Well, we're in the midst of "stay-at-home" orders. For those of us who don't have an essential job or who can work from home, we've been patiently following orders. That's good; it does save lives. As time goes by however, you may wonder how much longer can you manage to get through another day. I've read depression creeps in because we're stressed, grieving or just bored. Our American work ethic tells us to be productive, and if we can't, we're sort of at a loss.
This isn't new. There have been many plagues and quarantines before. In fact, my mother’s family was quarantined for a month because of scarlet fever in 1930s. We have a history of people surviving quarantines and have had to face the same we are facing today (or even worse). With that in mind, some of us have even accomplished some rather powerful masterpieces because of it.
Take Shakespeare, it's claimed he wrote King Lear during isolation as well as Isaac Newton, who developed the laws of gravity and invented calculus all because of the plague. During the 1918 Flu, Edvard Munch painted Self Portrait with the Spanish Flu. He contracted the disease, but survived for another 25 years.
Isolation happens in life. Most of us have been rather lucky not to have done it often. Mary Shelley, the author of the first science fiction work, Frankenstein, lived during “The Year without a Summer “ (also known as "Poverty Year” and ”Eighteen Hundred & Frozen to Death”). While being confined in Switzerland with others, she wrote her masterpiece. By the way, if you want to take a few moments to learn how bad things were for everyone back in 1815-16, go to this link. It makes me realize how awful life could get.
While in exile on Guernsey island, Victor Hugo completed his Les Miserables and Freda Kahlo did her first portrait while lying in bed recuperating from an accident. My point is when we are isolated, either through quarantine, exile or sickness, good things can happen.
So of course, as a drawing and painting teacher, I thought I could help with 30 days’ worth of projects. Let's draw or paint:
- An orange, apple, lemon
- A coffee cup
- A toaster
- A chair
- Your bedroom
- Your hand
- Your foot
- Paint brushes, pencils in a cup holder
- Pillows on a sofa
- A fried egg—sunny side-up or poached
- Comb (s)
- Stacks of books, using perspective technique
- Still life set-up created by you
- A hair brush/hair dryer
- Your pet (s)
- A kitchen mixer
- Lots of different breads
- A garden flower
- Bars of soap
- Landscape (cityscape) from your window
- Your food pantry
- A bookcase
- Draped cloth over a stool or chair
- Water running from faucet (hint: take a photo)
- A finger nail
- A hat
Share with me your pieces if you like. Have a great month of May. Hang in there; we WILL get through this!
What coming up?
All classes are now online via Zoom
Tuesdays and Wednesdays
10 a.m. - 12:30 p.m.
$90 per five-week session
$90 per five-week session
Creating a Nature Journal from Your Window
Media: Pencil, pen, watercolor and gouache
Supply list provided upon registration
Tuesday mornings: May 5-June 2
Wednesday mornings: May 6-June 3 Full
To register, email: email@example.com
One more thought...
Interesting article from Reader’s Digest: