Teacher Bird on the roof of his studio.

On the first day of classes, Spring semester, 2001,  at a large community college on the outskirts of Detroit, a teacher of drawing and design donned a homemade, corrugated cardboard "bird" costume and walked into each of his three studio classes.  He went directly to the blackboard and wrote the name of the class, section number, meeting times and his name, Jim Pallas.  He turned and  welcomed the students to the class and  began his usual first day presentation.  After a while, he removed the head piece and, gradually, the tail and, finally, the wings.
 He made no reference to the costume until the end of the three hour period at which time he assigned the homework task of responding to his initial appearance as a bird.  He suggested they respond in any way they wished, a statement, poem, song, drawing, dance or a costume of their own, in fact, anything.
Below are some of their responses.

Birds to me represent the freedom, creativity, and will that all artists strive for. When we first become artist, we can only picture our ideas in our heads. We are quick to realize that there are limits to what we can do (being social, physical, or opposing planes of thought). We all strive for that freedom of the bird; an animal that is not tied down to the earth or by its own kind.
Song birds also sing songs. These are untainted by others, as they seem to have an intutive ability to sing some of the most beautiful songs.
Also the ability to create nest for their young with mere scraps of the universe.
As a species, they are wild and unreachable.
We as artist can only dream to live the life of a bird. We are held down by
so much and cannot possibly be as free to think and live.  Although we need some structure in our lives, we can still learn a lot from an animal that
spends its life creating art. ---------------------.Jonathan Kavalos
 

Roses are red,
Violets are blue,
Can someone please tell me,
What the heck I've gotten myself into?-------------..Sonja Brdarski
 
 

         Prof. Pallas's entrance into the art room stirred much
    amusement in me.  I first heard the crackle and rustle and
    watched Big Bird negotiate the doorway. His gait showed
    slow short measure because of the curves of his claws as
    he crossed the flat, dry, hard floor.  It wasn't until I saw the
    grand expanse of the wings as they spread across the
    blackboard, moving harmoniously with the chalk, that I
    brought the visual reference of what I was experiencing into
    my mind.  The wings in the light evoked thoughts of flying
    and soaring and flight of the mind.  Birds shriek and soar.
    We are on a flight of exploring art.  The bird's eyes were
    huge and penetrating off  to the sides of its head, unlike
    ours. While big bird faced us and spoke I was totally
    amused with the way his beard moved with each word
    spoken.  It was really neat because beaks don't move like
    lips, but the beard gave us a lively interaction.-----------Gayle Foradori
 
 

     My initial reaction to the bird suit was "Oh!  That's what that thing was lying on the floor by the stairs this morning." I had seen the costume and was dreading it to be a part of some lame 'back-to-school oh how fun let's give out free popcorn and eveyone will be happy' kind of ordeal.  I was glad to see no such actions taking place.
     My immediate thought about the idea of my professor in a
bird suit was that this class was definitely gonna be fun.  If my teacher can come into a room full of people he doesn't know in a very 'creative' outfit , then I should have absolutely no problem being myself here. .....
     I also thought of that poor blue jay I hit with my car on the way to work this past summer.  It was the only thing I have ever killed with my car (besides the bugs who commit windshield suicide).  So thanks for that.
*biting knuckle*,----------------------Alison Murray
 
 

 I was impressed at what one can do with cardboard .-------------.Jason Reynolds

I think you got shame to face students at first time that you was wearing the dress.  Otherwise this is art class so you wanted to make some feel on students.  Anyway it was nice.--------------------- Jomon Joseph
 
 

    The bird costume was a visual way of relaying this message-you wanted to
feel the "wind beneath your wings"...you wanted us to understand "you're like
a bird, you're going to fly away"....you wanted to answer that timeless
question "how many swallows does it take to carry a coconut" (although Im
still not quite sure if you be an African swallow-or European)...you were
honoring your friends the Beetles by being a "blackbird".....you were doing
it in honor of Larry 'bird' .....you were desplaying your coolness-you
"rockin robin" you....you just want to "fly"...you want to 'fly like an
eagle".....
    Or maybe you were just finding a direct way to get us thinking
creatively.  By coming in and confusing us, you managed to get us to use our
imaginations (an important source we should tap into more often).
  Or, its none of the above. -----------------Denise McKernan

well this is will be short and sweet i was think what the hell?
no joke that was the thought flooding through my mind. i am not going to lie and make something up that sounds good to impress anyone i am going to tell you the honest trust. But i will tell soon after you  took the suit off i happy to find a humorous teacher benth. this is a big improvement from most of the teacher at mcc
well there is my response--------------.kevin piech

 The instructor wears a bird costume walking into the
class for the first day, because he does not want the
new students to see his face really is, after he
introduces them a bit about his background experience
of teaching art and telling them how he is going to
teach them for the semester. This costume is to give
them an idea about art so they quite understand it a
little bit and they don't even feel any fear to attend
in Art class. No matter some of them can draw or not,
the instructor is there to help them to improve their
skills through the semester. Perhaps, the end of the
semester they will have wings and feathers like that
costume, which means they already had the skills and
they are able to draw any thing they want, not like
the first time coming into the class.------------.Vang Xiong
 

Before class began, I wrote a poem about how
awkward I felt.

Then after you came in, everything seemed to be less
menacing. Everyone was smiling.-------------------------Lauron Negro

Pallas in his bird costume.

Fall 2000 : The Blind Art Teacher.
Fall 2001 : The Primal egg drop.
Fall 2002: The Snorkeling Professor