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| Linda and I are both expressive and intense. One difference is she needs a mic (very soft spoken and gentle) and I do not. |
I’ve just returned from a 3 day workshop with Linda
Rothchild Ollis at Menucha Retreat in Corbett, OR. The workshop was called “Stronger Design:
Before and After” and the description fit with what I felt I need at this
time. The workshop was full at 18
artists. It began late Sunday afternoon May 15th and ended Wednesday afternoon, May 18th.
When I signed up in January I was initially put off with the
idea of sharing a room with complete strangers. Menucha is owned by the
Presbyterian Church and, I discovered, run much like the Methodist church camps
of my youth (except no tents, outhouses or homesick kids). One big
benefit of holding the workshop there was that I was in the same building,
whether in the workshop, in the dining hall or in my bed. I
shared a room with only one person (some had 2 or 3). The room had a bathroom
right outside the door. We roomies were
respectful of each other’s privacy and nocturnal rhythms. Meals were very good
with generous servings. We all volunteered as table “hosts” for two meals and I
found that being a “table mommy” was a lot of fun with very little work. We could leave our
materials and possessions around in the studio or public areas and not worry.
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| My friend and table mate was Mary Rollins who took this great shot looking down at the workshop area from a balcony above. |
At the time I began the workshop I had just finished pouring
a painting modeled after a collage I’d done a week earlier which I called
“Peoples of the Earth I”. During the first day I thought about and
worked on 2 sketches for other derivatives. However I never actually started the
paintings. The process Linda took us
through was completely absorbing. I let go of all other plans and ideas and
just went with the flow. We began with
analysis of award winning paintings, using tissue paper to see large shapes, values and
composition (without the trivial detail). Then we stepped it up by evaluating our own
work and learned how to expand our design skills using nonrepresentational
pencil, paint and collage techniques.
I came home with several thoughts. I had become too focused on producing
paintings that might lead to the next competition entry. My work had become tedious which is reflected
by the end product. Linda taught several
interesting methods designed to increase awareness of potential compositional
forms, exercises designed to (if you will forgive me) “expand our minds”. I had forgotten how to “play”, how to paint and
create without concern about whether I would produce a competition worthy
product or a painting someone wanted to buy. I came home excited, rejuvenated,
and ready to add some new practices to my routine, try some new materials and,
perhaps most important, I was out of my rut.
