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Art Teachers Share The Weirdest Things They've Seen Students Do

Art Teachers Share The Weirdest Things They've Seen Students Do
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Artists get the reputation for being a little bit weird. You've seen it in movies and TV shows all the time. If you've seen Billy Madison there's a great example in that film. Remember the sequence where Ms. Lippy, the school art teacher, smears paste all over her face and is clearly enjoying it a little too much.


Reddit user u/actually_crazy_irl asked:

Art school teachers of Reddit: What's the weirdest thing you've seen a student do?

and from the looks of these responses - that artist stereotype exists for a reason. I've got friends who are artists as well as friends who are art teachers, but I've never witnessed anything like what half of these people are talking about. Here is a small fraction of the responses - edited for clarity where needed. Have fun!

​Birth​

A friend of mine was in a life painting class once where the exercise was to close your eyes and paint whatever came to mind. A classmate of hers made an array of violent paint strokes on the canvas, the teacher came around and said "oh, this piece is very interesting, what were you thinking about while painting?" The girl turned to the teacher and sharply said "FETUS." The teacher responds awkwardly, asking what inspired her to make the painting in such a way, to which the student responded "BIRTH."

- dandaman64

Edible 

Ate paint. This was a fully functional 16 year old boy. He never struck me as being a dim bulb.

- TheSwedishCheif

This Running "Yolk" 

In my photography class, we had a theme each week (apple, eye, hands, landscape, trees, etc) no matter what the theme was a guy in my class would somehow incorporate a raw egg into the photo.

- livislame

Tongues

While I'm not an art teacher by any stretch, I knew a kid in my high school art class who refused to draw anything except for tongues. Like didn't matter what the assignment was he drew tongues. It was super creepy, however he was pretty good a drawing tongues.

- Desilu027

Tom And Simba

Not an art teacher BUT there were two kids in my class who were best mates. One was the palest kid ever and the other, the darkest black dude I've ever met in my life.

We were using charcoal to do some arty shit and she left the classroom for like 5 minutes max. In that time, the white kid was able to cover all of his skin (that was open to see i.e. not covered up by uniform) in charcoal. The other dude had raided the art cupboard for white chalk and he was equally covered.

The teacher came back in and didn't notice for a few seconds. When she did, she told them to quickly wash it off before the administration came in but they refused.

Just to confirm, administration did find out but they couldn't do sh!t. Tom was not, at all, a favorite student and they had been looking for reasons to expel him anyway. They were going to try and frame it as Tom being racist with blackface - but with Simba, his best mate, looking like Casper the ghost, they couldn't.

- run_fast-eat_ass

The King Of All D-Bags

I went to film school with the king of all douche bags. Let me paint a picture: white guy, stubble beard, aviator sunglasses, obnoxiously tussled brown hair and always, ALWAYS in a leather jacket. He thought he was the next big director, man, and no one could tell him to change his creative vision. Never mind that we were in an intro to film class where we were learning the basics of how to put together a coherent scene. No! He had a VISION, okay?! And we were all just too stupid to get it.

Our first assignment was, "Shoot and edit a scene with two characters having a conversation". Really basic, right? You could turn in anything as long as it had that in it and pass. You just had to show a basic understanding of editing and filming. This was super intro stuff, lots of room to be as creative or basic as you like. This bro turns in a montage of street signs, and like seagulls flying at the beach...

I think I saw a shot of a toilet flushing, no joke. All set to horrible techno music. The teacher is flabbergasted and says she can't give him a passing grade for this. He loses his mind, ranting about how it was all symbolism, and we were just too narrow minded, and if she couldn't understand his work well... That's her fault.

This dude turns in something like this for every assignment. All the requirements are incredibly simple and leave plenty of room to be creative. But no, he's got to do his abstract montages and constantly waste time arguing with the teacher. So he's failing, badly, and constantly getting frustrated that the teacher just doesn't get HIS VISION. SHE'S TRYING TO DESTROY HIS ART. WHAT DOES SHE KNOW ABOUT FILM?! And the rest of us are like, "Dude, why did you even come to film school if you know clearly think you know everything already? Go shoot your weird montages in your basement and let us learn in peace." He never did explain why he had to be in film school, but I'm pretty sure it was so his parents would pay his rent.

