Friday, April 30, 2010
Breakthroughs
I just gotta share, I feel so - what? happy, fortunate, rewarded - yes, all of that. There were two breakthroughs that fell to me this week. One regarding my artwork, but I also want to talk about my class in ESL (English as a Second Language).
I've been teaching ESL to a number of refugees from Bhutan once a week for maybe three months now. I took this on reluctantly - it was much easier, and more fun working at the low-intermediate level with Mexicans and assorted others from Asia and the Mideast. But then we had this Bhutanese group dumped on us. They knew NOTHING. Zombies! To say that they were at a basic level would be gross grade inflation. We have tons of great teaching manuals and materials, but you have to be able to at least communicate somehow to use them. There aren't any guides for starting with adults who know nothing. This group hit all our classes, and all the teachers felt flummoxed.
A little background: I'm working as a volunteer with the South Philadelphia Literacy Partnership, and we provide free ESL classes to anybody who walks in. Our classes are held in a battered Community Center in South Philadelphia. We provide eight 2 1/2 hr classes every week and by now have an experienced staff of volunteers and have established a degree of credibility (many groups start an ESL program that doesn't catch and soon peters out for a variety of reasons). So these Bhutanese were coming to a bunch of our weekly classes, not just mine on Wednesday mornings.
OK, so how do you start with a group like this? Lists of things (the alphabet, days, weeks, numbers, time, etc) and verbs. Flash cards of subjects, verbs and objects to assemble 3-word sentences. About a month ago, I realized that these people really were understanding some things and had memorized a lot of words, especially verbs - thank you to all the other teachers. They do great with flash cards. But they had no concept of reading, very limited writing (watching them write their names on the sign-in sheet is like watching a three-year old learn to print). And they refused to use English. Getting them to repeat a three-word sentence was almost impossible.
I kept lowering my entry point for instruction - finally realized that these poor people were starting without any knowledge of the Latin alphabet! They'd memorized it by now, but didn't have the easy facility that we all take for granted. They used Devanagari - the language used by some 17 million other Bhutanese, Nepalis, Burmese and Indians. It looks a lot like Punjabi with a line over every word. Also, English has sounds they don't use. So, I use simple children's songs, lots of alphabet exercises and we sing the Alphabet Song repeatedly in every class. I use stuff like Pat-a Cake to support the sound of English and add kinetic activity.
But none of that got them to use English themselves. So I tried games. Shoots and Ladders (actually, Slides and Ladders - how would you ever define a "Shoot?") was way too complex. I finally hit it with Dominos, and over a couple of weeks was able to get the idea of the game across. This week they got it that after they played a Domino, they should turn to their neighbor and say "Do you have a two (or whatever number was needed)?" and the answer should be "Yes, I have a ---," or "No, I don't have a ---." Wow! Lots of surprise and slow smiles. And when one of their children rolled a soccer ball to me, I got them to say "Throw the ball to him." They have now successfully put sentences together. And USED them! We have something to build from!
So that was big-time success, as far as I'm concerned. But there was more to this class. They do murmur "thank you" as they leave class, but it is hard to really know whether what I'm doing is appreciated - after all, we can't talk together (at least, not yet). The only indication is that the size of my class has slowly been growing (from the initial 5 or so, it is now 14 or so).
This past Wednesday after the class had started, we had to move to another room. That meant taking the easel and all my backpack, notebook, and piles of stuff. The class would not let me carry a thing, not even a paper! They took it all, and put it on the table in the new room, with even a little bow to me. Then they repeated the process at the end of the class. It was clearly out of respect, and made me feel so very appreciated and cared for. I still get a warm feeling when I think about it. What a great payback for being able to work with them and help them!
So that was my class this week. The history of these Bhutanese refugees is fascinating, and tragic. Another on-going catastrophe created deliberately, by political choice and intolerance of ethnic differences.
Click here for their story, including how they came to be in the USA after 17 years in refugee camps.
Ummm.
Still with me, after that long digression?
Then, on to the next:
The breakthrough in my painting comes from trying to find a background for my painting of a standing nude studio model that provides some kind of INTEREST, some CONTEXT that goes beyond simply being One More Painting of a Standing Nude Studio Model. My solution was to add literary content to the painting, but in a way which is in itself semi-abstract. The goal would be to use script to create a question or indicate subject matter, but in to way to make any kind of statement. That, after all, is what can and must be left to the observer.
