Science Shows How Piano Players' Brains Are Actually Different From Everybody Elses'
Interesting article on the brains of pianists
Prepping for Plein Air Lecture and Demo
Artists Connect Members
Kathleen geeking out on art history...
The End... in the hat!
Additional posts you may enjoy....
Thank you to the great members of Artists Connect in Edmonds, WA for a very warm reception. I really enjoyed giving my Lecture/Demo about painting en plein air.
Here are a few pictures of the event.
Preparing to Paint en Plein Air
Kathleen painting in Palo Duro Canyon State Park, Texas.
The weather is getting warm and I'm getting excited about heading out to do some plein air painting! What does "plein air" mean? En plein air is a French phrase that means "in the open air." I guess it just sounds better than "I'm going outside to paint." Ha!
I used to be very apprehensive about painting on location. Shy about my work, worried about what people might say to me, and really being unsure about handling equipment and materials outside, in the elements. After I got going, though, I found painting en plein air to be a very satisfying and inspiring part of my art practice. I encourage everyone to paint and draw outdoors because it can really freshen up your studio work - and it can be a lot of fun - especially if you are prepared!
There are two important things you can do that will help you have an enjoyable trip:
1.Be prepared. Taking the time to plan your trip and prepare your equipment, clothing, and materials will allow you to focus on the beautiful world around you rather than stressing out over some missed detail. How will you transport wet paintings? Is there shelter if it starts raining? Have you packed the right layers of clothing to protect you from varying weather conditions? How do you pack your art supplies when you fly? What will you do if someone stops to watch you paint?
2. Keep it simple. Being prepared DOES NOT mean taking along everything in your studio! Developing a checklist or a plein air kit will help keep you on the straight and narrow when you are packing. Time yourself setting up and repacking your "stuff". Can you move locations easily or will you be stuck with a not-so-great view because it is just too much trouble to move? Do you really need every tube of green you own?
Whether you are heading out for the morning or going for a month, take the time to plan your trip, organize your materials, and practice setting up your equipment, you will be glad you did!
What is your favorite plein air tool and how has it simplified your plein air setup? I'd really like to know, please leave you comment here.
Thanks,
Kathleen
The Figure in Pastel Pencil - Open Studio Session One
I have the honor of being the guest artist for "Artist's Choice Open Studio" at Gage Academy of Art, for 3 - 3 hr. sessions. Having fallen in love with pastel pencil in a recent workshop, I decided that the 3 sessions would be the same long pose, giving me opportunity to further explore the figure in pastel pencil. The 10 or so other artists in the studio are working in a variety of mediums, ink-wash, oil, pastel, and charcoal. It is so great to be able to work from the figure! I recommend that everyone take advantage of an open figure studio as often as possible!
In Session One, I started off by sketching the figure with Nitram charcoal - H, sharpened to a fine point. I am working on Canson Mi-Tientes paper - felt grey.
Are you adding file info to your images?
I have been migrating my website over to SquareSpace and in the process realized that I have not taken the time to update the file info for most of the images on my old site! "So what?" you say? Well... there are several reasons you should always make a practice of filling out the "file info" (aka metadata) form for each image.
- SEO - The search engines will index that information - so by all means, you need the information attached to your image!
- Copyright - "file info" contains your copyright notice for the image - need I say more?
- Info about your work - "file info" comes along with the image file - which is a huge help when a curator is looking through the images you sent and needs to know the title, or the size of the painting, etc. - it's all there - IF YOU ENTERED IT IN!
- Searchable - Need to attach an image to an email? Just search for the title! Need to find images of all your plein air paintings? You can, if you put "plein air" in the key words section of "file info" ! Key words in the file info form become tags that help you find things.
You find the File Info Form in your photo editing software. You should really take the time to enter this info - you will thank yourself later!
Below is how it looks in Adobe Photoshop or Photoshop Elements.
You can also edit some of the info in Windows while in file explorer - See the image below. The red arrows indicate items you should edit for each image.
Three Things I Focus On When I Teach
There are three things I focus on in my work and what I wish to pass along to my students:
There are three things I focus on in my work and what I wish to pass along to my students:
1. Looking carefully, to really see.
2. Quieting the mind and stopping automatic labeling and self-criticism.
3. Developing skill in the techniques of drawing and painting.
First, we have to realize that we rarely look carefully enough at our surroundings to really SEE what is in front of us. If we accept that idea, we can allow our minds to open to the limitless impressions of our environment.
Second, as we begin to look carefully, we have to let go of what we believe we see. Our minds are so conditioned to thinking in symbols that we can actually confuse the object in front of us with the idea of the object. We also have to let go of self-criticism and doubt - be courageous - and remember that the process of observation, both inner and outer, is the point of the exercise - not the finished product. Process first, products will follow.
