Joy of Calligraphy starts Jan. 13

Start the new year with a nice dose of relaxation, rejuvenation and some fun, artistic learning. You will be introduced to the details about tools, letterforms, fun projects and other pertinent information for your level of experience. Both beginners and continuing students are welcome in all sessions. Ages 16 and up. Homeschoolers welcome!

Foundational (Roman)
Fridays, 9 - 11 AM
Jan. 13 - Feb. 16, 6 wks
Old City Hall
5560 Hwy. 78, Sachse, TX, 75048

To register go here:
https://fs3.formsite.com/parksandrecreation/form15/secure_index.html

New Classes Starting!

Joy of Calligraphy - Beginning and Continuing
Discover the delight of the beautiful art of calligraphy! In a relaxing environment, you will be introduced to the details about tools, letterforms, practice and other pertinent information for your level of experience.

Session 1
Thursdays, 9 - 11 AM
September 8, 15, 22, 29

Session 2
Thursdays, 9 - 11 AM
October 6, 13, 20, 27

Session 3
Thursdays, 9 - 11 AM
November 3, 10, 17, Dec. 1 (no class Nov. 24)

Sachse Parks & Recreation Department
Registration begins Aug. 15 online http://www.cityofsachse.com
Mouse over Departments: Parks & Recreation: Class Brochure: Class Registration
Class fee: $65
Supply fee: $12

Perks
Large classroom space
Plenty of table space
Quiet classroom
Casual, non-intimidating atmosphere
Easy driving directions - as a point of reference, it takes 16 min. to drive from Coit/Bush to class location

My Only Hope

This isn't how I envisioned the finished product. But, I don't dislike it. You know how it goes, sometimes artwork turns out like you SEE it in your head. Sometimes it looks very different. That can be for many reasons. Maybe you don't execute some element the way you intended or the color you mixed dries much darker than you anticipated. What's really fun is when you start down your planned path, pause at a certain point and decide to take a rabbit trail which ends up leading to a very different end result. Sometimes they call it creativity. That may be, but coming up with a plan and performing it is an act of creativity, too.


This piece has a little of each process. Some parts of it I love, others not so much. Seems I always want to do a piece over when I've finished it, so that I can tweak it. I can count on ONE hand the number of times I've done that in the last 28 years.


I had a teacher who was known for doing multiples of her pieces every time she worked. She planned everything down to the tiniest detail, then worked on each piece as if it were the finished piece. After completing half a dozen or more of the same piece, she would then scrutinize them all and decide which was best and that became her final. I've always held that ideal in my mind. I've never done it. Don't know if I've even produced three of one work before.


Maybe I should. What do you think? What do you do?

Artist's Trading Cards

Artist's Trading Cards (or ATCs) are great fun, don't necessarily take a lot of time and offer the ability of creating a lot of work at one time. If you are reading this blog, you probably already know about ATCs but just incase...they are diminutive works of art about the same size as sports trading cards, 2 ½ X 3 ½ inches (63 mm X 89 mm). Cards are produced in a wide range of media, including but not only pencil, ink, marker, watercolor, acrylic paint, pastels, collage, papercuts, found objects, metals, cloth, and many other embellishments. ATC cards are generally traded or exchanged rather than sold. The movement is said to have started in Europe around 1996, spurred by the mail art movement.

The two you see above are selections from my Christmas series. They both include dyes, watercolor, ink, collage. The brush lettering is done with gold Schmincke waterecolor. The word GREAT is written with a sparkle gel pen.