March Newsletter

Creative Minds have always been known 

to survive any kind of bad training.

Anna Freud

When I try to be creative, I usually fail. That's because creativity can't just be turned on and off. If I muse on what one of my instructors once said, noodle a thought around in my head, I find inspiration. But what works best is to let the thought rest and out of blue (usually in the shower), the idea comes to me.

Now how in the world do you teach this thought process in an academic setting. It doesn't really fall into the mix very well. Maybe that's why so many "geniuses" haven't done so well in school. The list includes some surprises including Thomas Jefferson, Issac Newton, Charles Dickens (left school at 12), John D Rockefeller, Walt Disney, Albert Einstein, Bill Gates, Steven Jobs, Elton John and so on. In fact, for every CEO with a 4.0 GPA, there are scores more with lower grades.

How come? According to Ilya Pozin (founder of Pluto TV), "A GPA does not measure a person's emotional intelligence, it does not measure their leadership ability, it does not necessarily measure their ability to think outside of the box and solve problems." It shows you're bright and that you've worked hard, but not necessarily the end-all to things. You will most likely move on to great accomplishments, but those of us left behind also have a lot to contribute. 

So what does this have to do with art and creativity. We often look at the greats or even the leading local artists who get into art shows and think, "I'll never do that; I'll never be that creative." And I will ask, "Why not?" 

As a skilled-based instructor I push learning the fundamentals in drawing and painting.Once that's accomplished, the whole world is opened to you, if you just believe in yourself and your skills. Here are few of my art principles I teach students:

• Get trained--stick with teachers who will take the time to teach you step by step. Read books that show how to advance your skills, media knowledge.
• Practice--you'll get no where if you don't practice everyday. Full stop.
• Commit yourself to your skill--along with practice, you must be committed to your craft.
• Learn from others--you will find students in museums copying masters' works, best way to learn techniques. It takes study but you become aware of the techniques and "talents" of others.
• Work out the details--that is, create visual thoughts/notes by developing preliminary drawings. Michelangelo would create 100-150 drawings before he struck stone.
• Walk away from your work and come back later--you'll see where you need to make changes. It will help you to know when and where to stop.
• Most importantly, do not fear making bad art, embrace whatever you create because it's all part of a learning process!!

I truly believe that creativity comes when you just let go, hear your muse and strike. As crazy as an idea may seem, why not put it down on paper or canvas. Go for it and see where it leads. If you don't like it, throw it away or stash it in a art idea file (I do that) for later idea brainstorming. By the way, that works more times than not. 

One final word: 

Believe in your inner artist and throw away the inner critic!

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What's coming up!

Studio Workshops

All studio workshops are from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Includes most supplies and lunch. Sign up early. Most workshops fill up quickly.The cost is $90. Class size is limited to ten students. Pre-registration is required. Only payment reserves your seat.

Saturday March 23

Drawing the Face

One-Day Workshop

In this workshop we will explore all types of faces, including humans and other animals. I will show you how to truly see the face, use facial measurements to gain a likeness, develop shading to create form and how to draw realistic hair/fur/feathers. Bring a Strathmore Visual Journal/Mixed Media with you to class and I’ll supply the rest, including lunch.  Contact me for registration materials at jjgoodell@gmail.com

Sketch'n-on-the-Go Series™

Presents

"Sketching Dublin & Beyond"

Sunday, September 1- Sunday, September 8, 2019

Eight Days & Seven Nights Workshop

Tuition: $800*  

Interested? 
Go to Dublin Workshop.

Two spaces availableContact me:

jjgoodell@gmail.com

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Studio Classes

Due to personal problems of late, the winter/spring classes are beginning next week. If you want to join us, please contact me: jjgoodell@gmail.com. There are seats available.

Art of Sketching 3/5

Learning to sketch actually improves your drawing skills; besides it’s amazingly fun. We'll be  using pen and ink with watercolor washes. Limited supply list

The Landscape

(ink and watercolor)

Every Tuesday morning

10 am to 12:30 pm

$80 per five-week term

Seats available

The Morning Draw 3/6

We will be exploring a variety of subjects and drawing techniques. Limited supply list.

The Landscape
(oil pastels, ink and watercolor)
Every Wednesday morning

10 am to 12:30 pm

$80 per five-week term

Seats available

Art Journaling has been suspended until later this year.

February 2019 Newsletter

My little, very small sketchbook

and how it solves lots of daily art issues

Back a few years ago, when I was teaching sketching in England, one of my students whispered in my ear that several of her classmates were really intimidated by their sketchbook. Although I was a bit surprised, I actually knew what she meant. I've been there. Sometimes it's just hard to start. If you're a writer or an artist, the white sheet or canvas is difficult to face. What's more, even when you do start, you worry it's not good enough.

To my delight the whisperer suggested, I come up with a "sloppy copy" booklet that students could just scribble in. But more importantly, feel free to put pencil to paper, not actually caring if the sketch becomes a Rembrandt or a child-like rendering. At the time, I thought it was a good idea and filed it away.

Fast forward to last year when my husband and I were in Barcelona. Of course, I brought all my sketching stuff, which I carried in my purse. Then one day, I passed by a shop that was selling Barcelona souvenirs, among them a a small sketchbook. Hmm. I bought it and proceeded to do all my work, in pencil, for the rest of the vacation.

