This afternoon, I took part in an art workshop via Zoom, hosted by the awesome @clareartista - a Scottish artist based in a picturesque town in Italy.
I learnt of this workshop called
Art As Alchemist: Stepping Out Of The Fear Body via Clare's blog.
And, in an act of spontaneity, I decided to give it a go and subscribe.
It's nice to at least 'feel' like you're in a group of people ( there were about 20 attendees, way more than I expected ), and - aside from that - creating in these times, where fear seems to rule the world and isolation is the norm.
The idea of the workshop was ( in a nutshell ) to just draw the way you would as a kid or even as a very small kid who can't even draw figures but just scribbles and scratches away intuitively, without shame or holding back.
After a while, the idea was to find figures or even a person in your art and start blocking out certain parts that you didn't like too much.
I used crayons, even though I have felt like painting for ages ( inspired by Vincent van Gogh as a kid ), and - during the process - I kind of felt like adding paint but I couldn't walk away from the Zoom call ( due to it being on my phone, me wearing earplugs and the fact that my phone was charging ). So I had to use dark colors / or black to block stuff out instead of painting things over.
I was a little rough on them but it sure felt good
I ended up drawing a bright figure ( me? ) in the middle, working up energy inside, two bird like figures, a butterfly wing that turned into some kind of ant and a doorway / black hole wearing a hat.
Anyhow, no matter what the result, the process was very much worth it. That and the fact that people all over the world were doing something similar at the same time. I could really feel the energy.
Aside from that, Clare is an amazing teacher and her talking away and explaining while she painted and we did our thing, felt very inspiring.
Thank you so much, Clare!
xx
I'm gonna cut it short here, as dinner is almost ready and time is precious, but man, this was awesome! A valuable experience.
In fact, I would like to draw every single day, make it part of my routine. I used to do this daily as a kid.
Not only does it bring you back to the now, it's highly meditative, it is also healing. And, let's be honest, we have a lot of healing to do to ourselves and this planet.
Much love and good vibes,
Vincent
aka Little Hyper or SuperZENsitivosaurus
Oh, and as a bonus, I will throw in this little practice session that I worked on yesterday. I guess it's pretty clear that this one involves dinos.
Oh Vincent - it's WONDERFUL to see your brilliant artwork in full colour and with more detail - what a treat - the session ended so quickly, and I could only see little thumbnails of each piece - I wanted to hear everyone talk about them!
It was genuinely an honour to connect-work-play alongside you all, and to feel our closeness, across the globe - I was surprised too by how many folks came, and would loooove to do more of this!
VAWAA (Vacation With An Artist) is a brilliant organisation: I'm so glad that they're doing these taster sessions - it's a huge investment on many levels, to visit an artist in their studio on the other side of the world - daunting, even! - these short sessions work nicely as a window into the person's teaching style, before delving into a big adventure like a VAWAA holiday.
I sooo appreciated your being in the workshop, and your seriously supportive feedback - it's great to feel connected across all these platforms, with like-minded people who understand how valuable presence, calmness, connectedness and positivity are :-D I feel very much buoyed by today!
Huge happy vibes to you and yours,
Clare
PS - my piece: I'm going to work on it a lot more! - I was really into what came out :-D
Will you be doing another one? I'm really sorry I missed it. Vincent invited me, but I got the days wrong!
I hope so, @riverflows! :-D It's wonderful to hear of your interest - you can keep an eye on my profile here, or follow VAWAA (Vacation With An Artist)'s Online programme - https://vawaa.com/online/ - the feedback I've heard so far has been very positive, so it's likely they'll set up another one :-D I am really looking forward to it and would love to see you there!
Hi again, @riverflows - there'll be another one on Sunday 24th May - find details and tickets here: https://vawaa.com/online/transforming-tension-into-flow-through-mark-making And just let me know if you have any Qs! :-D Happy day to you, Clare
Dear Clare,
I love your art style and the colors that you use. I was so enthusiastic that my drawing space was filled up almost too soon. If I attend a future session of yours, I will probably use paint too.
