A unique art class is being offered at Clair Burgener Academy in Oceanside where troubled teenagers are able to de-stress themselves through sculpting lessons at Lynn Forbes Sculpture studio in Carlsbad Village. Clair Burgener Academy is a public school for teenagers with academic troubles who may come from tough environments.
Blakeley Taylor, a teacher at Clair Burgener, mentioned that a number of her students once were not able to express themselves artistically in a healthy way. “They never have any opportunity to take anything like art or ceramics, because they're always in remedial classes. A lot of them, for the first time, are finding something in school that they're successful at and can enjoy,” said Taylor.
 The entire concept of this artistic expression began with Marilyn Neubauer Ministries in Oceanside. Marilyn Neubauer has been known for her positive influence on troubled teenagers and just last year she introduced a former gang member to give a motivational talk to teens at Clair Burgener.
Lynn Forbes, the head of the Carlsbad studio along with her husband Ralph Muncaster, mentioned how people can focus while sculpting—“an art that requires intense concentration and a visceral connection with the medium.”
“There's something very therapeutic about it. It's almost like playing an instrument because your eyes are connected to your hands and eventually you just see (what you're creating). Your hands move in the shape of it, like dancing,” said Forbes.
Muncaster commented “Sculpture provides a constant feedback, of being able to take a problem, fix it, and feel satisfaction for fixing the problem – because the clay is very malleable. In other words, if you make a mistake, it's no big deal. You put the clay back or you can take the clay away. You can fix your problems, whereas a lot of these students in real life probably have run into problems that are a lot more difficult to fix.”
Teens with issues may be able to relax and take time away from the problems that may be stressing them by sculpting. Instead of turning to drugs or substance abuse to get away from the pain, these teenagers can find comfort while expressing themselves artistically through sculpture.
Jeffrey Jarquin, a 15-year-old on probation at Clair Burgener for scrawling graffiti, never saw himself as a sculptor but was taken by its relaxing ways. “It keeps my mind off things and helps me concentrate. Sometimes you can have a really stressful day or you have a bad day, and you just start working and you feel good. You feel good about yourself.”
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