After a lot of experimenting with oil sticks, brushes and different viscosity of paints, and paint markers, I found a system that I thought might work for what I wanted to do. And I think it did. Here is my standing nude studio model, as she is developing. Adding script did demand a lot of additional work on the figure (every small change in a painting always demands a lot of other changes to accommodate it), but here is where things stand now - before and after the script:
This is still a work in progress. Some of that script needs to be toned down, the cloth needs a slight figuration, and that black panel now needs a white (or gray, I haven't decided yet) edge.
Preparing to add script to the painting, I wanted to first try the technique and see if I really did like the results on a work that I didn't care too much about. So I chose a figure I painted a year ago with Doug Martenson and have never liked much (no fault of his, he did his best to advise). It is just to vacant to have much interest. Adding script changed it dramatically, and I like it a lot better:
So I'm rather taken by the impact of what script does to a painting. I think it may especially lend itself to portraiture in a strong way. There is a lot to play with and learn, here. How literal should it be? In what way should it relate to or reflect or comment on the object? At what point would it begin to detract from the subject?
And of course, there is all the wealth of visual stuff - color, how clear, how large, what about erasures, blots, crossouts, scratches, broken lines, on and on. Much to explore!
I've been teaching ESL to a number of refugees from Bhutan once a week for maybe three months now. I took this on reluctantly - it was much easier, and more fun working at the low-intermediate level with Mexicans and assorted others from Asia and the Mideast. But then we had this Bhutanese group dumped on us. They knew NOTHING. Zombies! To say that they were at a basic level would be gross grade inflation. We have tons of great teaching manuals and materials, but you have to be able to at least communicate somehow to use them. There aren't any guides for starting with adults who know nothing. This group hit all our classes, and all the teachers felt flummoxed.
A little background: I'm working as a volunteer with the South Philadelphia Literacy Partnership, and we provide free ESL classes to anybody who walks in. Our classes are held in a battered Community Center in South Philadelphia. We provide eight 2 1/2 hr classes every week and by now have an experienced staff of volunteers and have established a degree of credibility (many groups start an ESL program that doesn't catch and soon peters out for a variety of reasons). So these Bhutanese were coming to a bunch of our weekly classes, not just mine on Wednesday mornings.
OK, so how do you start with a group like this? Lists of things (the alphabet, days, weeks, numbers, time, etc) and verbs. Flash cards of subjects, verbs and objects to assemble 3-word sentences. About a month ago, I realized that these people really were understanding some things and had memorized a lot of words, especially verbs - thank you to all the other teachers. They do great with flash cards. But they had no concept of reading, very limited writing (watching them write their names on the sign-in sheet is like watching a three-year old learn to print). And they refused to use English. Getting them to repeat a three-word sentence was almost impossible.
I kept lowering my entry point for instruction - finally realized that these poor people were starting without any knowledge of the Latin alphabet! They'd memorized it by now, but didn't have the easy facility that we all take for granted. They used Devanagari - the language used by some 17 million other Bhutanese, Nepalis, Burmese and Indians. It looks a lot like Punjabi with a line over every word. Also, English has sounds they don't use. So, I use simple children's songs, lots of alphabet exercises and we sing the Alphabet Song repeatedly in every class. I use stuff like Pat-a Cake to support the sound of English and add kinetic activity.
But none of that got them to use English themselves. So I tried games. Shoots and Ladders (actually, Slides and Ladders - how would you ever define a "Shoot?") was way too complex. I finally hit it with Dominos, and over a couple of weeks was able to get the idea of the game across. This week they got it that after they played a Domino, they should turn to their neighbor and say "Do you have a two (or whatever number was needed)?" and the answer should be "Yes, I have a ---," or "No, I don't have a ---." Wow! Lots of surprise and slow smiles. And when one of their children rolled a soccer ball to me, I got them to say "Throw the ball to him." They have now successfully put sentences together. And USED them! We have something to build from!
