Block 2, Term 3, 2010
September 6th – 10th

* Encaustic: Painting with Beeswax and Pigment, Marci Tackett
* Holding Up Seven Fingers, Robert Franken
* Everything you wanted to know about Paint. Part 2, Marc Hill
* Raku Firing, Hanne Eriksen Mapp
* Cold Connections. Jewellery/Body Adornment, Craig McIntosh
* Putting It All Together, Perry Scott

By Jonathan Milne

When you create art you’re taking the lead.  You have to make your own decisions and follow them through.  You are in charge.

If people acknowledge you as an artist they are probably thinking about your work.  Without putting it into words they are also saying that you have made effective leadership decisions with your own particular skills and ideas.

Art-making is Leadership 1.01.  It isn’t as if every good artist is a good leader, but every good leader is going to have some of the qualities of a good artist.

The second challenge for an artist (Leadership 1.02) is to create the means to make more art.  Typically (but not always) this involves money.  Selling requires something beyond the art itself – artists need to engage with others.

The early stages of an artist’s career can be frail and unpredictable.  Picasso, for example, now appears as an art colossus of the 20th century but, had it not been for Daniel-Henry Kahnweiler, an art dealer, he may well have remained poor and unknown.  Picasso wrote, ‘What would have become of us if Kahnweiler hadn’t had a business sense?’

Picasso’s work, particularly ‘Les Demoiselles d’Avignon’, was championed by Kahnweiler and became famous.  Teamwork was crucial to success.  Both artist and dealer had leadership roles.

It turns out that this kind of ‘distributed leadership’ is overwhelmingly more common than ‘pyramid leadership’ where a person called the President, King, General, Mayor, Chief Executive (or whatever) appears to be in charge.  The pyramid system requires a chain of command – people are supposed to do what they’re told.  Trade unions sometimes expose the shortcomings of the pyramid by ‘working to rule’.  They meticulously follow orders and the result can be worse than not working at all.

Nations largely work on distributed leadership.  Everyone is ‘leading’ simply by doing whatever it is that they do.  Most of the time no one is giving orders.  We make choices based on a subtle interaction between personal and collective thinking.

When you make art you also make decisions that go beyond the work.  If you get stuck or bored you must decide how to respond.  If you become famous you will need to decide how to manage fame.

The secret is to find open-ended patterns which are ‘growthy’ and sustainable.  You don’t have to be Picasso to be successful.

The paradox of ‘distributed leadership’ is that you can find a way to serve others and do what you like. Then it no longer matters whether you’re the president.  You’re free to lead through your own creativity.  It’s the best of all worlds.

By Rhiannon Stone

I hated high school. I scraped through getting NCEA level 1 and that’s all I have when it comes to qualifications. That bothers me. It’s not that I’m not smart; I consider myself quite intelligent (when I choose to be!) – it’s just that high school and I never agreed and because of my rather colourful history I have always been very scared to get into the whole education thing again. I have just stuck with working. I am also very cautious with money and have, so far, never bought anything on hire purchase or got a loan. The idea of paying interest irritates me. So the decision to start studying again was not one I took lightly.

I remember the day I first found out about TLC. I was at the hairdressers getting my hair chopped off and getting it re-dyed bright red. I was looking through some magazines to fill in time and came across an advertisement for a school that focused on ‘art and creativity’. I looked into it a bit more for about six months and toyed with the idea of quitting my job and studying from home full-time (the school is in Wellington and I’m in Auckland). After working out that financially I wouldn’t be able to do that I started to think about studying part time while working.

Three weeks ago I made the decision I was going to do it - I was going to study again. I found out that the next intake was 31st May so I needed to sort everything out quickly. After a few emails, filling out an application form, a trip to get documents verified by the Police (a relatively interesting event in itself) and applying for my loan, I sit here with a box full of materials and my first drawings in years.

The first exercise was to draw a face; a simple instruction. Draw a face – any face – however you want. I put it off for hours, convincing myself that bad TV (’Wife Swap’ to be more precise) was more interesting. I realised I was putting it off because I was worried about how terrible my face would be – I haven’t drawn in years and have never considered myself a drawer. Once I realised that and re-read “the purpose of this is to show where you are NOW in terms of drawing” I thought “for Gods sake just do it and get it out of the way.” I did and it was a little bit better than I thought it was going to be, but still not great. It was surprisingly hard for me to do, but I did it.

Once I had that out of the way, everything else was more fun and easier to complete. I am still embarrassed by some of the drawings I have done for the exercises but have forced myself to show my partner and have a bit of a laugh over it. In the end they will never be great, because you aren’t allowed to look at the page when drawing it! You focus on the object (in this case your hand), not the lines you are drawing. It’s teaching your brain to recognise what you see instead of what you THINK you should see (much harder than you would think).