Our final project for the year was a short documentary. So this dude... He goes out and buys a wig and makes a "documentary" about how our teacher is a stupid slut by interviewing himself in the wig as her. He has himself asking her questions of like, "So why did you want to be a teacher?" Then cut to "her" fellating a banana and then giggling disgustingly and saying something like, "Oh, cause stripping was too hard, tee hee." And then he cuts to a video he stole off her social media without her consent. It's of her dancing in a bikini at a party or something like that. Like, oooh, she wore swimwear once. Scandalous!

The video just went on like that with a mix of creepy internet stalking videos, images of her being "slutty" (incredibly mild Facebook fodder) and him interviewing "her" about her being a whore and trying to stifle her students because she's jealous of their talent and she's just a dumb bimbo who can only get work as a teacher because she can't make real ART.

He put this video on and stood next to the TV in his goddamn aviators with this sh*t-eating grin on while the rest of the class is just staring open mouthed at this hateful display. He even implied she was a spoiled b*tch because she was Jewish...? It was utterly insane. Our poor teacher left the room in silent tears, because, Christ, dude, how do you even respond to that? Of course, he was expelled. He claimed he was being oppressed and that they were just trying to silence HIS AAAAART. Sure, buddy.

- AdultSheep

Nailed It

Imgur

Volunteering with a kids' art program. They're aged 6-10. One of the exercises is to cut half of a picture, usually from an old magazine, then use your skills to draw the other half. Most of the kids used various celebrities, but one young boy used... A Time Magazine cover of George W. Bush. He nailed it.

- whisperingmoon

In The Ear Of The Boy Next To Him

I am an art teacher!

I had a seventh grade boy make a large clay penis and try to put it in the ear of the boy sitting next to him. I took a picture and emailed his mom, she left her work and was at my school 30 minutes later to drag him out by the ear.

Best. Day. Ever.

- hi5yourface

To Her Former Lover

Fiancé of former art student. One of her classmates made a sculpture out of broken glass and shredded love notes from/to her former lover which was then doused in her own menstrual blood she had been saving up.

- Hunter_meister79

Rabbits

I'm a student, but a girl here EXCLUSIVELY draws images of rabbits cutting themselves. Also, her art looks like when you're in fifth grade and try to make a comic book, despite her having $300 worth of very expensive high-end markers to work with.

- fchickfila

Free-form

The Assignment: low relief tile featuring a human form. The assignment was open ended, but meant to get students using clay modeling tools and creating depth.

What I Received: a poem about the ocean along with a clam and dolphin. Not a tile. Not a human form in sight. Just a free form clam and lumpy dolphin like kindergartners make.

- pancakecat

Small Slights That Made People Feel Majorly Betrayed By Their Significant Other

Reddit user _Halboro_ asked: 'What was something fairly small that made you feel betrayed by your SO?'

a man and a woman walking in the desert

NEOM on Unsplash

When you're in a relationship, the things your significant other—or sig-O—does hit different.

Teasing remarks you'd laugh off from friends can feel like a knife in the heart when your romantic partner says it.

Minor slights can easily become major issues in your relationship if you feel vulnerable.

Keep reading...Show less

There's this ongoing, universal joke that no one reads user's manuals for new items, so often items aren't built or used quite the way they were intended.

But some products, whether there's a user's manual involved or not, will be used for activities that they were in no way designed for.

Redditor OfficialDampSquid asked:

"What product is rarely used for its intended purpose?"

Clothespins

"Clothespins have spent years keeping bags of chips closed in my house, not a minute hanging up clothes."

- jpiro

"Great in the shop as mini clamps, specifically when gluing the linings to acoustic guitars."

- Fluffy-Anything-5528

Free Parking Corner

"The corner that says FREE PARKING on the Monopoly board."

- DanielleAntenucci

"I don’t know one single person who plays that game correctly. It’s insane how house rules caught on and became almost universal."

- Dr_broadnoodle

Cotton Swaps

"I’ll be deep in the cold, cold ground before I use a Q-Tip correctly."

