Painting the things that bring us joy

PAINTING THE THINGS THAT BRING US JOY  PROPOSAL FOR A MULTICULTURAL WOMANS ART GROUP

Artwork by the ‘Bunte Frauen Art Group’ for women who speak German as a second language in Switzerland 2009

VERENA MARMION

Painting the things that bring us joy; Women’s art group

Students from the ‘Bunte Frauen Art Group’ for women who speak German as a second language in Switzerland 2009

Introduction This course is designed to provide women from different countries with the opportunity to make art relating to culture in a creative and supportive atmosphere. Each week has a metaphoric theme relating to a still-life object, which they will use as the basis of their artwork. The art activities the course contains are designed to gradually increase the women’s repertoire of art skills, which maximises the success of their artworks. At the end of the course the women will have the opportunity to exhibit their work in a public place.

Course in brief WHO:

The course will be run by the qualified visual art teacher Verena Marmion. It will cater for 6-15 women from migrant backgrounds with varied abilities in English language who are interested in learning about Painting and Art Theory.

WHAT:

An initially structured course introducing the women to art principles and techniques for acrylic paints. The course will be a combination of making and talking about art. This group will have the ultimate goal of giving the women the skills to find their own personal style of artistic expression.

WHEN:

One weekday afternoon per week for two hours starting from 3:30-5:30

WHERE:

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WHY:

The group being proposed has three main objectives for the women; • • • •

……………..

Gain self-confidence by developing new artistic skills.

Enjoy social contact with others who have similar interests.

Find positive and meaningful personal symbols through creating art.

Practice communicating in English with the support of the facilitator who is also a qualified English teacher.

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Program Details Painting the things that bring us joy WEEK 1

Vessel; Tonal still life Mixing paint and producing a range of tones is the goal of the first workshop.

BRING: A simple bowl, cup, plate or jug from your culture WEEK 2

Nourishment; Introduction to the colour wheel In this lesson you will learn how to mix colours and provide a variety of tones with that colour. We will then choose an ‘in season’ fruit or vegetable to do a still life study of.

BRING: A favourite fruit or vegetable which is in season or popular in your homeland

WEEK 3

Weave; Pattern and Contrast Here we will look at techniques for mixing colours and copying patterns.

BRING: Clothes or fabric from your culture with a beautiful or exciting pattern

WEEK 4

Bloom; Blending colours This week you will be Painting Flowers. For this lesson we will look at traditional and contemporary ways of painting Flowers. The paintings of Georga O’keefe BRING: A favourite flower or a flower

WEEK 5

My Special Place; Landscape In this lesson you will learn the traditional western way of portraying the landscape with arial perspective. We will also look at more modern ways of interpreting the landscape.

BRING: A picture of a landscape which is special to you

WEEK 6

Sharing the Joy; Group mandala In this last week we will complete a large group artwork in the shape of a large circle combining the many symbols of things that bring us joy in life

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Program Detail The students This project is designed for women from diverse cultural backgrounds who have migrated to Australia. The facilitator will cater for people with no artistic experience, however, women who are already interested in art will also benefit.

The facilitator Verena Marmion graduated a Bachelor of Fine Art at Monash University Melbourne in 2003.

After that she studied a Graduate Diploma in Art Therapy. After that Verena moved to Switzerland where she completed CELTA (Cambridge Certificate of teaching English as a second language) started her career teaching English as an additional dialect. After three years living in a foreign country and teaching English Verena started an art group for women who speak German as a second language. Having enjoyed that project so much Verena moved to Western Australia at the start of 2010 to do a Graduate Diploma in Education with Visual Art as a teaching major and registered with WACOT (The Western Australian Teachers Association). Having completed her teacher training she now intends to continue inspiring women from diverse cultural backgrounds to express themselves artistically.

The workshop structure The workshops will be opened by the facilitator with an exploration of the metephorical symbolism of the type of the object which is to be painted that day. This will be followed by a demonstration of painting techniques useful for that week’s subject. The ladies will then receive individual assistance while they paint their chosen object. Before we finish to the ladies will get themselves a cup of tea and sit in a circle to reflect on their paintings and the painting process.

Developing the participants awareness of symbolism through still life painting The traditional method of teaching painting through still life is made more interesting by using objects that have meaning for the students. To personalise the program the women are asked to bring in objects that they would like to paint. As this program is designed for women from diverse cultural backgrounds it is encouraged for the ladies will bring objects from their various respective cultures to form a basis for sharing stories with the group. It is hoped that interesting discussion will be generated around what these things are used for, any cultural symbolism imbedded within the design of that object and memories the women associate with them. The workshop series is called ‘Painting the things that bring us joy’ as it is also an objective to identify those small things in everyday life which bring them happiness through layers of embedded meaning.

Art for individual development and social contact Both the individual art making and social discussion elements of this group are integral to this program. First of all the art making where the ladies have the relaxing, self esteem enhancing experience of developing a successful artwork. Secondly an atmosphere of support and encouragement will be fostered and it is hoped that the shared experience of enjoying art making will become a common ground for the women to relate to each other.

End of course exhibition Exhibiting students’ favourite artworks in a public place would be an excellent way to round off the course and celebrate what the women have achieved.

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Advertising It is suggested that suitable participants for the workshop are contacted through the ‘ishar’ newsletter and website. It is also possible to advertise the group through Community notice boards. Something may also be organised with a local newspaper.

Costs MATERIALS It is roughly estimated that total materials costs will come to around $250. This is negotiable depending on how much can be invested by the organisation and the ladies themselves. Naturally this depends on the number of students and if we only buy paint for the 6 week course. We can also seek donations from art supply companies.

MATERIALS LIST Brushes 15 Acrylic brushes size: 15 Acrylic brushes size: 15 Acrylic brushes size:

Paint Warm Red (500 ml) Cool Red (500 ml) Warm Yellow (500 ml) Cool Yellow (500 ml) Green (500 ml) Warm Blue (500 ml) Cool Blue (500 ml) Purple (500 ml) Brown (500 ml) Black (1 l) White (1 l)

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Paper/ canvas 1 reem A2 cartridge paper 5x1 m brown paper for group mandala Other 4 Plastic tablecloths 1 bottle of Acrylic slow drying medium (250ml) 15 Pencils 3 Erasers Tea and coffee 1 role Masking tape

Other things required-no cost: Jars to hold brushes Cleaning detergent Music playing facilities Newspaper Plastic ice-cream lids, milk carton insides(sliced and turned inside out) and cleaned foam trays 15 Water containers 15 Plastic palettes

*It is also asked that $50 petty cash be made available to the teacher for drinks, snacks and other unexpected art costs.

TEACHER Total teacher costs: $450 for 6 week program The break down is as follows:

Wage

Per Hour $35

Â

Per 6 week session course $70 $420

6 Â

Transport

Per 6 week session course $5 $30

Required Facilities : • • • • •

A floor without carpet Access to a sink Tea and coffee facilities Tables for A chair for each student

Conclusion The proposed group would provide the ladies with an opportunity to learn new skills and engage in creative expression as well as provide an environment, which promotes psychosocial support for women from migrant backgrounds. This 6 week group is designed to have the potential to become an ongoing group if the ladies are interested in continuing to develop their painting skills.

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