workshops

Every child is an artist; the problem is staying an artist when you grow up” – PabloPicasso

Yak: Emma 
I have found it increasingly difficult to make art without the purpose being to sell it.  When deciding to start a creative business, the work I was producing was made for me.  I was creating work because I wanted to create it.  As time has gone on, with some of my work, not all of it, there has been a little voice in the back of my head questioning is this for me? Or am I making it because I know it will sell.  Now the purist out there might think I am a sell out, I am not, I am simply a creative who loves to make and wants to make a living out of what I love so must find a balance.  Or do I? even in the  writing of this short post I have wrestled with myself about this point.  Its good business sense to be commercial, but is it good for me as an artist? Is there a balance? Or is it a case of unleashing what's within and letting the audience decide.

I have mentioned self doubt in previous posts, but it can be sometimes crippling.  I know, that when I started to put work out there, I played it safe.  Not to take anything away from the work produced its good, I am proud of it, but it was the safer option when dipping my toe into fairs and selling art work.  I firmly believe that whatever you do, be it writing, music, drama, or art being creative take courage.  Recently after taking on full time work I have really found it difficult to be motivated or courageous in my making.     

A way to get back into it for me, was to take part in a couple of workshops.  I decided to take a course on watercolour painting, with colours (shock horror) and screen printing. 

Example of Sue's work 

Introduction to watercolour with Sue Kane

Sue's work is very thoughtful, meditative and clean in colour, simple in design for me they evoke a sense of 50's design in placement and form. 

A very relaxed informal setting with flowers as our inspiration.  We started with some small warm up watercolours before moving onto some different techniques and a more worked on piece. 

I was happy with the work that I produced and while I shy-ed away from colour (smack on wrist) I know where it can feed into my work and with a new watercolour palette ordered (16 shades of grey...) I am excited to take this further.  

Fir + Wren Instagram 

  

one of my example pieces-1 minute drawings 

Hot bed Press-Repeat screen printing with Kiran Williams

If you know my background, I have a degree in textiles design specialising in screen printing, but I haven’t picked up a screen in over 15 years (yes I am old) and I wasn't sure if it was like riding a bike or not.  Well I am happy to report that it is! During the course we used pre-exposed screens and then made our own designs using paper stencils to make a repeat pattern.  

The smell of the workshop brought back wonderful memories of being in a print room all of those years ago.  Hand on heart, I was lucky I got to experience art education as it was, with some beautiful teachers who really helped me work things out.  Time on the workshop went quickly and I really liked what I came up with in the end.  

Final repeat pattern-green on green with black detail

Hot bed press is a really lovely space to get involved in printing experiences and if you fancy taking part in your own workshop then click here  For those up North then there is Northern print, another venue offering a range of workshops and experiences catering for all levels.  

Maya Angelou said "you cant use up creativity.  The more you use, the more you have"  I am a firm believer in that the more you do, the more it feeds into other areas of your work.  I very much doubt I will become a water-colourist in its truest sense or a screen printer.  There are many skills and lessons learned in both media that will undoubtedly lead into new work, and help me figure out problems I have in current pieces.  Over the summer I will take some time to make art purely for the sake of making, being creative for the sake of being creative.

Babble: Jess
I'd like to start my paragraph by pointing a virtual arrow upwards, along with the words, "What she said".  I completely agree and echo the sentiments that Emma has written.  I still struggle with what I should be making versus what I want to make and so I try to organise my time so that some days I make stock and others I please myself.  Actually, I find that the best work is often produced from the latter, because it comes from the heart; from pursuing a genuine interest and passion.  Take Sycamore Gap for example.  I feel like I'm fast becoming the tree lady because every time I stitch a piece it sells.  That's not boasting, it's just the experience I've had over the past 6 months!  The idea of stitching a tree collage came from my family visits to Hadrian's Wall, which is one of my favourite historical sites in Northumberland.  With it's sweeping views, adventurous walks (and coming over all Spartacus and feeling like you could be on the edge of the world while you're there!) I just find it really quite awe inspiring.  The point being; when I've worked on the things I love, I make happy, meaningful stitchery which seems to be well received.

On the theme of workshops, I'd like to offer a different perspective.  Emma and I both come from teaching backgrounds. I think one of my favourite things about developing my own creative practice is having the chance to share skills and ideas with others.  I miss the classroom and when I returned briefly to teaching last September, I realised just how much.  Being a facilitator and having the chance to coax ideas and skills out of others is incredibly rewarding.  Indeed creativity breeds creativity; I always feel shattered after a workshop but fizzing too!  In a recent course a lady started out by telling me she couldn't even sew a button on and then left with a tactile and colourful landscape piece which was all her own work.  I like to see other people happy with their work because I know first hand that we can be our own biggest critics.  If folk leave happy it's win-win for me!

In my opinion a good workshop setting can rally make the experience enjoyable and relaxing.  I've ran courses at For The Love Of The North in Whitley Bay and at Creative Artist Studios Northumberland which are particularly lovely, because they are light, roomy, have super hosts and facilities to make refreshments (very important!)

I couldn't finish this post without mentioning a favourite venue of mine, which has offered genuine insight into the importance of art, craft and design and it's positive impact upon our well-being, mental and physical health. That place is the craft room at St Oswald's Hospice.  It is one of the places I teach where the process and participation is as important, if not more, than the finished piece.  This doesn't mean to say that less emphasis is placed on the teaching, but it is a very special place where the art produced has real meaning, whether literally or figuratively.  It's been eye-opening for me, coming from a classroom and ultimately exam-based environment to a place that goes back, as we said at the beginning of this post, to a place where folk can make art purely for the enjoyment of making art. 

Babble & Yak.