- PM_DEGRADING

"95 percent for cleaning electronics. Five percent for cleaning your ears."

- Fried-Pig-Dogs

Bubble Wrap

"Bubble wrap. It was invented as a wallpaper in the 1950s."

- fuzzysarge

"Just mist down your windows with plain water and the bubble wrap just sticks by itself."

"I didn't know this trick when I had to make a bathroom more private. As a stopgap, I just sprayed the windows with fake Christmas snow."

- RedditZamak

For Surgical Purposes

"K-Y Jelly was originally developed as a surgical lubricant."

- JiveChicken00

Fixes Everything

"Duct tape. Works on everything but ducts. (They make a special tape for that, and it’s not called duct tape.)"

- ImpliedSlashS

From War to Screen Doors

"WD-40 was originally created to stop nuclear missiles from rusting."

- ShoopufJockey

Great for Kids Crafts

"I want to say pool noodles. I see a new craft for them weekly and rarely see them actually in a pool."

- gigieileen

Baking Powder Uses

"Not 'rarely used' per se, but the amount of baking powder not used for baking things is quite high."

- DayOk6350

"You can use it to instantly set super glue and create a stronger bond that is as hard as plastic and nowhere near as brittle as a regular superglue bonding."

- Happy-Personality-23

The Question Is In the Name

"Glove compartment in a car. Who actually has gloves in them? I think they are a throwback to when people had driving gloves."

- Urbanredneck2

Yardstick Purpose

"Yardsticks."

- procrastinatorsuprem

"When I was in school, all the teacher ever used it for was to smack the chalkboard to get everybody's attention when the class was acting up."

- Rich_handsome

"We use it to push the button on the smoke alarm, get spider webs on the ceiling, and every once in a while measure how deep a snow storm is."

- procrastinatorsuprem

Treadmill... Closets

"Treadmills at home."

"Or any exercising equipment at home... ends up being a clothes holder."

- shubidoobie

Mouths Instead

"Listerine was originally sold as a floor cleaner."

- mtgkajhit

"Listerine was one of those products which was marketed to do literally anything to do with clearing."

"It was also used as a medical antiseptic during surgery."

- Woffingshire

Great for Crafts

"Pipe cleaners."

"Does that count if they’re called “chenille stems”, brightly colored, and for sale alongside kids’ craft supplies?"

"Because if that does count, so should Play-Doh. It was originally invented to clean wallpaper, but once kids started playing with it (it had been nontoxic from the beginning IIRC) they changed the marketing and sold it in lots of colors."

- DBSeamZ

Cell Phones

"Mobile phones, used for anything, except for making phone calls."

- FatCat_85

"Mobile phones are used for their intended purposes, but that purpose has just changed over time."

- Reddit

These products are all a great example of how products can have multiple purposes, which technically means we can have fewer items in our homes, which means fewer things to clean!

And if cleaning the floor is a concern, apparently we can use the Listerine... while brushing our teeth. Who knew?

Stacked burger
Lefteris kallergis/GettyImages

The food industry is highly competitive with restaurants duking it out to stay relevant.

They do this by presenting diners a spin or a gimmick on classic entrees.

While some eateries succeed by a wide margin, many fail by coming up with bizarre dishes that may seem inventive but fall flat on the palate.

This just goes to show that you shouldn't mess with what already works. But playing it safe is just bad for business, though. Right?

Well, customers chimed in when RedditorFremblem_Feldsher asked:

"What is the most overrated dish in the world?"

Some people thought gourmet burgers were all hype and in bad taste.

Bigger Isn't Better

"'Gourmet' burgers. You pay top dollar and get a burger that's difficult to eat (stacked to high and falls apart) and where there's so much attention to toppings you can hardly taste the beef and cheese."

"Anything made with truffle oil gets an honorable mention."

– Treantmonk

Too Many Toppings

"$18, tall, stacked, giant burgers slathered in fifteen different condiments and toppings. They're hard to eat and usually not as good as a simple burger."

– hiro111

"Burgers should be wider not taller. I don't want to take a single bite only to lose half the toppings from the other side."

