In addition to creating art, my biggest passion is teaching. Over the years I have developed curricula for several different subjects which encompass all of my favorite things! I've listed a few class examples here. At present time I am available on a contract basis to present a series of these classes for your school, children, or homeschool group. Please contact me for details!
Fine Art ~
Art History and Appreciation
Line drawing
Contour Drawing / Free association
Drawing, shading & shadowing, pencil / charcoal
Color theory, soft and oil pastel media
Watercolor pencils, watercolor paint media
Acrylic painting
Collage and mixed media
Oils
Working on Yupo Paper
3D / sculpture
Music Training
Violin instruction, all ages, from beginner.
Suzuki method ear-training
Note reading
Ensemble playing
Private lessons
Art with Music Appreciation ~
-What do Andy Warhol and Vivaldi have in common? ~ the four movements of a tree.
- “Rhapsody in Blue” ~ all about jazz, and the color!
- “Musical Graffiti” ~ like musical chairs, but all about respect and with no furniture.
- All about conducting- trying it out in shaving cream!
~ Rimsky Korsakov, the opera, and the flight of the bumblbebee.
~ Sheherezade- story telling in music.
~'Pictures at an Exhibition' -
~'Bach Cello Suites' and design
~“Gustav Holst Planets”
~ “The Moldau” – hearing and creating the river.
~ “Carnival of the Animals” ~ several movements and how to create animals / mixed media.
~ "The Bach Double" - teams of two freeform draw one at time, listening to their part of the piece, then create art from the two parts together!
Archictcture ~
~Figure / ground studies – 2 D tessalations
~ Building a "Zoo"- from studying the animals, to site planning and modeling the design
-~Castles
~ Design a theme park!
~ history and Model building
~Floor plans, sections and elevations~Site planning for a theme park-
~Respecting the environment/ green architecture-~The vernacular- culture of “place”
~Materials and methods of construction~Art and architecture through the ages.
In addition to teaching the above classes,
I love to visit schools and groups to share "A Blanket Quite Rare", a children's book that I wrote and illustrated.
This helps the kids to learn about the creative process. I try to share with them the hard work it takes to bring an initial idea from concept to finish, using the book as an example.
We talk about sketching, opening ourselves up to changes, not worrying about mistakes, and just like in the book, that if we have the confidence to keep on going when the going gets rough, things can turn out to be vrey rewarding.