Tom's mom (my mother-in-law) was coming to stay with us for a few days and I thought it would be the perfect time to visit one of the places that has been on my "list" forever, the Chuang Yen Monastery, in Kent, NY.
Now I have known about the Monastery for a while, I had even visited it years ago before the Great Buddha statue, the largest Buddha statue in the Western hemisphere, was brought there, but like everyone, we get busy and it gets hard to visit all the places you want to go.
Last year in my Multicultural Art for Art Teachers class at The College of New Rochelle we had discussed what a great place the Monastery would be to take art students on a field trips. So now, it was fresh in my mind again and I really wanted to get there soon. The Monastery is open for prayer and worship, meditation, special services and retreats, and even for visitors like us who are interested in admiring the beauty of the buildings and statues and strolling around the grounds.
Tom took some great photos of the Buddhas and already put them on his website fattirephotography.com. I'm already thinking of the lesson plans...painting with bamboo, mixed medium projects inspired by the many faces of Buddha, create your own calligraphy alphabet - maybe make a pendant out of clay with a letter! Who knows, the possibilities are endless...
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