The Illuminated Journal

NC650-01

The Journal is a place where visual practices of creating images, shaping letter, arranging words and space all unite in one creative act.  It can be a tool of self knowledge, a tool to handle emotions, to link the past to the future or to make yourself a better human.  Through a series of exercises, participants develop a creative practice of freely, clearly and honestly recording a well-rounded portrait of their own unique world and world view.  Students can use a variety of media (watercolor, collage and drawing) while creating their pages and, finally, the pages are used to construct an artist’s book/journal using simple binding techniques. Each class is designed to last approximately three hours.

Example of an exercise: “Aesthetic Treasure Hunt”– Most aesthetic reactions are vague i.e. we know we like something but we don’t know why.  This exercise is designed to discover what attracts us individually and then take a close look at these features.  Some of these attractions one discovers are a pattern (such as a cottonwood bark), repeated shapes, rhythms, color, texture, arrangement of shapes, or the spaces between the shapes. A watercolor demonstration precedes this exercise, and students are encouraged to play with these treasures with brushes and paint.

This class has ended.

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