My favourite exercise I have done so far is drawing what I see with a giant white waxy crayon (so far I have done a self-portrait) and then using watered down food dye to do a light wash. The paper absorbs the ink but the crayon repels it, revealing your drawing. I was going to try and draw one of our cats (the lazier one) using this technique but he wouldn’t sit still this evening, so maybe tomorrow.

I keep thinking back to my past and am looking at how far I have come in the last six years. I still can’t believe I have enrolled in this programme. Some people I knew would not believe I am the same person. By beginning my study with TLC I feel like I have overcome an incredibly huge and scary hurdle. It feels like a new beginning. I feel like a new person.

I will be sharing my experiences and discoveries in the art world through my blog. Everything from my experiments to my triumphs and my disasters; art is something that should be shared and I intend to do so!

http://rhiannonstone.blogspot.com/

The Artist’s Body
July 24-25 / Rachel Johnstone
What is Performance Art? This weekend class examines artists’ use of self and body as an object in their work and how this mode of working can be incorporated into your own work.
See more here

Every term students fill the walls with artworks in The Learning Connexion’s end of term student exhibition. The most recent exhibition also saw the floors, stairwells, cupboards and lawn covered, as students showed off the fruits of their creative labour.

The exhibition starts with an opening night where students and proud friends and family celebrate creativity. Student work covers a wide range of media, from painting, to sculpture, to jewellery, to video and animation. The exhibition is entirely organised and run by the students themselves and last term’s exhibition was definitely one of the best we’ve seen at our new campus.

Created with Admarket’s flickrSLiDR.

While many people make the trip out to Taita to see the work, we’ve placed a gallery of work online so those who have missed out can continue to appreciate what our students have produced. Our Flickr site is currently showing off over 80 works by TLC students at varying levels in their programmes.

Looking for a quick tip, short project or creative inspiration? Try Quickart!! TLC’s answer for boredom and inspiration. In this episode of Quickart Lucy Adams demonstrates felt making. She shows how you can pummel and beat straggly pieces of wool into a smooth and magical piece of cloth, ready for all your creative needs. Look out for more Quickarts, coming soon.

By Jonathan Milne

'Flambeau de noces chimiques' - Judit Reigl 1954, Pompidou Centre, Paris

Have you heard of Judit Reigl, or Simon Hantï, or Jésus Raphael Soto?   They are all on the walls of the Pompidou Centre in Paris, along with a legion of other artists whom most of us don’t know.  They’re interesting too, basking in their low-visibility fame.

They stand close to big names like Picasso, Kandinsky, Pollock, Braque, Bonnard and Matisse.  Many of the big name works were as unknown to me as Judit Reigl.  Some of them were remarkably unremarkable; others stopped me in my tracks.

Couple Pablo Picasso 1971 Pompidou Centre, Paris

When you walk through a giant gallery the art blurs a little.  It’s like an overdose of speed-dating.  Instead of slowly ‘getting acquainted’, each piece of art has two or three seconds to get through our defences.

Fame skews our attention because a well-known name inevitably attracts a second glance.  We look longer at Picasso than Judit Reigl.

I recall a photography exercise which tricked me into a different way of looking.  The tutor randomly threw hoops and each person made their pictures from within one of the hoops.  Instead of being flooded with abundance we were invited to discover magic in whatever was there.  It worked.  We found that visual riches were largely a product of our imagination.

Try the same tactic with student art work.  Pause in front of one exhibit and think about the qualities which make it amazing.  Imagine for a moment that it is signed by one of the great names.  Perhaps it is an early Pollock.  Wow.  You can really understand the beginnings of a spectacular career.

Critics and historians do this with hindsight.  They look at works of a famous artist and invent a logical sequence of steps to connect early influences with greatness.  The test of hindsight is whether it works as foresight.  Can the same critics predict which artists are going to be great in the future?

We don’t normally look at art in terms of ‘greatness’ – we look at it in terms of conversation.  It isn’t so different from what happens when we read a novel.  It might lead to new insights or it might be a passing entertainment.  That’s how art works.  Novels and paintings that trigger wonderful conversations have a better chance of becoming famous.  However, an ‘unknown’ artist may catch you by surprise and bring new meaning into your life.  Potential conversations are tucked inside each person who dares to engage with art and creativity.

When I search through a student show, I look for images that might work in the TLC publications.  I see new things each time I walk around.  The art questions my preconceptions.  It’s a sobering exercise.  Judit Reigls pop up everywhere.  Fresh, vibrant and packed with expressive power.

Take your time.  Be willing to return to look again and again.  Trust the elusive way our minds connect with what is around us.  With a little practice you’ll get into the habit of finding magic.

Wellington artists Judi Jenkins and Lucy Jerram Moore share a passion for expressing the experiences of New Zealanders separated by war. Judi’s series of paintings and assemblage, entitled ‘Letters Home’, is based on actual WWII correspondence from her father-in-law, Southlander David Sutherland Jenkins. During his service in the Western Desert, Italy and Europe with the 23rd Battalion from 1940-44, Dave corresponded regularly with his sister, brother-in-law and father, back home running the family farm. Drawing on the history and emotion of the time, Judi has created a series of canvasses and assemblages that capture the mood of these poignant letters.

