This is a bit long, but the more (info) the merrier, right?

She was definitely my most un-"artsy" art teacher, at least in terms of her style and how she came across. Not at all a head-in-the-clouds, emotional type. She was actually very masculine, and I could never imagine her wearing anything frilly or "pretty." She looked like she'd fit much better in an industrial setting than an art studio. Which makes sense, I guess, because most of her work was/is large-scale and uses media like metals (bronze, iron, etc.) and plasters and cements. She's physically tough, a bit intimidating looking, and can easily display a practical take-charge attitude.

She's one of the few art teachers I've had who put art in a box - not in a bad way, though... More like she put concrete definitions on things, so you could measure it. Not that she confined it, or anything. In fact, she's very much into abstract, non-representational, and the like. It's just that she's one of the few who actually had a lecture on things like form, space, texture, color, etc., putting it all into a nice logical structure.

She was an easygoing teacher. It was one of those types of classes where you have a demonstration/lecture every so often and in between you work on your own personal project. She kept attendance, but wasn't very strict on what time people came in, and if you could demonstrate that you could work better at home she'd allow it (it had to be a really good demonstration, though). Her main thing was that you finished your project by the due date (which was also flexible, depending on other factors, like availability of supplies and if the majority of the class was behind/struggling) and that it fit the parameters she'd set. She also liked to see creativity and a... how to put it... deeper meaning in the work. In fact, during the midterm and final (which were pretty much one-on-one interviews), that's one thing she said I did well and she liked.

Despite her flexibility, her students often ended up putting in overtime to get their projects done. Although, that was more out of self-motivation than fear of failure, which I think was her goal.

Anyway, she didn't seem to stress out too much if things didn't go exactly like she'd planned. She'd frown, say something like, "It's really too bad that [whatever happened]," sort of shrug, and start working on a way around the difficulty. And she was really good at making things work.

She was a very hands-on type of person. She was perceptive as to the structure of things, too, and I never really worried when she picked up my works to inspect them, like I worry with most people. I could trust her to know what was delicate. She was also really good at knowing the best process to build or fix something.

Like most teachers, she set the tone for the whole class. It was laid-back, relaxed, calm. People readily helped each other out whenever anybody needed it. A lot of things were group efforts - in fact, that's one thing she emphasized, how sculpture is rarely accomplished through lone individual efforts, unlike painting or drawing, and so sculptors are usually oriented towards a community attitude (along with potters, but that's a tangent). Everyone was friendly, open, and pretty matter-of-fact. No drama or rambunctiousness.

In class, while everyone was working, she'd talk with us about recent local events and other things that were pretty easy for anyone to comment on if they wanted to. She'd tell stories about stuff she'd done, experiences she'd had, like that one time she ran across two armed guys in the woods who she later figured out were part of a drug smuggling operation, or some of the things she'd done at that bronze (or was it iron?) pour in England last year. She'd ask how our weekends had gone, what we'd done, etc. She wasn't overly or irrelevantly talkative, though, or even very emotional. Most of her talking was factual in nature.

She and I got along well. I felt like I had the freedom to be and do what I wanted, that what she expected/wanted of me was something that I could happily do. She always liked my ideas, though she'd critique and help me refine them. I liked the directions she pushed me to go.

Her instructions on how to do things (e.g. mix plaster or use various tools) made sense to me, and she was always really good about demonstrating the processes. And if I personally was having difficulties with something, she'd take the time to work through it with me, occasionally doing some of it for me. Like with some of the larger power tools, she said she'd rather us not try to work with the big stuff unless we were comfortable doing so, for safety's sake. But even when it wasn't very dangerous she'd sometimes do some of the harder stuff for me, especially when I was feeling unsure or helpless as to what to do.

She liked me relatively well, too. One time she said that I was the type of person who would drop what they were doing and take time out of their day to altruistically help someone else, which she evidently thought was an admirable and smile-worthy quality in someone. She also seemed to like the manner in which I responded to her help and advice.

One other thing I noticed – She's partially in charge of the art department at that school, and one thing she seems pretty good at is connecting with the various teachers to make sure they have everything that they need to do their jobs - stuff like supplies and making sure appliances work.

So, what type does that sound like to you? And why, if you don't mind saying?

EDIT: I thought of something else. Along the lines of flexibility, one time one of my classmates brought in her young daughter (3 or 4 years old, I think) because she couldn't find someone else to watch her. My teacher didn't mind, though she did say that it shouldn't become a habit, and even made some quick little clay figures for the youngster to play with.

Also, in between classes she'd could frequently be seen carrying around her own little son, who spent the day in the campus day care center. She didn't coddle or make any big fusses over him, but she took good care of him and obviously made an effort to spend as much time with him as she could.