– ProphetOfPhil

Not Lovin' It

"Knife and fork burgers are bullsh*t. I hate the feeling of having to rush through eating my burger because my hands and gave are slathered in sauce."

"If it's stacked and/or messy af, it's not a good burger, even if it tastes good. It's some kind of knife and fork entree but definitely not a burger."

– FictionalContext

Sometimes people want something sweet without going over the top.

Identity Crisis

"It’s not a dish, but those milkshakes that you see that have chocolate all over the glass and a giant piece of cake on top. Ruins the milkshake with the crumbs mixing into it, and honestly could of put the cake on a plate and let us eat it normally".

– Meckles94

Dough-Not Want It

"Donuts from places known for 'cRaZy' donuts. The most 'extreme' donuts I’ve ever had were the most mediocre. They tasted like somebody put stale cereal on top of grocery store donuts."

– cppadam

Behind The Scenes

"I work with a guy whose wife runs her own bakery. He told me that most of the places selling donuts these days don't actually make their own donuts. They buy pre-made dough that is uncooked. Then the places doctor them up. Hence, the stale cereal on grocery store donuts taste. It's because that's exactly what they are."

"Apparently, making multiple types of all homemade donuts is a lot of work. I go to a Mennonite bakery at a farmers market who make all of their own stuff, dough and all. They are legit working from before they open until after they close."

– qotsa_gibs

A Big Twist...And Not The Glazed Kind

"There's a place in Niagara Falls called Country Fresh Donuts and they've got some of the best donuts I've ever had. Their long johns are the stars of the show, but their other donuts are also super good."

"Big twist? They excel at wonton soup. Anyone who goes there goes for the soup first, donuts later. It helps that they're open 24 hours a day (or, they were at one point). 3am wonton soup and a donut is mana from heaven."

– SimonCallahan

Mini Cakes

"Cupcakes during their 2009-2014 reign of terror."

– JonathanWattsAuthor

"With the icing piled so high it would go up your nose"

– Live_Reindeer7833

Not everyone fancies a fancy meal.

History Of Lobster

"Lobsters used to be peasant food - they literally fed it to prisoners. It's weird how things change, but like most things it just comes down to supply and demand."

"Lobster is quite hard to farm so, although it's not a hard-to-come-by food unless you're very far from the sea, there is still a bit more effort required in producing them. Couple that with their image as a 'luxury' seafood, which increases demand, and you get high prices."

– fantalemon

Not Worth The Hype

"Any steak from Salt Bae’s restaurants."

– WishboneCrazy9289

"Controversial but I think steak in general is overrated. I love steak and have some really good servings in nice places but I still think it isn’t as good as people go on about."

– itsyaboigreg

How Posh

"Expensive food with gold shavings. What's that about? Do you eat it to feel rich and powerful or something? I'm sure gold doesn't taste very good and is not normally supposed to be eaten."

– thegreatc*msl*t

"You can buy the gold foil on its own and it's cheaper than you'd expect (still expensive)"

"After trying on on its own, I can say gold is one of the lower ranking metals that I've tasted. Silver, stainless steel, and titanium all taste better. I'd put gold in the same tier as copper, above aluminum."

"Edit: to explain how I know this, someone asked me for advice on different types of silverware and I had to try it out myself before recommending anything. The copper is an exception as that was a dare."

– Notbbupdate

I see the appeal for Instagramming food, but if the beautiful food items photographed in portrait mode are making me salivate, they better deliver on my taste buds.

I actually patronized a diner that advertised an amazing pancake dish that had caramel sauce with crushed pecan and whipped cream. The idea looked better on paper.

When I order the breakfast delight in question, it looked nothing like how it was pictured. It was flat, messy, and undesirable.

And of course it tasted horrible. I was a sucker for that damn Instagram post.

Sometimes food is all hype. That's the worst kind, especially if you're a sucker like me and you fall for it.

As children, when we saw grown-ups behave in certain ways, we more than likely promised ourselves we would never be like them.

That we would never lose our temper at minor things, groan over the slightest ache in our bodies, or choose work over fun.

