Today we’d like to introduce you to Jian Lu.
Hi Jian, can you start by introducing yourself? We’d love to learn more about how you got to where you are today?
I was born in a family of fine arts. My father is a famous Chinese painter who graduated from Luyi University. I received artistic influence from my family and showed artistic talent since childhood. When I was young, when I wanted to do something or do graffiti, all the painting materials were at hand! It’s that simple. This is something that many children at that time couldn’t get! And I am lucky to have this very important condition to start my art training and become a capable child.
In 1997, I was admitted to the Central Academy of Arts and Crafts of China, the top art college in Beijing. Two years later, the Central Academy of Arts and Crafts merged into Tsinghua University and was renamed Tsinghua University Academy of Fine Arts.
After graduating from Tsinghua Academy of Fine Arts, I went to one of the country’s leading fashion brand companies. In just over half a year, I became the chief designer of Mark Huafei Men’s Wear, becoming one of the top designers in the country. After that, I often traveled between Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou, and Hong Kong, living in the spotlight in front of and behind the T stage, working all night in the garment factory…
However, just when my career was achieving great success, because my husband wanted to work in Japan, I resolutely gave up my domestic career and accompanied my husband to travel to Japan.
In Japan, I entered Tokyo Bunka Women’s University to continue my art study and had in-depth exposure to Japanese art education, especially Japan’s children’s art education, which has been elevated to the level of personality education. I was deeply touched by the teaching models they created such as “Styling Games”, “Painting, Three-dimensional Modeling”, “Handmade”, “Appreciation” and so on.
What changed me in Japan was that it awakened my dream of art education.
A few years later, in 2006, I left Japan with my husband and came to Atlanta in the United States with this dream. After my life settled down, to realize this dream, I started an Art Studio in the basement of my house. At the beginning of its establishment, the studio mainly provided extracurricular art education for children, cultivating, and improving children’s artistic observation, aesthetics, perception, and creativity.
After years of hard work, Art365 has become a famous art school in East Cobb. Art365 offers K-12 kids art lessons in drawing with a variety of media such as oil pastel, colored pencil, watercolor, acrylic, sketch, oil painting, sculpture, etc. Art365 has sent many talented students to top-tier colleges and prestigious art schools such as Rhode Island School of Design, Parsons School of Design, School of Visual Arts, and SCAD.
Art365 also provides art and craft camps, including summer camps and various school break camps. In Art365’s camp, kids will have an immersive experience that helps to open a world of creativity and self-expression. Art365’s camp is a haven for young artists to explore their artistic talents and nurture their passion for the arts.
Now, Art365 has a strong faculty team with seven artists who are experienced and talented in art education. We have more than 100 students enrolled in our regular art class and even more, joining our art and craft camps. Recently, Art365 expanded and renovated its 3000 square feet space so that we can provide a better environment for students in their art journey.
Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
I am a lucky person; I have a family that has loved me since I was a child. I met a loving husband when I grew up, and I have two lovely sons. But there will always be various problems in people’s lives. First of all, I am family-oriented. There are ten years when the two children were in elementary school, I was struggling to learn how to balance work and life. Family’s support is one major reason why I can insist on teaching art and continuously growing Art365 to a renowned art school in East Cobb. Secondly, the language problem; as a first-generation immigrant, my English is not very good, and I feel a lot of pressure when teaching in English, and this problem has gradually improved over time. Now I am not alone in teaching, I have a team of art teachers to whom I am grateful for their dedication and contribution to Art365’s art education. Last, Art365 can not succeed without parents and trust and support.
We’ve been impressed with Art365 Academy, but for folks who might not be as familiar, what can you share with them about what you do and what sets you apart from others?
Art365 believes that art is about cultivating beauty, which is not only visually beautiful and harmonious but also a feeling. Our teaching philosophy is to allow students to explore the expression of their own personality and use paint to show their unique personality and way of existence. We believe that art education is not only the cultivation of painting skills but also a way to improve aesthetic taste and quality of life through continuous perception of beauty.
We pay more attention to children’s free and bold development and fully release their innate spirituality. We encourage children to express their childhood world and their innocence and happiness using various bright colors such as red, lemon yellow, dark blue, etc. Whatever the children like to draw, we let them try. If they fail, it doesn’t matter, just try something else. This is the only way to learn art. Our classroom is like a small stage of life. Here in Art365, kids experience cooperation with classmates, they learn not to give up after failure, and they share the accomplishment after perseverance.
We are proud of our students’ accomplishments and their growth in confidence and creativity. We believe that every student is an artist capable of creating with some variances in how they learn. We set high expectations for our students and differentiate our lessons to accommodate all types of learners.
We hope that our readers will know that Art365 is a place where children can explore their creativity and imagination, learn to express themselves and develop their artistic skills. We believe that art education is an essential part of a student’s complete education and that it helps promote an individual sense of identity, which in turn helps a student develop as an individual. We are committed to providing our students with a lifelong passion for learning and a love for art.
Can you tell us more about what you were like growing up?
Growing up, I had a carefree girlhood. In my twenties, I pursued love. During my 30-40, I raised children while teaching art part-time. After the age of 40, I grew my one-teacher art class into an art education business. I am now almost 50 years old and looking forward to the next ten years of my life. In the next decade, I hope to make Art365 better, teach more children to draw, and strive to improve the level of art education in the East Cobb community.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.art365studio.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/art365ga/
- Yelp: https://www.yelp.com/biz/art365-academy-marietta