So that was big-time success, as far as I'm concerned. But there was more to this class. They do murmur "thank you" as they leave class, but it is hard to really know whether what I'm doing is appreciated - after all, we can't talk together (at least, not yet). The only indication is that the size of my class has slowly been growing (from the initial 5 or so, it is now 14 or so).
This past Wednesday after the class had started, we had to move to another room. That meant taking the easel and all my backpack, notebook, and piles of stuff. The class would not let me carry a thing, not even a paper! They took it all, and put it on the table in the new room, with even a little bow to me. Then they repeated the process at the end of the class. It was clearly out of respect, and made me feel so very appreciated and cared for. I still get a warm feeling when I think about it. What a great payback for being able to work with them and help them!
Part of my class, at Dominos: "Do you have a five?"
So that was my class this week. The history of these Bhutanese refugees is fascinating, and tragic. Another on-going catastrophe created deliberately, by political choice and intolerance of ethnic differences.
Click here for their story, including how they came to be in the USA after 17 years in refugee camps.
Ummm.
Still with me, after that long digression?
Then, on to the next:
The breakthrough in my painting comes from trying to find a background for my painting of a standing nude studio model that provides some kind of INTEREST, some CONTEXT that goes beyond simply being One More Painting of a Standing Nude Studio Model. My solution was to add literary content to the painting, but in a way which is in itself semi-abstract. The goal would be to use script to create a question or indicate subject matter, but in to way to make any kind of statement. That, after all, is what can and must be left to the observer.
After a lot of experimenting with oil sticks, brushes and different viscosity of paints, and paint markers, I found a system that I thought might work for what I wanted to do. And I think it did. Here is my standing nude studio model, as she is developing. Adding script did demand a lot of additional work on the figure (every small change in a painting always demands a lot of other changes to accommodate it), but here is where things stand now - before and after the script:
The script, again, is not meant to be clear enough to read. But it is taken from "The Art Spirit" by Robert Henri, as he talks about the relationship of the background to the model. So there is this deliberate and logical contextural relationship.
This is still a work in progress. Some of that script needs to be toned down, the cloth needs a slight figuration, and that black panel now needs a white (or gray, I haven't decided yet) edge.
Preparing to add script to the painting, I wanted to first try the technique and see if I really did like the results on a work that I didn't care too much about. So I chose a figure I painted a year ago with Doug Martenson and have never liked much (no fault of his, he did his best to advise). It is just to vacant to have much interest. Adding script changed it dramatically, and I like it a lot better:
The same old painting, before and after adding script and scratches. Of course that also required adding some additional highlights to the figure, but that was pretty minor.
Reminder: Just click on any of these images to enlarge them
So I'm rather taken by the impact of what script does to a painting. I think it may especially lend itself to portraiture in a strong way. There is a lot to play with and learn, here. How literal should it be? In what way should it relate to or reflect or comment on the object? At what point would it begin to detract from the subject?
And of course, there is all the wealth of visual stuff - color, how clear, how large, what about erasures, blots, crossouts, scratches, broken lines, on and on. Much to explore!
Sunday, April 25, 2010
Portrait Society
I just returned from attending this year's convention of the Portrait Society of America, in Reston, VA. I thought it was in Washington, so the Reston location made it a bit more difficult to get to, but I'm really glad I went. The talks, painting demonstrations, and conversations with other attendees provided a rich experience. And it was a way to get to know the work of some of the outstanding portrait painters, and to recognize them. For the most part they are quite human, friendly and approachable.
The speakers and presenters provided a sample of their work for display, all on a similar format. It was really interesting to compare their work and styles. Later they were sold at a silent auction. Some sold in the low hundreds, but Bart Lindstrom's sold for well over a thousand, and Rose Frantzen's sold for $2700 in some rather furious last-minute bidding. Rose has been getting a lot of recent attention for her exhibition at the National Portrait Gallery, and for the demonstration she gave for the meeting.
Overall, I was especially impressed with the talk of Bart Lindstrom. He is noted for his use of color, but throughout his talk he stressed that really, color is easy and it is VALUE (the light-dark scale) that is the really critical component. He provided a wealth of information, tips, suggestions, examples and advice during his talk, and all with the panache of a stand-up comedian. He is a strong proponent of "Don't paint what you know, paint what you see." His web site, showing his beautiful and prolific work, is fabulous. I would love to take a workshop with him if that opportunity ever arises.