Barcelona sketchbook

One of my sketches--very loose indeed

Happily, I made a new discovery. Not only was I stripped of that concern that my sketchbook wouldn't look good enough, I was freed up to do anything I wanted. All of my sketches didn't take more than 15 minutes to finish and at that, I'd say most of them were only five minutes or less. The sketchbook was small enough for a pocket and accompanied by a mechanical pencil, I was set to sketch whatever and whenever I wanted.  No matter if I were on a bus, train or boat, I could pull it out and start sketching. I was in love! (okay, I spread my love around for all kinds of things--people, objects, food, dogs...)

With this practice in hand, I bought everyone  who took my Canadian sketching workshop a similar small sketchbook (3.5 x 5.5, 24 pages).  I can only say we all experienced so much freedom! For me, I actually filled up the entire book with quick drawings and lots of short reminder notes. I believe everyone did the same. 

Later on in the week, we all gathered in a room on the ship (it was a cruise) and spent six hours working on our "real" journals, redrawing the scene(s), inking and using watercolor washes. The secret to the success was that we all took a picture first of everything we were drawing, then did a quick sketch. When we sat down to record everything in our sketching journals it was far less intimidating because we were recounting our adventure from previously made rough sketches.

You can probably see above why taking a photo is so important. My quick sketch of Ben Franklin's grave monument was very short and fat. But by referring back to my photo I saw the true proportion. Using both references allowed me to create a very pleasing sketch.

There are lots of small sketchbooks on the market.

Of course, there are lot of choices. I like using the Moleskine book with a brown craft cover. They come in packs of three, which can easily cover three trips or just daily sketching. It comes with a small envelope in the back for small items such as tickets, and receipts of little items one picks up along the way.

I also sketch in field books or pocket notebooks, which are used a lot by scientists and other professionals for field work. The books usually have a ruler printed inside and other notations. They come in three and five packets and can be filled with blank, graph or dotted line paper.

Finally, I use a couple of thicker books, especially in my purse for when I get bored in the doctor's office, waiting for someone or going on a short trip. My favorites are Daler Rowney, which is really inexpensive at Walmart and Moleskine. They both have at least 70-80 pages, 32# paper, an internal pocket, ribbon bookmark and elastic closure. These are sturdier than the paper covered books.

In my classes, I now give every student one of the smaller sketchbooks. The homework is to sketch one item per week--nothing complicated, just a quick visual note. We're also learning how to sketch in one-minute, two minute, three-minute sequences. It's amazing how quickly your internal critic disappears when there is little time to "bad-mouth" your work.

This may all sound silly, but I suggest you buy one of the small sketchbooks and sketch something everyday in pencil. You'll surprise yourself how good you will get.

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What's coming up!!

Seats available in all classes and workshops. 

Workshop Opportunities

Glastonbury Studios One-Day Workshops

All studio workshops are from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Includes most supplies and lunch. Sign up early. Most workshops fill up quickly.The cost is $90. Class size is limited to ten students. Pre-registration is required. Only payment reserves your seat.

Saturday, February 9

Drawing Birds

Here’s an introductory course to sketching birds from skeleton to feather. We’ll cover many different birds, using pencil, ink and watercolor wash. Bring a Strathmore Visual Journal/Mix Media with you to class. All other supplies, including lunch, provided.

Saturday March 23

Drawing the Face

One-Day Workshop

In this workshop we will explore all types of faces, including humans and other animals. I will show you how to truly see the face, use facial measurements to gain a likeness, develop shading to create form and how to draw realistic hair/fur/feathers. Bring a Strathmore Visual Journal/Mixed Media with you to class and I’ll supply the rest, including lunch.

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Sketch'n-on-the-Go Series™

Presents

"Sketching Dublin & Beyond"

Sunday, September 1- Sunday, September 8, 2019

Eight Days & Seven Nights Workshop

Tuition: $800*  

Interested? 
Go to Dublin Workshop.

Contact me:

jjgoodell@gmail.com

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Winter 2019 Classes 

Just a warning. The students in these classes are 
very liberal-minded, fun-loving women!
Be prepared to laugh, love and live a lot.

Classes begin week of February 17. Come join the fun, while learning how to draw and/or paint in the Glastonbury Studios classes. To sign up for classes in my studio, please email me at jjgoodell@gmail.com. Five-week term; limited to eight students per class. Only registration and payment secures your seat.

Art of Sketching 2/19

Learning to sketch actually improves your drawing skills; besides it’s amazingly fun. We'll be  using pen and ink with watercolor washes. Limited supply list

The Landscape

(ink and watercolor)

Every Tuesday morning

10 am to 12:30 pm

$80 per five-week term

Seats available

The Morning Draw 2/20

We will be exploring a variety of subjects and drawing techniques. Limited supply list.

The Landscape
(oil pastels, ink and watercolor)
Every Wednesday morning

10 am to 12:30 pm

$80 per five-week term

Seats available

Page from Art Journal

Art Journaling  2/21

Drawing, painting, collage, writing, mixed media. Limited supply list.

Every Thursday morning

10 am to 12:30 pm

$80 per five-week term

Seats available

For more information email:
jjgoodell@gmail.com

 “Every artist was first an amateur”

Ralph Waldo Emerson