Thanks for re-awakening my inner child and for removing some of the cobwebs from the visual creative that I locked up for way too long.
Yeah, it's an amazing concept. Would love to try something similar out myself in the future ( as a teacher ).
You're so welcome. The pleasure was mine :<)
Thank you so much for expanding creativity and healing energy when many of us most needed it.
Big hug,
Vincent
P.S. I'm looking forward to you sharing more of your art and creative process on here.
Ahhh - so wonderful to read your beautiful message!!! And I got an email from VAWAA about doing another one on the 16th or 23rd weekend... :-D Cannot wait!! :-D PS I can't figure out Discord so well, despite having two groups there that I follow - in time, perhaps!
Oh honey I am so sorry I missed it. This sounds like the worst excuse, but I honestly thought YESTERDAY was Saturday, and only found out at about mid morning it wasn't. I WAS going to join you. Sounds like fun. Glad you enjoyed it. I love you drawing as I know you like it!!!
I hope you don't feel bad about it. I tend to confuse days, lose track of time myself nowadays. It sure would have been fun to have you on that call with us too.
Perhaps we could even set up something similar one day with a little group of friends :<)
💚
Wow, very inspiring. I have hardly painted/sketched since I was a child but back then I used to do it a lot. I remember I used to draw birds 🙂 Would be interesting to try again sometime. I think it’s a great mindfulness tool.
I think you might like it a lot. There will probably be another session of that same workshop very soon. Check my latest post or @clareartista 's blog for more info on that.
Man, what a nice experience. I'm not a very talented drawer but I agree that it's a meditative and healing practice.
Darn, I've had little time to catch on to these kind of activities but I'm very glad they are happening and being of service to your being.
I assume the central figure is our friend SuperZENsitivosaurus, but who is the flying one?
Hey man,
You don't need much talent for this, believe me. It sure is meditative and healing though, as I experienced again today ( see my latest post for more info )
The first dino is indeed a raptor ( so it might very well be SuperZEN and the second dino is just a random pterodactyl.
Un abrazo!
Oh, I was hoping he could be something like TAOrodactyl or somethin' , maybe they will be friends at some point ✨
That's an interesting thought. I will keep it in mind. Thanks for reminding me of my dino story. It has been pretty much in the background in the last two weeks or so but I'm trying to get it out of hibernation once again.
Un abrazo
Uuuuu this is so nice! Awesome! You will be so addicted to drawing once you get the taste of it, it is indeed very relaxing!
:<)
I'm sure I will!
I was addicted to drawing as a kid, in the 80s and early nineties, in a time when screen staring wasn't the norm yet. I hope to be hooked to this healthy addiction very soon.
Oh yes keep my fingers crossed, I wish you conspicuous consumption of colored pencils and pastels🤞🎨😂
Thank you. I can use an abundance of that for sure :<)
Oh, to be a child again.😀
It's still inside of you, buddy.
Please release it!
I've kept the parts I deam most beneficial.😀 I'll never lose the zest to learn new things.
I read 'dream' and tried to make sense of your sentence.
Always being open for learning is one of the greatest qualities you can have.
Sounds like a fun way to spend some time :D and interesting method of drawing.
Love the dino pic, so cute XD
Interesting and fun for sure and glad you liked the dino pic :<)
xx
Congratulations @vincentnijman! You have completed the following achievement on the Hive blockchain and have been rewarded with new badge(s) :
You can view your badges on your board and compare to others on the Ranking
If you no longer want to receive notifications, reply to this comment with the word
STOPDo not miss the last post from @hivebuzz:
please let me know if there will be next art workshop ;)
greetings from The Netherlands!
Hi there/ hallo! :<)
As Clare - who gave the workshop - replied in the comments above:
So, I guess there might be one pretty soon. Make sure to follow her, so you won't miss it.
Groetjes uit Eindhoven,
Vincent
thanks for info. I will also do as you recommend
Hi there! There will be another workshop on Sunday. Check my or Clare's blog for more info.
Great ! Thanks for info. I am going straight to the blogpost
Awesome and you're very welcome :<)