Rose Frantzen was another highlight of the meeting. She provided a painting demonstration, and talked rapid-fire throughout, sharing what she was doing, thinking, liking or not liking at every moment. She is noted for having painted portraits of 180 people in a small town in mid-America. Her portraits from Maquoketa are on display right now at the Smithsonian's National Portrait Gallery, through July 5th, and her project is also described and presented on her website. Here she is using oil sticks for the background (something I'd wanted to do on my most recent figure, but it didn't work out well for me. Now I might have to try them again).
Here is Rose Frantzen in the midst of her demonstration (left). She did about 60% of the portrait with oil sticks! The cover of the book about her Small Town Portrait Project is above.
The Society also had a portrait competition, leading up to the meeting. Some 1400 submissions had been winnowed down to 46 or so, and then the best 16 chosen for recognition at the meeting. All these portraits were breathtaking, but the first place portrait stood out like a gem. It was a portrait of the sculptor Richard Hunt, painted with one of his metallic sculptures, by Harry Ahn. And as his web site shows, this work was typical of the quality of his portraits. He is truly a gifted genius!
Harry Ahn's full portrait, left, and a detail from it, above. Tellingly, he writes that "All art, especially painting and music, need spirit. Without it, it becomes just another piece of work, technically sound, but with no heart."
Finally, I just have to include the portrait below, from the National Portrait Gallery. Actually, this is only a detail of the much larger portrait. I foolishly didn't record even the name of the painter or subject, but was just stopped in my tracks by the sensitive and beautiful presentation of this patrician grande dame:
The speakers and presenters provided a sample of their work for display, all on a similar format. It was really interesting to compare their work and styles. Later they were sold at a silent auction. Some sold in the low hundreds, but Bart Lindstrom's sold for well over a thousand, and Rose Frantzen's sold for $2700 in some rather furious last-minute bidding. Rose has been getting a lot of recent attention for her exhibition at the National Portrait Gallery, and for the demonstration she gave for the meeting.
Overall, I was especially impressed with the talk of Bart Lindstrom. He is noted for his use of color, but throughout his talk he stressed that really, color is easy and it is VALUE (the light-dark scale) that is the really critical component. He provided a wealth of information, tips, suggestions, examples and advice during his talk, and all with the panache of a stand-up comedian. He is a strong proponent of "Don't paint what you know, paint what you see." His web site, showing his beautiful and prolific work, is fabulous. I would love to take a workshop with him if that opportunity ever arises.
Here is Rose Frantzen in the midst of her demonstration (left). She did about 60% of the portrait with oil sticks! The cover of the book about her Small Town Portrait Project is above.
The Society also had a portrait competition, leading up to the meeting. Some 1400 submissions had been winnowed down to 46 or so, and then the best 16 chosen for recognition at the meeting. All these portraits were breathtaking, but the first place portrait stood out like a gem. It was a portrait of the sculptor Richard Hunt, painted with one of his metallic sculptures, by Harry Ahn. And as his web site shows, this work was typical of the quality of his portraits. He is truly a gifted genius!
Harry Ahn's full portrait, left, and a detail from it, above. Tellingly, he writes that "All art, especially painting and music, need spirit. Without it, it becomes just another piece of work, technically sound, but with no heart."
Finally, I just have to include the portrait below, from the National Portrait Gallery. Actually, this is only a detail of the much larger portrait. I foolishly didn't record even the name of the painter or subject, but was just stopped in my tracks by the sensitive and beautiful presentation of this patrician grande dame:
Tuesday, April 20, 2010
Mermaids
A digression to another art form: Ballet!
My sister Arlene is a member of a water ballet troupe that prepares and performs at the Brethren Village in Lititz, PA. These ladies (mostly) put on an annual show of synchronized swimming that has been acclaimed in national TV, and attracts standing-room-only crowds. It is great fun, and surprising to see just what these women can do.
You can enjoy a more complete set of pictures from the show by clicking HERE and then clicking first on Mermaid Show and then Slideshow.