Third, practicing observation with a quiet, open mind is the most important skill, then follows the technical aspects of creating art - composition, materials handling, etc.
Taos Sky
Just finished framing "Taos Sky" for the Gage Collector's Gala, Art Auction & Benefit. on March 7th
Just finished framing "Taos Sky" for the Gage Collector's Gala, Art Auction & Benefit. on March 7th in Seattle.
While working on this painting, I found myself smiling and recalling my many trips to New Mexico. I love the music and dance of the tall aspens against the cobalt sky.
Where did the year go?!
Seriously, as the year wrapped up, I found myself stunned that it had gone by soooo fast! In fact,
Where did the year go?!
Seriously, as the year wrapped up, I found myself stunned that it had gone by soooo fast! In fact, panic set in! The same panic I feel at the end of the week when there is too much to get done at work. The same panic I feel Sunday evening when the work in the studio hasn't progressed enough, or at all, and I know it will be days before I have time to get back into it. The panic I feel when I am torn between hanging out with my kid and doing all the other "stuff" that isn't getting done. I perceive myself going in circles – never getting anywhere!
But – I WANT to go somewhere! I have been reading and searching and studying so much over the last year/s – trying to improve myself, trying to figure it all out, trying to find focus. The trouble is – I have too many "things" to focus on! My family, my job, my artwork, my aspirations of making some kind of difference – HA! Each one of those "things" is a full-time job to really do well – right? So that's my dilemma – sprout extra heads and hands or get a different view of it all! Of course, my first impulse is to look for a new book that would give me directions for how to do this – but that literally made me a little nauseous! - too many books! – then I thought – oh, I'll google it! Are you noticing how I operate? Constantly looking for answers from external sources….. yep.
Sometimes the most amazing things happen…
By way of a convoluted story you don't want to read about, I found myself in St. Mark's Episcopal Cathedral on December 31. I had been told that they had a labyrinth set up and were going to have a special New Year's Eve service with it that evening. Well I stopped in during the afternoon and the place was empty and quiet. I had attended a labyrinth-walking service in the past and knew that when you enter the labyrinth, the path takes you back and forth, sometimes going toward the center and then away from the center, all the while moving you in a generally circular pattern of convolution – just like life! How fitting, I thought! So I decided to contemplate my crazy-circles life by walking the labyrinth.
In silence and solitude
in the cold winter
light filtering in through windows
piercing the towering masonry,
I walked the circumambulating path…
Slowly, very slowly, I moved along the intricate route. My body, unused to the slow pace, wobbled out of balance. I stumbled often and had to stop occasionally to regain equilibrium. I felt impatience growing in my heart and mind to get to the center– and watched myself struggle with the feeling of self-judgment for being impatient. Each turn of the path offered up hope if it pointed toward the center or despair if it turned away from the goal – my heart leaping or falling with each redirection. Then, suddenly, I was at the center! I took a few moments to just be there, in the center, then began the journey out, back along the same path.
By now my body had become accustomed to the slow pace and I felt empowered by having reached the goal, so I moved along with more grace and centeredness. I felt that I held the center of the labyrinth within me as I traveled along. But, as time went by on my journey out, I felt a sense of loss growing in my mind and heart. Again I found my heart leaping or falling with each turn of the path. This made me curious. Why was the center so important and the exit so dreaded? Perhaps the exit is really the entrance – to some insight – or – to myself… wait, what? OMG – a zen moment…Ha!
What was my purpose in "walking the labyrinth"? It wasn't to get to the center, it was to experience walking the labyrinth – period. The goal of obtaining the center was imposed on my mind by the pattern I was walking on and I forgot, as I traveled along, what my true purpose was.
How illuminating!
light filtering in through windows
piercing the towering masonry,
All the "things" I feel I have to focus on are exactly like the center of the labyrinth, goals imposed on my mind by patterns in my life. Absolutely nothing wrong with any of those goals, but they are all truly means to an end, that being to experience life, my life – consciously and with curiosity.
So, this year I think my theme will be FORWARD as I remind myself that, while my life seems convoluted, complex, and crazy, I am actually moving forward along my life – and that is my true purpose – to consciously experience my life and respond to insights born out of that experiencing.
Or, perhaps it should be CURIOUS as I remind myself that no insight can occur without a question.
OK – it seems clear now – my theme for this year is FORWARD WITH CURIOSITY!
Happy New Year! May you move forward with purpose and curiosity!
The labyrinth I walked was the Chartres design printed on canvas at St. Mark's Cathedral in Seattle, WA.
