A Room Alive!: A Documentary
+ last call for this Playful workshop
Hello friend,
I finished watching (and re-watching parts of) this delightful documentary called A Room Alive! that features artist and teacher Lynda Barry and her teaching and community space, the Comics Room at UW-Madison and I had to share it with you!
(Full disclosure: I might be biased because I truly love her work and I want to be like her when I grow up:))
What left me SO inspired and excited was two things:
the idea of a common, open-to-all space where people who are experienced artists come together with people who haven’t drawn since they were kids
the excited way in which she talks about the magic that happens when these wildly mixed groups come together
(As you can see from my journal page, I started watching it almost a month ago. It is around 28 minutes only.)
Can I tell you about a dream that I have?
I want to create a space — an open studio setup — where people from all walks of life can come and make art. Try out new mediums and things without fear of wasting art supplies, the pressure to make something perfect, a fear of who’s watching, etc etc.
And as I watched this, I got excited because the Comics Room is proof that this idea can work.
What’s more, as I watched it, I began to think — hmm, that is exactly what I am trying to do with my online workshops, in a way.
A community. A space where people from all walks of life can come and make art. Try out new mediums and things without fear of wasting art supplies, or the pressure to make something perfect, or fear of who’s watching etc etc.
That felt like a shot in the arm for me :)
Do you have physical spaces in your city like this? Would a space like that be somewhere you might frequent?
Also, if you watch the documentary, I’d love to know what you think!
Pause + Play workshop
Speaking of making art fearlessly, here’s a reminder that my Pause + Play workshop is happening this weekend. 11 May, 5 pm IST. Check the time in your timezone here.
Expect a bunch of exercises that encourage you to splatter paint around, get your hands messy, and see what comes of it!
It’s also the perfect gift for Mothers’ Day — maybe for yourself if you’re one or someone you know!
Check out this video where I went live on Instagram and made some paint & ink blots Rorschach-style, and had fun ‘playdate’ with a friend!
If you haven’t signed up for the workshop, I’d love it if you could share some feedback through the polls below. As I’m gearing up to offer new, diverse things, I need YOUR help to build a community that we love!
I appreciate your time, and your responses will go a long way in helping me tweak my offerings.
I hope you have a good week, and take some time to slow down and play.
Love,
Shub