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'In The City' art pieces were completed during Class 6. I cannot find the right words to describe how I feel when I see my Avatars creating such great work. I like to stand back and stop talking and just sit near them and watch. I can observe when one is in the zone. Their creative energy fills the entire room and I have to cover my smiles; it's like I'm smiling all the time during class. I am teaching a very talented and young group of artists; there's this joy within me that I do not even want to label myself as their teacher. They are on the same artistic creative level I am at; age does not matter; experience is but a small variable; to put it simply ~ each of us have 'it'. The 'it' is raw talent and passion.
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Class 7 ~ my Avatars and I began our new creations on 12x12 blank canvases. Step 1 was to collage, place all sorts of papers in random order and create something pleasing to the eye, something 'beautiful'. Then step 2 came along. I asked my Avatars to trust me. We poured black molding paste on top of our beautiful compositions and scraped off areas of the composition using drift wood, sticks and cardboard tags. As artists, we are pushing our limits and challenging ourselves; this means we will not always create what is 'beautiful'. But trusting me is key; when we are done steps 3 & 4 in Class 8 next week - we will have master pieces. I am very proud of my Avatars; they continue to keep an open mind and their intuitive skills are growing every week. We take risks, we experiment, we challenge ourselves, this is where originality lives. I use to have two pocket book calendars with me at all times; one was for important dates in my personal life and the second included all my work deadlines. A president of a company once asked me, "Why do you have two calendars Joan, don't you have just one life". I responded, "I like to keep my career and my personal life separate". Over the years, my two pocket calendars finally merged into one. The fact that I am a structural engineer and the fact that I am an artist is perfectly normal to me now. One of many capital infrastructure projects I am very proud to have worked on was the construction of the Milton Velodrome for the XVII Pan American Games that was held in the summer of 2015. I was the Town of Milton's construction PM. It is an experience I will always cherish; this Velodrome will be my first and last Velodrome. This amazing facility continues to be a success story. I cannot separate my engineering and my art; my strength lies in having both sides of my brain active; like I've said before, 'I am those round pegs in the square holes', and this is 100% OK. Last Saturday, my Avatars, began the process of creating their own original art pieces of 'In The City'. I began my series of city scenes back in 2010; visions of buildings and night skies come so naturally to me. I am so impressed how each student created their own papers and how they placed them on canvas with such care and thought. We will be working on the finer details today during Class 6. I will post the finished pieces once they're ready. |
