June 20, 2012
“Watercolor is a swim in the metaphysics of life . . . a mirror to one’s own character. Let it be unpredictable and colorful.”
Anonymous
Taking an online sketching and watercolor class with Jane LaFazio has been a very interesting, and exciting, adventure. I have worked with clay, textiles and mixed media and I still had to bump up my courage to take this sketching and watercolor class. I did not have much confidence in my sketching skills. Jane calls this ‘journal style’ so we are working on small, 4 x 6 inch hot pressed, paper. I am wondering if smaller makes it less daunting, less scary. What do you think?
With practice, the skills are coming and this is an amazingly positive experience beyond the art — Yes, I am learning a lot about sketching and watercolor AND the creativity is bringing with it an unexpected clarity for other areas of my life. When I am drawing and painting, creative thoughts and solutions to challenges in other parts of my life come forth, sometimes wildly — even more so than in the media I have done for years. I don’t know exactly how this is happening, I just know that it is. I have found that the clarity from sketching and watercolors is similar to what happens with journaling, especially when writing is combined with art. More about art journaling in a future post.
Back to the art class: We are at the end of lesson 2 of a six week class. The first week was painting fruit, the second was painting leaves and greens. The top picture is from the second class, my most recent work. I can see that I am learning and that I still have a lot to learn. Beyond just the skills, the whole process, focus, attention to detail, stepping out of my comfort zone . . . is very rewarding. If you are interested, check out Jane LaFazio at http://janelafazio.com. She has a very interesting blog, tutorials and teaching schedule. Her art and her site are colorful, informative and just plain fun!
Blessings!