what i learned wednesday

yay! the first installment of what i learned wednesday is here!

today's topic: me gushing over how cool this class is going to be...

my very first class was, of course, the introduction to what this class will be all about. my teacher, helene (pronounced HAH-lane) is amazing! she not only has a studio not far from where i live, but she is also an art teacher at the local community college. she's so energetic and really got us fired up! just listening to her last night and seeing some of her student's work made me believe that i can really do this. that by the end of these two courses, i will be able to make my drawings pop right off the page!

helene showed us what tools we would be using (here are the goodies that you asked about, louise) :

vine and willow charcoals
standard charcoals
conte crayons
india ink w/ chinese brushes
china markers
sharpie pens
tortillions

then of course we have to get gum and kneadable erasers, an exacto knife, masking tape, pushpins, a sketchbook, a toolbox and a portfolio - i've never had a portfolio before. i know that i can make a really inexpensive one out of cardboard...but i kinda wanted something "official", not extravagent...but something with pockets and zippers and...well...i splurged and ordered this in the larger size. it's not expensive and i know there are much better ones out there, but this will be just right for me!

we went over the outline for the class and...did i tell you that i'm doing the happy happy dance of joy? :^)

week 2 (next week) will be all about experimenting with our drawing materials and getting the feel for them. we will also be learning about volumetric drawing through mass gesture, blind contour and we'll have an intro to contour.
week 3 will be a continuation.
week 4 will be about negative shape and "viewfinder usage to locate composition".
week 5 will see us creating a value scale, laying tone and "drawing with the eraser".
week 6 is all about beginning a portrait with ink studies and we'll get to use our china markers with turps (helene said that turps really draw out the lines that china markers make, giving the image a wispy feel). the next 6 weeks will be a whole new course with emphasis on landscape and portraits - we don't have the outline for that yet.

during the last 15 minutes of class, helen did a powerpoint presentation showing us various works by different artist (some of whom are her college students) and WOW - they were so incredible and inspiring! i wish i took notes on who the artists were but i was too busy ogling the pictures. there were only three that i recognized, frida kahlo (who's work is so unusual, but it sucks you in because there is so much within each work); gustav klimt (i've always found his work very sensual and his use of color and shape has always intrigued me); andrew wyeth (whom the great state of maine claims as our own because he had a summer house here...he's really from pennsylvania - but many of his works depict maine, some bleak - some striking but all beautiful in their own right).

okay, i think i've blabbered on enough! friday night, i will be heading to artist & craftsman supply in portland for my supplies and to just hang out in the old port for a bit (something i rarely get to do since it's about an hour drive from my house).

so here's to inspiration! i know we've all been contemplating it, thanks to shari. to reviving that much needed inspiration in our creative lives, so that it may seep into our daily lives!

oh btw, we even have homework this week - we are to place 3 objects on a table and draw what we see as best we can, spending no more than 90 minutes on this! i can't wait to get my stuff so i can start playing!!!