For more information about Labyrinths try: http://www.labyrinthos.net/chartresfaq.html or http://www.labyrinthsociety.org/
We must be INSPIRED!
I've thought a lot about what I do and why – over and over I've heard myself think "The thing I care most about is ART". This always struck me as odd – why ART? Why not something more important like family, world peace, etc. you know what I mean
I've thought a lot about what I do and why – over and over I've heard myself think "The thing I care most about is ART". This always struck me as odd – why ART? Why not something more important like family, world peace, etc. you know what I mean.
This has been a source of personal perplexity for a long, long time. Then it hit me – ART, the activity that I engage in and work to see to it that others have the opportunity to engage in - the activity that is so close to my inner core that I feel that I would die if someone took it away from me - is not what I care about most, is not what motivates me to get out of bed in the morning, is not what causes me to bury my head in spreadsheets 40 hours a week to help keep and art school running.
ART is not my purpose – it's one of the things I do because I am inspired by my world and the people in my life.
INSPIRATION is my cause and my purpose.
INSPIRATION is the primary necessity for life.
Before we seek the most basic, physical needs of food, water, and protection from the elements, we must be inspired with the belief that our lives matter. One might argue that the instinct for survival trumps any higher-brain activity like "being inspired" and will always kick in to see to it that we will live to see another day. But that is not the case. The mind is complex. Survival is about seeing ourselves in context with others. Survival is dependent on meaning. A person who has lost sight of the meaning of their own precious life will wither, even refusing to engage in the most basic activity of eating.
We must be INSPIRED to live and we must INSPIRE others with the meaning out of which our own lives grow.
Catching the Moment
Nature Photography by Jan Viney at the Lynnwood Library Gallery In her exhibition statement, Jan Viney explains that she connects with the natural world through her camera, attempting
Nature Photography by Jan Viney at the Lynnwood Library Gallery In her exhibition statement, Jan Viney explains that she connects with the natural world through her camera, attempting to capture a single moment in time and convey the feeling of Oneness she experiences with her surroundings.
Twelve giclee prints of a variety of birds are displayed in this show. Swans, ducks, an eagle, an owl and a woodpecker are among this collection of beautifully photographed birds. It is clear to me that Viney has good command of her camera equipment. The photos of birds in flight are amazingly detailed.
Most of the artist's photos are very centrally composed and finely focused. This tends to emphasize the object, or the thing-ness of Viney's subjects. It is obvious that the artist has a deep love for the amazing creatures she photographs, but there are two pieces that, for me, go beyond being good photos of birds and provide a place for my mind to enter into the fuller experience of meaning that the artist is striving to convey.
"One Mind"
The first is titled "One Mind", 16X16 in, (Dunlins – Olympic Mts.). The title easily speaks of the coordinated movement of a large flock of birds flying over the water in a tight formation, yet there is so much more! This piece has a strong central composition focused on the object - a flock of birds. Yet several qualities come together to create a place for contemplation that lies beyond the subject matter. There is a shimmering, dissolving quality throughout this image as water, land and sky merge, reflections of birds mirror snow-capped mountains and a sublime white 'egg' that is at once one thing and many things – and no-thing - rises on the flashing wings of hundreds of birds. This mandala-like piece speaks to me of the two-way tie between beginnings and outcomes.
"Focus on Your Good"
The second piece is titled "Focus on Your Good", 16x16 in, (Northwest Flicker). Though this photo is very sharply focused and tightly cropped, it draws me in. The composition is not as central as the others and there is a nice sense of compositional movement as the eye zigzags from branch - to bird - to branch in a backwards "Z" pattern. The diagonal thrust of the bird's body is carried right through its sharp beak and gives the impression that the bird's attention is focused elsewhere. Then there is the realization that the small, gleaming eye, its size and color repeated dozens of times in the bird's plumage, is looking directly into the camera, into my eyes, and I find myself powerfully drawn into the deep blackness of that small portal, beyond the highly defined individuality of that particular bird - and beyond my busy life - into a still place where I become more aware of my connection with the whole web of life.
Jan Viney – Nature Photography - On view through March 15, 2012 at the Lynnwood Library Gallery, 19200 44th Ave. W, Lynnwood, WA 98036, phone 425-778-2148.
Painting shows me
Painting shows me my stubbornness, my insecurity, my indecision. It also shows me my courage when I persist anyway!
Turning Red
Painting shows me my stubbornness, my insecurity, my indecision. It also shows me my courage when I persist anyway!
Take a Class with Kathleen!
A favorite of many in the Seattle area, Green Lake Park has much to offer for the plein air artist.