E is for Elders

I teach art to seniors. I was about to type, senior artists, but, based on my five years of experience teaching in an Assisted Living facility, almost none of my students consider themselves artists. In fact, as I have mentioned in this blog before, the most frequent comment I get is "Oh, I'm no artist." Yet, my ladies come to class, week after week. They learn, they practice, and mostly, they improve.

Some don't of course. My ladies (rare to see a man in class) are old. They come with a wide array of ailments that include blindness, dementia, arthritis and the effects of great age on the body and the ability to work. And sometimes they die.  But while they are with me, they form a group and not only draw or paint, they talk, they laugh, they share, and most of all, they criticize their work and praise everyone else's.

Carol M

I never wanted to teach "old people." My father, who did, always tried to convince me to teach as he did, at a senior center in Florida. I hated even going into the place. Yet, after he died, and my hair turned grey,  I felt the need to contribute something to my community and volunteered at the facility where both my parents ended their days. And somehow there, found not only a job, but a part of myself that is patient and caring and --- really enjoys the older people I have gotten to know.

Irene K

One of the major benefits of this aspect of my work is the effort I must put into preparing to teach each week. I need to consider the level of abilities and disabilities. I have learned many things about adapting a project. I need to meet the needs of  people whose vision is affected by macular degeneration, or fading color vision. I have learned to see beauty in the shaky lines drawn by hands effected by Parkinson's disease. I understand the value of repetition - both of projects and instructions. And, I always try to relate the project to events in the lives of my students - memories or current events and activities are great starting points.

I have learned to use strong black sharpie to outline shapes, vibrant NeoColor crayons for color, bright white, or neon color papers for contrast. In class, we keep projects simple, share the work of great artists who have reached great age, and experiment with different media and different processes. Monotype printing in my simplified style has been a great success. There is an awed reaction to the magic that happens when images appear as we transfer them from acetate to wet paper.

Most magical of all though is the work that happens. These examples are from last week when pumpkins were the subject. The rules were simple - at least one pumpkin (I provided a collection of cute little mini pumpkins and lots of pumpkin drawings for inspiration.) Those who could see it well enough used white pastel to outline on black paper - then we all used pastel for color. My intro drawing is at the top, the others speak for themselves.

 Many thanks go to MZ, whose help and guidance have been essential to our combined success. I could not do this without you.

Inspired by Sunshine

I will be teaching some art workshops this summer - drawing and painting classes in the garden, so I 've been feeling the need to polish my flower drawing skills. To do this, I have been drawing flowers in color pencil and charcoal. But yesterday, my gift to myself arrived, a set of 48 Conte Pastel Pencils.

When I was a child my FAVORITE gift was a box of 48 crayolas. That brand new box, filled with these fantastic colors (sepia, goldenrod, prussian blue, magenta, burnt sienna) was irresistible. I don't even remember what I drew or colored. I do remember the delight and possibility of those pristine, fragrant crayons in my hand.)

Anyway, I like new colors, and I especially like my new pastel set. It is gorgeous and the thick pencils feel great in my hand. Combine the sunshine, my practice drawing daisies, and my new colors, and you get this sketch. It is on drawing paper and I think it is very cheery.

Art Every Day: U is for Umbrellas

Day 21

Umbrellas have absolutely nothing to do with this post, but I needed something to call it. I had a lot of ideas - like up and I'd paint clouds, or upside down (I like that idea) or ultramarine blue and paint gorgeous Nepalese poppies. But this is what appeared today - I don't know what kind of flowers they are, only they are small and I drew them big, on black paper with pastels.

There we go, U is for Upsizing.

Art Every Day: R is for River Revisited

Day 18
One of the best things about having a dog is the walks we take. Living as I do surrounded by water, I often walk along the river. It seemed like every walk last fall (not so much this rainy one) resulted in a stunning play of light on leaves, clouds and water.

I took dozens of photographs, and tried several time to capture the vibrant light in pastels. The paintings always lacked the intensity I saw outdoors. So I tried again today. I am still struggling with the texture and shape of the mass of trees, but the light is a little better. The sky really was this blue. I think all this challenge practice is helping.

Every time I look at the photo or the painting, I remember the incredible beauty of that day on the river.

This is pastel on canson mi tiente.

Art Every Day: N is for Nature

Day 13

Yesterday was our anniversary, and just like on the day we were married, it was a sunny afternoon. It is never a good idea to ignore the light in November; who can say when it will be back again, so the plan was to head outdoors.

Earlier in the week I heard a report of the impressive crop of mushrooms growing in the forest. We decided to go hunting. My husband envisioning sauteed delights, the dog, and me with my camera. We drove west toward the coast, and drove to the top of a high hill in the state park. Tomorrow I will show you the sky. Today, I drew a mushroom on the forest floor.

This is pastel pencil and pastel on Canson Mi Tiente.

By the way, though the picking was poor, the hike was a pleasure, and a stand along the road sold us a bounty of chanterelles. Dinner was delicious.

Art Every Day: E is for Errors and Eye Appeal

Day 5
My husband believes that for art to be "good" it has to be attractive to the eye, even pretty. I am not sure I totally agree, but I do know that the images I like definitely fit my own criteria for beautiful. Color - vibrant and rich - always grabs my eye.

As I work to build my skills and generate work, I often look at art - at galleries and art shows, online and in my art books. There are times that I look at technically perfect and highly detailed images, that certainly took time and effort to create, but - for some reason they leave me cold. Other times, I see things that I love, not for their perfection, but for some hard to identify quality that simply speaks to me. I guess that is what I mean by eye appeal.

Which brings me to errors. My Iphone camera is my constant companion. It is the tool I use to capture the world of beauty that surrounds me. It is also the first step to much of my artwork. This summer I was trying to take pix of the hops that grow in our garden. Something distracted me and the camera slipped. However, as I saw it go by, I realized that the image I had captured in error was a potential pastel painting.

It was an interesting experience to try to paint a picture that is deliberately out of focus. I love the colors on this one.

How do you define good art?