C is for Creativity

 “Creativity is contagious. Pass it on.” ― Albert Einstein

Once again, Einstein has just the right words to express what I am thinking, and what I am doing in this challenge, in my studio and most of all, in my classes.

One of the biggest issues I confront in my senior classes (ages 73 - 102) is the oft repeated comment, "I'm no artist." Somewhere in their lives, so many (older) adults I meet have been convinced that they "can't even draw a straight line." As if that matters.

So I remind them, that art is not about straight lines (though they can be nice.) Art is not even about curved lines (though they definitely help.) It is not definitely not about getting everything right. So I bring them great art to look at. For the lesson I am writing about here, it was a slide show of images of Georgia O'Keeffe flowers.

I draw for them so that they see how it it done. I bring color and ideas, and I remind them every week that art is about fun and pleasure and experimentation. Art is NOT about perfection, or coloring neatly, or impressing anybody but yourself.


And then we make art -

The two flowers at left are my practice for a simplified lesson on Georgia O'Keeffe flowers - the idea was to fill the page and work large. We used Caran D'ache crayons on canvas board, and outlined with sharpie to make it easier for some of my older students to see clearly. After we colored, we used water to create a painted effect.

But creativity IS contagious. When I got home, I had the urge to continue playing with these large flowers, but to add lines with my well loved set of Prismacolor markers. The flowers at the top are just one of the pieces that resulted. This was so much fun, I did it again the next day, but this time, with my Young Artists. More about them later.

U is for Up

 My "senior class" today was a delight. My preparation, which included printing a collection of large, vibrant flowers, and even pre-sketching a few, resulted in truly lovely work, and a relaxing  pre-Thanksgiving afternoon. To start the class I demonstrated how to mix and blend and deepen colors when working with Caran D'ache watersoluble crayons (which everyone loves). As my classes progress, my students (my "aspiring artists" as Lillian refers to our group) are growing more independent, and more skilled.

When things go well, and everyone enjoys themselves, and real learning has taken place,  I feel happy ... UP ... and I express that good feeling with color. This is pastel on black paper and lots of digital fooling around to bring even more color and texture to the piece. 

M is for Many

Carnations

Last week the senior class painted in the style of Georgia O"Keeffe. One single flower to fill the page.

Tomorrow the topic will be many. We will draw  a bunch of flowers, real or imagined, to fill the space, using oil pastel on black paper. The challenge will be to draw big,  draw many, not too many details, and use lots of color.. There will be flower pictures for inspiration.

Each of the artists in my class has a distinct style. I look forward to the variety of bouquets that will appear tomorrow.

Carnations was drawn in oil pastels on black sandpaper.

B is for Beginners

As an art teacher working with both young children and senior adults, I work with a lot of beginners. When a young child comes to my class, I expect that I will need to present the basics - how to use a paintbrush, complementary colors, how to draw a face or a flower or a tree.

But kids are not my only students who are new to making art. Over and over in my senior adult classes I am amazed to find people who have never made art before. "Even when you were a kid in school?" I ask. Silly city girl me ... I am often reminded that these older folks grew up on farms and had no time to play, and no access to such luxuries as crayons and paper. Some remind me that they grew up in depression era schools where the three R's took priority over non-essentials such as art. So, my very grown up students, retired and with time for new pursuits are often experiencing the pleasures of drawing and painting for the very first time.

In many ways, I find that teaching each of my groups is very similar. The major difference is that while seniors are better behaved :-), the kids have no fear. Kids are not only willing to try anything, they have complete confidence in the work that they will create.

The seniors on the other hand repeatedly tell me, in one way and another "I'm no artist." Yet they also tell me about the quilts, and dresses and wedding gowns they have made; about arranging flowers, decorating homes, knitting sweaters, embroidering, making lace ... on and on, all their lives. It makes me sad that they do not seem to connect the beautiful work of their hands with the process of making art.

So - in order to overcome the negativity, I work hard to offer projects that allow them to find success, work around visual and other limitations, and help them connect their own skills and interests with the new ones I am there to teach.

The image at the top of  this page is my sketch, done in water soluble crayon (more about that tomorrow) on watercolor paper -a  simple image in lots of color and texture, to inspire and direct a seascape lesson (complete with a Winslow Homer slide show).

Below are 3 examples of the art created by my "non-artist" students. Beautiful, right?

Frances Nishimura

Rosemary Cramer

Marguerite Gedrose