Judi specializes in paint and mixed media and has exhibited, sold artwork and taught in Wellington for many years. In April and May of 2010, this collection was shown in Southland, bringing the correspondence between brother and sister home.

Lucy’s works in paint and textiles also explore the emotional impact of separation, absence and the difficulty of communication under wartime conditions. Against a background of fragments and images reminiscent of WWI, simple symbols such as dots, dashes and grids take on a code-like historical significance. The stitch in particular becomes a poignant symbol of the desire to connect two worlds – masculine/feminine, military/domestic, home/abroad, then/now.

Lucy was trained firstly in psychology and subsequently in textile design, jewellery and illustration. She has exhibited nationally since 2000 and now produces work on commission as well as furthering her research into the history and effects of New Zealand’s involvement in World War 1.

MISSING/LETTERS HOME
Paintings, textiles & assemblage
Toi Poneke Gallery, Abel Smith Street
July 23 – August 14 2010
Preview/opening 5.30pm Thursday July 22

Exhibition block week for the Advanced Diploma students is not only to experience first hand what it is to present the culmination of their year’s work, but an opportunity to engage with each other and share critically what the year has meant to them.

Mentors John Cornish and Ewen Anderson enjoyed an informal and invaluable  conversation with the three students who were able to travel to Taita and participate in the block course - Rebecca Shawyer, Miriam Ruberl and Rebecca Dodds. These three also took on the responsibility of hanging their peers work.

The discussion came ostensibly from two main questions: “What have you gained from the Advanced Diploma?” and “What has this week given you?”. The group thought it might be of interest to other students to read the their responses.

MIRIAM RUBERL

What I’ve gained from this Advanced Diploma on a personal level:

Dissatisfied with the prospect of an art making future that seemed to consist largely of acquiring improved technical skills, I set out to immerse myself in a process and approach to art making that was radically different to anything I had done before, but was also associated with the work of a few of the artists I admired.  This provided me the permission, space and tools to now make art that I feel comes  truly from within me and, at the same time, can be linked to a historically traceable context of thinking and responses to life experiences that are relevant to mine.

Within that wider context, perhaps the most important things I learnt about my own art within this Diploma is that allowing a material to speak and following it where it leads me is an endless process if I let it be. I do not come to the end of a material’s potential until I decide to stop pursuing it and that working within pre-set guidelines such as the choice of material and process enhances my creative expression, rather than restricts it.

What I’ve gained from this Advanced Diploma as a member of the group:

I have been able to relax much more into being the particular human expression that my life experience has moulded me into; to enjoy the uniqueness of the others on the course, and to trust the safety of that environment.

What I’ve gained from this particular week on site:

I have been able to affirm my commitment to myself as a professional artist, to re-connect with students that I’ve formed very fond connections with over the year and to connect with the tutors and other artists on site. Just as  art work without viewers has no content, a creative life without other creators is a barren life.

Miriam Ruberls website

REBECCA DODDS

What I’ve gained from this Advanced Diploma Year:

I really enjoy the fact that I have space to work alone and not be bothered. The feedback from Ewen always benefits me and encourages me. It seems most people at TLC live and breathe art which is refreshing; everyone is always interested in what you are doing and where you are going.

Exhibition Block Week:

It is interesting to work with others (even though it has been a small group), in hanging an exhibition - good to know others’ views with that. It’s nice to hear other students’ thoughts on the course and what they have been doing over the last year.

Rebecca Dodds Website

REBECCA SHAWYER

What I’ve gained from this Advanced Diploma Year:

Initially, I resisted aspects of the Advanced Diploma Programme. Process and materiality sounded great for someone younger; new to their medium. Little was I to know it would affect my approach to my art profoundly and permanently.

Prior to the Advanced Diploma I believed I was pushing boundaries in a medium (clay), historically rooted in functional ware. The breakthrough came when I finally realised there are no boundaries in art except those we choose to erect for ourselves. This epiphany was facilitated entirely by the course content and my incredibly patient, supportive and knowledgeable mentor, John Cornish.

The result of this revelation was the unbridling of my imagination, for which Ancient Creature is just the beginning.

In a different way but of equal importance is the fact that who we are has a huge impact on our process. I had actually got to the point of not mentioning my previous career in Patisserie, as it wasn’t an ‘arts’ background. However, I now see how my process is based directly in those years. I now not only own it, but value it for what it has turned out to be – the perfect apprenticeship and an important point of difference in my work.

What I got out of being here this week:

Meeting the mentors and other artists; getting advice from tutors in other departments on techniques I want to incorporate in future work; receiving feedback and seeing people’s reactions to the different works, including my own; seeing other work from the main school exhibition; making new contacts and recognising this week as a marketing opportunity.

Rebecca Shawyers website