Hello
"I paint flowers so they will not die" — Frida Kahlo
Art has the power to preserve moments, objects, and perspectives. Once preserved, the artist offers those moments back to the world, remade to either remember or reshape, for the good or the bad. Art in this sense is a rhetorical art yielding both excellent and not-so-excellent artifacts. Painting, drawing, sculpting, and architecture are arts we can learn how to make for ourselves and how to interpret as artifacts made by others.
Greetings, my name is Jennifer Souza, students who take my classes will learn this, both the skills of making excellent art, but also discerning what art across time and place has communicated and how to appropriately respond
My Story
I have been playing with paint and pencils for almost 30 years now. It happened accidentally when there was no space in the chorus class I wanted to take; so I got stuck in art class. Glory to God, however, because that class opened a door for me that has been a constant pleasure and challenge. This journey has given me an additional modality for encountering and understanding the world, other academic disciplines, God, myself, and my fellow man. Additionally, creating art has challenged me to develop the habit of discipline in developing the skills to make quality art. Skills, after all, are the bridge between inspiration and incarnation.
I sold my first painting at 16 years old and have consistently developed my artistic skills by studying and creating art. Professionally, I am a classical teacher and curriculum developer. I completed my BA in Interdisciplinary Studies & English from Belmont Abbey College, am a CiRCE certified Classical Teacher, and am pursuing my Masters in Theological Studies, with a concentration in Patristics & Pedagogy, at Hellenic College Holy Cross. I have taught humanities, history, literature, logic, writing, rhetoric, and fine arts since 2009 in various classical learning communities and schools, including Classical Conversations, St Raphael School, Paideia Fellowship, and at a handful of local schools.
I was a contributing author for The Lost Tools of Writing Level 1, published by The CiRCE Institute and the former co-host of The Classical Homeschool Podcast. I have spoken at dozens of national events on classical education and teaching. My research interests include classical rhetoric and pedagogy — the intersection of education and healing — education and pedagogy through the lives and writings of the Saints, Patristic Fathers, and Iconography — and the close study of literature, letters, and fine art.
In my home life, I live with my husband, Fr. John, and our newborn son in Southern California. We have five other grown children. My husband serves as a priest at a local Greek Orthodox Church, and together, we enjoy music, historical dramas and documentaries, art of all kinds, trying my hand at a challenging recipe (and him tasting them), reading and discussing with friends, and sauntering about in nature and the city.
I look forward to serving you and your family in developing a deeper understanding of the history of our world through art.
