CartaBella

l'Artista Blog

June 24, 2008
by Bonnie Porter
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Cartabella Art Camp1 was a rich learning experience. I could not have asked for a sweeter group of children for my first art camp. I loved the happy mix of quiet concentration and smiling faces as the children worked on their paintings and collages. Our end-of-the-class Drawing Games seemed to draw out their creativity even more . . . which always put a smile on my face!

But what a relief that it’s over! Now I can relax and review the Happenings. I want to be better prepared for the one in July. Procedure changes to make and lesson plans to modify.

Encouraging to get this kind of immediate feedback from one parent: “The camp was an 11…on a scale of 1-10 (smile)!” But I need to solicit more suggestions for improving it.

Lauren, my oldest granddaughter, was a big help with behind-the-scenes details. And Andrew M. lent a helping hand a few days, too.

Stacey, my daughter-in-law who is a preschool teacher, was “on site” several mornings. We have her to thank for the radiant “portrait” photos of each child.

Some of my goals for the children were met:
*Working together “in community”– building friendships and serving others
*Introduction to one European country/artist each day
*A mix of daily take-home projects and portfolio projects
*Instruction based projects interspersed with unstructured, creative activities

What will I do differently the next time?
*Separate boys/girls classes with a closer age span (ie., girls who have completed grades 1-3, etc.)
*Fewer projects with more instruction and more one-on-one guidance
*Specific procedures for meet and greet, arrival and departure, circle time, etc.

I’m asking God to help me create an environment that will nurture their creative expression while they learn concepts and skills.

June 13, 2008
by Bonnie Porter
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A whirlwind week!

A whirlwind week! Wonderful, wonderful learning experience at an inner city church where I held an art class for middle school teens. Of course I was there to “teach”! But par for the course, the teacher was the one who had more to learn than her students did. Their good attitude and good behavior was a reflection of the expectations of the program’s leadership members. I’m so curious and eager to learn more about what goes on behind the scenes and who gets to attend, and what these young teens do the other days of the summer.

Intertwined with the art classes this week was a stopover visit with our Florida nieces and their daddy. Nora and Alysa’s creative energy gave me the spark I needed to pull off the last art class downtown and to give me inspiration for an art lesson plan for next week. Nora got revved up by thumbing through one of my art studio books, COLLAGE UNLEASHED, by Traci Bautista. And Alysa created an adorable cardboard doll with a “pocket skirt” for tucking in the mini-Bible story book she made, too.

My neighbor Carol popped over this morning when she saw me painting . . . . The neighbors are probably worried that this zany artist will end up painting a mural on the outside like she did on the inside. Not to worry! We’re just painting the exterior of our little cottage house. A conservative color with a restful name, Pacific Pines. [wouldn’t it be fun to have that job—naming all of the paint chips I linger over at Home Depot?!]

Now I get to paint some sample projects for Cartabella Art Camp. Let the fun begin!

June 10, 2008
by Bonnie Porter
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First Time experiences are always a challenge

First Time experiences are always a challenge. I had a wonderful first-time experience teaching an art class in Miss Justina’s art camp—downtown Atlanta by Grant Park. Middle School age kids who were exceptionally well-behaved, good workers and bubbly personalities. They were delightful!

They were also good sports about what cd. have been a boring art project. Some of them had more fun trying to guess which of the fruit I had placed on their table was “real” and which pieces were “fake”! But most of them eventually got their creative juices flowing as I encouraged them to use the chalk pastels to create large Drama Fruit drawings. IE., fruit with layers of color that zing!

Nan went with me. Cheerleader and traffic navigator and helping hand. A heart full of humility. Frequent prayers her way of life. Such a good friend and co-laborer.

I’m grateful Molly nudged me through this door of opportunity. It finally happened!

June 7, 2008
by Bonnie Porter
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Fruits . . . like having their portrait painted

“Fruits . . . like having their portrait painted. They seem to sit there and ask your forgiveness for fading. Their thought is given off with their perfumes. They come with all their scents. They speak of the fields they have left. The rain which has nourished them. The daybreaks they have seen.” —Paul Cezanne

I’m back to painting fruit. Warm-up exercises for the waiting-to-be-painted pages in my new Kilimanjaro Bright White wc paper block. A calming break from my tedious lesson plan sessions.

June 5, 2008
by Bonnie Porter
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AFTER WORDS

AFTER WORDS
After blogging, yesterday, about my life as a juggler, it hit me (a thought hit me, not a ball) that there are a number of reasons why I am able to stay grounded more often than not.

Besides my faithful cheerleader team, ie., my husband, my family and my friends, I have the support and encouragement of two different groups. One is my Home Fellowship Community (hereafter referred to as HFC), comprised of almost 20 “mature” members of our church. We not only discuss our pastor’s sermons, we frequently pray for one another and lend a helping hand to one another. In recent years we’ve come to know each other very well.

The other group is my book club. We call ourselves The Passionate Readers. And for a good reason. We are voracious readers and lovers of words. Our lively discussions and differences of opinion serve to broaden my world view. We are a motly crew and have forged a strong friendship bond.

Without this firm foundation, given my personality type, I’d be blowing in the wind—more often than not!

June 4, 2008
by Bonnie Porter
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I’m a juggler

I’m a juggler.
And as usual I’ve got so many balls in the air that I’m flitting around and hopping from one foot to the other, trying to keep them in synch!

Art Camp ideas have shifted from the back burner where they’ve been simmering for weeks. The themes are starting to take shape, focused on summertime subject matter and Master Artists.

Some Plan A ideas for the EXPLORE EUROPE! format:

SPAIN: Joaquin Sorolla y Bastida/ Museo Sorolla in Madrid/sunny beach paintings/A Walk on the Beach + (?) tile work in Barcelona by Gaudi

SWEDEN: Carl (and Karin) Larsson/National Museum of Stockholm + CL home in Sundborn/family, home and garden/Flower Window/Crayfish Season, Veranda, The Falun Yard, Lisbeth Fishing, Lisbeth and Peonies, The Study Corner, In the Punishment Corner, etc.

HOLLAND: VanGogh/VanGogh Museum Amsterdam/Sunflowers, Yellow House, Yellow Chair, Bedroom + (?)his friend Cezanne (geometric shapes; brilliant thick paint)

ITALY: Leonardo’s Drawings & Inventions/Nat’l Museum of Science & Technology Milano/Sketch of a Horse, Flying Machines

FRANCE: Claude Monet/Musee d’Orsay Paris/Boating at Argenteuil, Field of Poppies, + (?)Still Life with Flowers and Fruit (Getty Museum)

Always exciting to see how God orchestrates the various components and enables me to pull together Lesson Plans, usually at the 11th hour!