Week 15
artists in attendance 13
The artists love abstraction it so much they want to carry it on into the new year. Well I’m flabbergasted!! Last week I reminded them that there were only 2 weeks left until the exhibition had to be up they said that they were enjoying it and didn’t want to feel rushed to finish their work. Since I haven’t advertised the exhibition this was cool with me.
So is to be in the new year and we shall have a private view on a Saturday so people can invite family and friends. So they do want people to see their work and they are proud of what they are producing they just don’t want to admit it! I suppose singing your own praises isn’t some thing they are used to doing I think they think that it is arrogant.
I remember a time when I wasn’t confident in my own art work but after realising that if you tell your story and explain how much you are passionate about it, people tend to like something about the work even if it’s just the idea. Art work for me is a selfish frivolity I enjoy what I do/ make and it for-fills something in me so I’m not really affected by what the viewers think.
Thinking back to 3 months ago when this project started the group has changed tremendously. They used to come in talking about their illnesses aches and pains. Now I hear nothing of that it’s a lot more positive. Some people actually correct themselves when they say something negative about themselves or their work. It is absolutely fabulous. The group has also helped me to build my confidence as a facilitator, I have not worked (by myself) on a long term project for a long time due to funding cuts etc and this project has been my baby all my own ideas all my own way of working! strange and wonderful as it is the group have embraced me and my wacky style with open arms. I am a very lucky lady.
Things to think about now are:
will the group design the poster for the exhibition? When will it be and do I employ an artist to come and give a curation workshop?
Next week more abstraction and Christmas celebrations!
WEEK 13
Artists in attendance 11
Is the idea of abstraction more difficult to grasp when you are over 60? Through taking part in these workshops the artists have acknowledged that there is skill in abstraction, they have seen that it is not easy to just “slosh paint on a canvas” they are learning a new way of looking and seeing and being freed from the copying world, and are having to use their imaginations. From their comments it seems frivolous to them to create an image that is directly from their minds and “means nothing to the viewer”. This week we reviewed each others work, through doing this the artists learnt that their images do mean something to the viewer. “ooo it reminds me of a water fall in a fairy tale” “it looks like a city in the mist and “it looks like a food preparation area” were some of the things people said. The artists were surprised that there were so many different ideas that came from their images.
The next time the artists are in an art gallery will they skip past an abstract piece or will they stop to look?
When the abstract workshops are over will they return to painting watercolour trees?
ABSTRACTION 3
Week 12
Artists in attendance 13
The group is getting to grips nicely with abstraction. There have been lots of beautiful images produced over their development period. A little niggle that one member has is that she has many ideas and is finding it hard to decide which way to go and this is making the development process difficult for her. Another lady whilst choosing images is thinking too far into the future “what can I do with it what will it look like when finished?” these are all good, but as I told her just start with something you like the look of, don’t worry about the end result, the process will take you its own way.
I reminded them that they were going up in the gallery space the week before Christmas people started to worry about what people would think. I assured them that people would think what they wanted. if they themselves liked it as the creator that was what was important. I have been playing devils advocate and questioning them about their images they have been quite defensive (in a good way) and have explained their image with confidence about where it came from, what influenced them and the story behind it.
So roll on next week when they start the final pieces on their boards. I cant wait to see them up and turn our boring white space into a colorful place of imagination.
WEEK 11
Artists in attendance 10
The feed back from the gust artist workshop last week (MUSICAL CHAIRS) was great. The group said they really enjoyed sharing and working together. They said it took them out of their comfort zone and made their imaginations work in a different way. They also agreed that they would like to take part in a group exercise once every couple of months. I was so pleased that they enjoyed it and embraced it fully. They finished by giving me a round of applause for finding and organizing such a brilliant artist to run the day as Ria Roberts, well done Ria you were a hit!
It is always difficult when choosing guest artists, I find that it has to be a particular kind of person that can work with my groups. They need to have these qualities: need to speak in a everyday language that the members will understand, be able to plan a workshop that involves everyone and their needs and need to be a fun and upbeat person. These qualities are quite hard to find in the art world, as there seem to be lots of big egos out there.
This week we carried on with our abstraction project the members developed their ideas, this week they seemed to get into their stride more easily. They are coming to terms with just making beautiful images the pressure if off as they are not copying something, their ideas are their own and this gives them more confidence. I am so proud of the group they really do get involved and give things a go! I have to keep reminding myself that some of the members haven’t done any art since they were at school and for some that may be 50+ years ago.
Next week we are continuing abstraction but will be talking about our work to the other members to see if they have any feed back.
WEEK 10
artists in attendance 11
Introducing our first guest Artist….
RIA ROBERTS
First of all I would like to again thank everyone at Didsbury Good Neighbours art group for welcoming me and for taking part in the interactive group work ‘Musical Chairs’. I was invited by Trae to run a workshop and after discussing the different creative possibilities the group would like to explore we settled on an idea based on group work. The tables were covered in paper and the seats arranged around them so that everyone had their own space to work. Each space was numbered 1-8 and after 30 minutes of art making at their place, they were moved to someone else’s space to work. At no time did any of the group sit back where they started with their own work. Over the hour and a half the group work really evolved and took on a new life of its own as each group member worked on one another’s work.
By working in this way interactive group art can take on a new meaning – people can at times feel a little uncomfortable when they feel that maybe they will ‘spoil’ the art already done or that they may get upset if they feel their work will be changed in a way they were not expecting.
I feel that the group really embraced the group piece and rather than letting the concerns of encroaching on each other’s work or space take over, they accommodated one another sharing the moment together and engaging with the process – from what I saw and heard I think they really had fun with it. At the end we cleared any materials off of the table so we could all look at the work that was made and how it had changed. I asked everyone how it felt to change places and let their work go and work on each other’s and most people enjoyed it. One or two found it quite challenging, which is not unusual when working in groups. I think that there is a real cohesion in the group overall and there was a real feeling of positivity and sharing. I wondered if people had sat next to people they maybe wouldn’t usually interact with? I also wonder if it brought the group closer in some ways.
In the afternoon there was a smaller group as a few people could not make it. I felt a little apprehensive as I wondered how it would feel for people to come to their group and find a huge piece on the table for them to work on, rather than having fresh paper. There were 2 people that came in the afternoon and 1 volunteer. One of the ladies was new and was very nervous about making any art at all. Luckily they were relieved that they were not faced with a ‘scary blank page’ to fill and instead could work around what had been done in the morning. As the group was so small Trae, Nina the volunteer and I contributed to the group work, moving around it as everyone had done in the morning. The lady that had come for the first time began to enjoy the art making and I think by the end of the afternoon she was feeling less nervous and enjoying being involved as well as being part of a community group.
I have really enjoyed meeting everyone and sharing this collaborative work with the group. I hope that it has been inspiring and given them some ideas about how they could do it again in the future – maybe next time they could work to a theme. I am excited to hear what they think of the finished work when they see it again on Wednesday now that it has changed again.
Ria