However, when adulthood creeps up on us, certain things about the person you become you have little to no control over.

As a result, you might find yourself screaming at children for being too noisy or going to bed at 9:15 instead of seeing a midnight screening of your favorite movie and realizing that you have become the very thing you've been trying to avoid your entire life.

Redditor UglyLikeCaillou was curious to hear what type of person the Reddit community ended up becoming, despite vowing they wouldn't, leading them to ask:

"What type of person did you swear to never turn into growing up, but did anyway?"

Letting It Out Can Ease The Pain...

"The one that makes noises when I get up off the floor."- tutohooto

The Wise Know The Vital Importance Of Being Silly

"I swore I’d never stop being goofy."

"That I’d always try to find the positive and wouldn’t give up hope."

"But then life happened."

"It’s hard staying an emotionally sensitive and caring person when so many people are just plain mean."- Lucky_Garbage5537

It's Possible, Even In A Room Full Of People...

"I never thought I would grow up to be so lonely, but here I am."- oldbaldgrumpy

Sad Season 2 GIF by FriendsGiphy

Temper Temper...

"An angry person."

"Life and people are just too much all the time."-Jumpy-Air-3385

Some Call It Frugal, Others Call It Cheap....

"The kind that put something back cause the store brand was 20 cents cheaper."- penndelnj

A Far Too Common Occurrence

"I never thought I'd live paycheck to paycheck by my age."

"I thought I'd be on my way to being financially independent by now, in fact."

"It's always been my goal, I was willing to work so hard from such a young age and never scared to make sacrifices but unfortunately my people-reader is skewed and all I ever really got was taken advantage of."

"It's not too late, I'm smarter now and I'll get there."- FriendCountZero

2 Chainz Pockets GIF by MOST EXPENSIVESTGiphy

Working Hard For The Money...

"A corporate slave."- lapdanze

"My dad was an engineer and I vowed to never be like him in any way."

"Growing up, I always said over my dead body would i become a corporate slave chained to a desk."

"Guess who is a desk jockey engineer now."- Lame_usernames_left

Watch Your Mouth!

"If my child self met my adult self, he’d tell me that I shouldn’t say so many bad words."- BarthRevan

The Apple Doesn't Fall Very Far From The Tree...

"My dad."- PolarBearChuck

"The most relatable one, nobody wants to become their parents, it’s horrible (unless you have good parents)."- Fine-Macaroon-3202

season 2 episode 6 GIFGiphy

The Comfort Of Your Own Home...

"A homebody."

"In my early 20’s I would never miss an opportunity to go out on Thurs, Friday, or Sat night and couldn’t understand why my parents would ‘waste’ a perfectly good weekend night, just to stay home."

"Now I get it. MAN, do I get it."

Derogatory Term, Or Term Of Endearment?

"I remember learning what a nerd was and thinking 'thank God I'm not a nerd' as I went home from school to play Pokemon Emerald and talk on Pokemon message boards about the upcoming Diamond and Pearl games."- hectoByte

Early To Bed, Early To Rise

"The dad that gets up at 4:30 am to exercise, and is ready for bed by 9 pm."- GreyPilgrim1973

Work Out Pain GIF by I Want You Back MovieGiphy

Beauty Comes In All Sizes...

"Overweight."

"Not super big, but not skinny anymore."- hoosierhiver

One Can Indeed Be The Loneliest Number...

"Crotchety, single old lady."

"I'm only sometimes crotchety, but I'm almost fifty and still single!"- GimmeUrNachos

Love What You Do! If You Can...

"An office drone."

"Redditing as we speak to avoid looking at yet another ghastly eyesore of a spreadsheet.'

"Why have we done this to ourselves as a civilization?"- onemanmelee

Still Waiting Office Tv GIF by The OfficeGiphy

Growing up can be scary, hence why we always promise ourselves we won't turn out a certain way.

Even so, some things about the type of person we grow up to be are completely out of our control.

And rather than bemoan our current situation, it's always best to embrace it and enjoy the precious time we have on Earth with our family and friends.

And maybe cut our parents a little slack for the behavior we judged them so harshly on as children...