September Faculty of the Month: Mr. Ellis

The Faculty of the Month for September is... Mr. Ellis! He is the new art teacher this year at FMHS, and lives with his his family in Lebec. We asked him a few questions, and here's how it went.

FB (The Falcon Beat): Hello, Mr. Ellis! It's great to have you here tonight. To start off, can you tell us a little about yourself?

ME (Mr. Ellis): Well, this is my first year teaching at FMHS. I've been teaching in the Los Angeles area for 20 years, and at that school I built a tiny art program into a huge program with a bunch of other teachers and lots of classes being offered. I've seen a lot of my students become successful artists, work in the film industry, go to some of the top art schools, and I'm hoping to do the same here!

FB: That's great to hear! So what attracted you to art in the first place? Did you start off young, or find your passion along the way?

ME: I've always loved art since I was a little kid, and I always knew I wanted to be an artist. Early on I did a lot of drawing and painting, and I didn't really get to try any 3 dimensional art until I was a junior in high school. I just fell in love with that and decided to go to the top ceramics school in the country at the time, which was Alfred University. I ended up going to that school, and while I was there, my interest took a turn from pottery to sculpting. I pursued sculpting there with a minor in film.

FB: Are you a professional artist today?

ME: I have continued to be a working sculptor, potter, painter and musician. I've had exhibitions of my work, in fact I recently had a show in Pine Mountain Club over summer. I've also done some work in the film industry; I've done some animation and I have a few film credits. I've been a musician since college and started writing my own songs early on. I played in a lot of bands where I was the songwriter, singer and guitarist, and a few years after that, my wife and I started making music together. We write a lot of songs and perform together, and we played some of the big clubs when we were younger. I also produce electronic music, and I just released a new album called Reentry.

FB: Hey, that's pretty good. So I've been hearing rumors that you're a vegan, can you give us a bit of information on that?

ME: Sure. I've always loved animals, and I kinda like the idea of not hurting them. Vegans don't use animal products or eat meat, which also means a ton of health benefits if you can eat healthfully vegan. It's pretty great, I've lost a lot of weight since I've been a vegan and a lot of health problems I had have just disappeared.

FB: If pigs were vegetables, what would you do for a BLT?

ME: …I guess I'd go out to my garden… and pick the… pigs…

FB: ...So what changes are you hoping to make to the program here at FMHS?

ME: Well as a matter of fact I've been working at the school over summer, prepping the room and making lots of changes. I turned the old storage rooms into things like (potter’s) wheel rooms, a kiln room, and a heavy equipment room so that we can do sculpture and pottery right here at FMHS.

FB: Do you mind if I finish with a more personal question?

ME: Shoot.

FB: What color is your toothbrush?

ME: …White.

FB: That's a very plain color… In fact, that's the absence of color according to your class. Thanks again for your time, and don't forget to check out your article on The Falcon Beat’s new website!

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