|  | “View from Farmers Horse Coffee Shop, Mass Ave” Graphite on Sketchbook paper | Hi <<First Name>>, Greetings from Boston and happy Winter Solstice and holiday season! It feels like I was just on my way to Florence to start the 2nd year and now the first trimester is completed and I’m home on winter break. Have you ever been a tourist in your own city? I’d love to hear - respond here to share! I ask because I’m staying in the Back Bay/South End area of Boston, an area I’ve gone to many times, but always just for a day. But now I’m getting to wander and explore and am seeing it anew. And it’s fascinating. |  | “Emancipation,” Meta Vaux Warrick Fuller, Sculptor, Harriet Tubman Square, South End, Boston | Seeing with news eyes! The more I look for new artistic ideas, the more I see. And seeing Boston in this way, I’m discovering new streets, art such as this beautiful statue above, new coffee shops to sketch in, new ways the light hits a tree. |  | “View from Trident Books, Newbury Street, Boston,” Graphite on Sketchbook paper |  | “St. Botolph Street, Boston” | Speaking of seeing anew, that is probably my most important leaning at the Florence Academy of Art. This term was as impactful as all of last year. Many concepts started to come together and I also learned that tiny improvements can be significant! “You’ve gone this far, why not go even farther,” said our 2nd year director. I’d done 100+ hours on the drawing below and couldn’t see more to do, so thought I must be done. I will forever be grateful, he pushed me further than I thought I could go. How? |  | Well, for example, he said, the left eye is sooo close, but not quite there. The eye lid needs to be a little straighter in the middle and then wrap around more. It was such a tiny amount off that you could barely see it. But as soon as he said it, I could see it. It took me 3++ hours of trying and trying again to get it right. My charcoal had to be sharper than sharp. And when I finally got it, her gaze shifted just a tiny bit, but made a big difference in the drawing. Then I knew it was done. |  | Speaking of super sharp charcoal…tools help if you use them correctly! In these two pencil drawings above and below, I can see places where I would have made a clearer mark, had my pencil been sharper. So why not just sharpen, then? Well, it’s a pain! It takes time and patience, and the sharper you go, the more easily they break. So I’d make it “kind of” sharp, to save time and avoid the chance of breaking. But I’ve learned from this project “close but not quite” is no longer okay! So I’ve set out to master my sharpening skills. With sharper charcoal I can draw more accurately and more quickly. Seems so obvious, and even the teachers were constantly saying “use sharper charcoal!” But I guess I had to come to it myself. |  | Interestingly this pattern shows up in a lot of ways in my life. Can’t quite get into a yoga pose, and instead of using a yoga block to help, I only “kind of” do the pose. Do you have examples of this in your life? Please share with me here. I find it so interesting how learning one thing, brings learning to so many other areas of life. And I love to hear your thoughts! |  | Work in Progress: Rome Side Street, Oil on Canvas panel | Even though this painting is not done, I had to share some color! I’ve not had much time to paint outside of school, and I really miss it. I’ve come to love drawing, but color is my thing! I’m excited that next term we’ll be doing much more painting, so I’ll have more to share in upcoming emails! I wish you a happy and colorful holiday season and best of everything in the New Year. Thank you for being a part of my community. As a dear teacher once said, art is meant to be shared! Ellen
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