hudson”?
I wanted to create an artistic community in Jersey City
so my son and other children would have better lives.
What do you like about teaching?
In teaching, I love sharing ideas and knowledge.
How would you convince your students to do
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You are a great sculptor. Some of your sculptures
are displayed in Newark Penn Station. Tell me
about this work.
Thank you. I do not consider myself a great sculptor.
Great sculptors make incredible sculptures at young age.
I did not do that. In fact, I never thought I would sculpt. But
drawing gave me a sense of three-dimensional space.
Now I sculpt easily—this process comes to me by it-
self. I am capable of working on sculpture with both hands,
using the right as well as the left. But I cannot draw with
my two hands equally. At the Newark Penn Station, there
are seven life-size sculptures. I executed this installation
by using several techniques, including casting and carving
to speed up the process. This project was done during my
period of teaching in Newark School of Fine and Industrial
Arts. Several of my students increased my energy. They
did a lot of technical work and some even handled creative
aspects like carving hair or nails on hands. It was a won-
derful experience. But when summer came, I worked
alone—for the whole summer—to finish the project in time.
The entire process was a lot of fun.