Photo by Kelli Tungay on Unsplash

The Weirdest Things My Teachers Said to Me: Part 2

“It just doesn't say ‘Africa’ to me,” said my art teacher, looking at my colorful watercolor painting of several stylized humans surrounded by swirls and trees. I wasn’t sure she realized she was visibly curling her lip in disdain.

“You said the assignment was ‘Africa-inspired,’” I said. I pulled out a small book of African iconography and showed her a similar motif. “I was…