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Wednesday, October 22, 2014

My Work as the Instructor of Art Workshops for Kids


I like to conduct these workshop with concern for freedom and creativity for each student. 

Halloween Workshop was last Saturday.
The art materials were  thoughtfully chosen: India ink, Japanese 'cake' water-soluble  inks/paints, watercolor pencils, charcoal, graphite pencils, newsprint  paper for sketching, and heavyweight drawing paper for the finished art. I always provide visual aids for inspiration:  images of my own artworks like the "Spider Eyes White Pumpkin Princess"; magazine pages with jack'o lanterns, paper party plates with Halloween theme, and last but not least,  my demos done right there in front of my students - crayon resist spider web, and friendly ghost trio - two quick artworks on white drawing paper washed over with black India ink; plus graphite sketch on newsprint paper.

And presented here are two artworks created during the workshop by my students: 11- year- old Madelyn, and 10-year-old Zoe.
Student Artist: Madelyn, age 11.

Student Artist: Zoe, age 10.

/Malgorzata Kawashima - Art Instructor

Thursday, October 9, 2014

BEING ME

What do I really feel or what am I really feeling while painting or drawing?
- It depends. -  Painting with oils is different than drawing with a small pencil that has 'FLALOTTERY' written on it.
What was I feeling when I made "Helena's Florida Room" in 1984?
- I remember using a ruler because the professor told us to use rulers for that "Project One" drawing assignment. 
Did he care to notice that I was not favoring precision or super realism,  and using rulers to create fine art was a pedestrian approach ? -  Maybe I wanted to prove to myself... and to others, including the instructor, that I could make a perfect artwork with a ruler! - And it is so obvious from looking at this fine artwork that I could do it with or without a ruler!
This mixed media drawing/painting is absolutely magnificent! -- just like that young woman that produced it! 💚Me.

The following text was saved from the 
post on my site on Tumblr:     http://malgkawa.tumblr.com

HELENA’S FLORIDA ROOM a.k.a. “ Project I ”, 1984,  mixed media on paper.... created as a homework  assignment for drawing class at FIU - 
rediscovered in the old art portfolio after 25 years in the garage of my house in Sunrise, Florida.

/Malgorzata Kawashima

Tuesday, October 7, 2014

BEAUTIFUL AND INTRIGUING DISCOVERIES: PART II

To continue the story about how viewers interpret my paintings, I'm presenting here the "Blue Nun" also known as "Comfy Weird Bed with Eyes"
This is the horizontal view ( the vertical view is another story.) This photo was taken at the Sunrise Civic Center Art Studio on Saturday, September 27, 2014... just 9 days ago. 

My approach was carefree, sans any particular influence. The music on Pandora station was playing but I don't recall who's music it was.... it was just right for the moment, otherwise I would've changed it. I was working on three paintings in sequence, moving from easel to table to another easel ... back and forth, turning the canvas and the cardboards around as I pleased.
The results were intersting but not spectacular: three more or less abstract 
paintings.
After cropping the photo I noticed something or rather someone: a girl in a blue dress... and I saw that she was sitting on a bench in front of a large abstract painting in a museum of art. So I posted the cropped photo on Instagram with this special title:
GIRL IN BLUE DRESS IN FRONT OF THE ABSTRACT PORTRAIT PAINTING.

In this work there was no particular intent to portray anything, but I remember seeing a coffee cup/mug emerging...with eyes and ears - and then I added another cup... for the company. I don't recall exactly what I was thinking while painting, but I rememer what I was feeling: freedom.

My friend Nathalie aka "the fourth viewer" saw a nun in a blue habit and a monk in a white habit. According to Nathalie's interpretation the monk is fat, bald and angry; he has a rosary around and under his hood, and a rope around his waist.
The nun is looking forward, and the monk is in 3/4 view, looking or gazing back.

to be continued

/Malgorzata Kawashima


Sunday, October 5, 2014

BEAUTIFUL AND INTRIGUING DISCOVERIES

What people see in my paintings?
- this is going to be a 'long story', or rather a 'long report'.
Today is Sunday, October 5.
This is the fifth viewer's report:

" I don't see elephant... I see a duck and I see a dachshund. And I see a Japanese flag. - Oh!... but I see 'pajacyk' 
('little clown' in Polish)... he has eyes and a mustache."*
*Hirosh's words.



 On Friday, October 3, I posted this version/cropped photo on Instagram:

Going back one day - Saturday, October 4. This is the forth viewer's report:

"I see elephant ....We always see what we want to see - I see Snoopy, elephant, clown, and the "Ï€" (Pi) sign." *
* Nathalie's words.

And going back to October 1.
This is the third viewer's report:

" I see a duck. She is sitting down and she has beautiful feathers...and I see a wheel going somewhere. And I see a fan... one of those fans that ladies are using....She ( the duck) is sitting in a wagon... do you see the wheels? (bottom of the painting)....So pretty....That's the way I see it.... I don't see the clown, Margo.... Where do you see the clown? - Show me."*
* Ana Marie's words.

Going back to Monday, September 29.
This is when it all started; the two 7-year-old children were curious about the paintings on easels at the art studio.
This is the first and the second viewer's report ( they spoke at the same time):

"This is like words in Chinese ( top of painting)....It's a clown holding a mask. People are coming at the red door ( "Ï€" sign). It's a treasure map at the bottom.... It's like a map  - you need to find a mask, which is the clown mask. Inatead of hunting for gold they are hunting for a mask." *
*Brianna's and her triplet sister Aileen's words.

Finally going back to the day that I painted this and the two other paintings. 
It was Saturday, September 27, 2014.
My report:

I painted a clown with red cheeks wearing a party hat. At the bottom of the painting I used a paper doily as a stencil. I was going from one painting to the other and painting them almost simultaneously....
with a lot of freedom and lightness while listening to music on Pandora radio.

to be continued

/Malgorzata Kawashima