My sister Arlene is a member of a water ballet troupe that prepares and performs at the Brethren Village in Lititz, PA. These ladies (mostly) put on an annual show of synchronized swimming that has been acclaimed in national TV, and attracts standing-room-only crowds. It is great fun, and surprising to see just what these women can do.
You can enjoy a more complete set of pictures from the show by clicking HERE and then clicking first on Mermaid Show and then Slideshow.
Sunday, April 18, 2010
Followups
I'm in yet another exhibition - the sixth concurrent (!). This one is the Philadelphia Corporation for Aging, with a juried show: Celebrate Age and Aging. It will show my Black Boots, the first large (30 x40") portrait that I did, about a year ago. It will be at Rembrandt's Restaurant (corner of 23rd St and Aspen St) from April 23 to May 28.
And since I didn't have a picture of it for my last post, here is the painting from Elizabeth Osborne's class that was accepted for display by the Philadelphia Academy of Fine Art. It incorporates Osborne's big blocks of bright color, and a style that rides the line between abstract and realistic.
Meanwhile, I am continuing to work on the standing nude from the last post that is our current class model. With the whole raft of tweaks I've incorporated, it is coming along rather nicely (below). I like that ominous black panel on the left. Still, I want to make this something more of this than just "Standing Nude," and have in mind scribbling in some of Robert Henri's thoughts on what a background should be, in sort of a Cy Twombly style. Then this thing becomes not only image, but literature. Another feature of this scratching should be a de-emphasis on that diagonal white-to-blue line, which seems too strong at the moment. It should also make her "at attention" stance seem somewhat more explicable. Whether all this works remains to be seen.
Wednesday, April 07, 2010
Yet MORE!
It surprises me - I actually have paintings in five (5!) exhibitions concurrently. The most recent, the big cahuna, is the exhibition at the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Art for Continuing Education Students. They are still putting up the works, but I was there this afternoon, after I heard by phone that they had accepted my submission (one of the two I submitted - actually I consider it the lesser of my two submissions, but why complain?). It is a really strong exhibition, most of the works are exceptionally well done, and I feel honored to be included in this show.
I'd like to show you the painting they accepted, but I didn't photograph it in its final manifestation. I'll be there tomorrow for the class with Osborne, and again on Friday for the official opening of the exhibition. I'll photograph it then to post here on the blog. So stay tuned.
Meanwhile, I am working on the next painting in Osborne's class. It is another (ho hum) standing nude figure study. I want to work hard to make it look like something a little more interesting than that. I have some ideas, but will have to see how they work out. Meanwhile, here is it's rather unexciting status at the moment:
You'll note that ghost of a raised left arm. Originally the model was holding a pole there, but it just looked horrid. Militaristic, like trying to emulate Joan d'Arc, or maybe playing shepherdess or something. Much more interesting with her hand lowered, but it was surprising how much that changed her whole stature. Her weight shifted, her back straightened, and her shoulders twisted. It has been a struggle to incorporate all that - none of which has been accomplished yet in what you see here. But.... give me a little more time, and....
Oh - this image is in black and white because I photographed it and then converted it to b&w to photocopy. That was so I could then play with various permutations before the next class.
Onward !!!!!
I'd like to show you the painting they accepted, but I didn't photograph it in its final manifestation. I'll be there tomorrow for the class with Osborne, and again on Friday for the official opening of the exhibition. I'll photograph it then to post here on the blog. So stay tuned.
Meanwhile, I am working on the next painting in Osborne's class. It is another (ho hum) standing nude figure study. I want to work hard to make it look like something a little more interesting than that. I have some ideas, but will have to see how they work out. Meanwhile, here is it's rather unexciting status at the moment:
You'll note that ghost of a raised left arm. Originally the model was holding a pole there, but it just looked horrid. Militaristic, like trying to emulate Joan d'Arc, or maybe playing shepherdess or something. Much more interesting with her hand lowered, but it was surprising how much that changed her whole stature. Her weight shifted, her back straightened, and her shoulders twisted. It has been a struggle to incorporate all that - none of which has been accomplished yet in what you see here. But.... give me a little more time, and....
Oh - this image is in black and white because I photographed it and then converted it to b&w to photocopy. That was so I could then play with various permutations before the next class.
Onward !!!!!
