|
 |
|
HOME |
 |
 |
Gathering materials in the bush |
Teacher creating a painting | |
|
Painting Demonstrations & Workshops: I enjoy giving design, drawing and painting demonstrations and workshops. The groups I teach are as varied as students, teachers, art groups, painters (studio and plein air) and retired hobbyists. It delights me to see the enthused enjoyment others feel when they create. Some years ago, I was asked by the National Art Gallery of Namibia to travel to a remote region in the north of the country to train teachers so they could help their students submit paintings for a national competition. These teachers were not artists or trained in the arts. When I arrived and met the teachers, who had traveled from far away to attend the workshop, I found that other than paper and glue they had no materials in their classrooms with which to paint and draw and no budget to purchase any. We grabbed some cardboard boxes from a local shop and went on an exploratory walk through the bush, collecting anything and everything we could find that could make a mark, a color, or be used in a collage painting. With these materials we explored the teaching of art with whatever is on hand. | ||
 | ||
Paintings created using native materials by novice art teachers in the workshop | ||
The teachers, although at first very shy about trying to make "art" themselves, tried their hands at creating collage paintings with what they had gathered from the field and tested. They were delighted to see what they could actually do! After discussing imaginative means of helping their students create art in the absence of classroom materials, they left the workshop excited with possibilities. | ||
 | ||
Painting demonstration in Florida, USA | ||
I encourage participants in my painting demonstrations to gather around to get a closer look when they wish and to feel free to ask questions at any time. These demonstrations afford opportunities for the discussion of art issues (as well as a bit of story-telling...). Before conducting workshops, I like to correspond with the participants to learn where they would like to take their art and what they perceive to be their stumbling blocks. Hearing their responses and seeing images of their work helps me to personalize the workshop for them. | ||
|
Lectures are often requested about my experiences in Africa. I have been the “Storyteller’s Voice” for Black History month in the Alachua County Library District and have given presentations to retired professors as well as religious and other interest associations. I call these presentations "An Artist’s Adventures in Africa". They include samples of my African paintings, slides, native artifacts, and recordings of traditional African music. |  |
 |
Inside a Swazi home |
Traveling in Bushmanland | |
|
My Schedule: If you would like to request a lecture, painting demonstration or workshop for your group, please contact me. See my News and Events page to find out which of these events is coming up. "Art is not what you see, but what you make others see." | ||
©2007 Mary Jane Volkmann - All Rights Reserved |
||