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32-Drawing/Painting…the Follow Up
17 Plays3 days ago
Patti and Charlotte debrief on the wonderfully thoughtful watercolor painting assignment that Jaime Lynn Henderson gave them in the previous episode.
This episode begins with an extended catch-up, during which Charlotte tells us about the Halloween she dressed as Gary Oldman’s character from the Apple TV show, Slow Horses (a show Charlotte plugs every chance she gets). We dissect our tolerance for awkwardness and discover we are on opposite ends of the spectrum on this front. We talk about Patti’s upcoming trip to Disney World (for which her niece made art to give to the characters--too cute!).
At the 18:00 mark, we get into The Assignment, which was:
1. do one freestyle watercolor
2. do one watercolor of something you love
3. compare how you felt doing each
4. be very, very proud of yourself afterwards
We talk about all the parts of the assignment, from how and where we procured the supplies, to the nitty gritty of our art anxieties (you know it’s a good assignment when it shows up in our dreams).
Then we get into the actual process of painting, of the mental shifts needed to make art, of the materials and how those matter, for emotional reasons as much as anything else.
We talk about our freestyle techniques, and how it felt not to have any limits beyond the page and the materials.Then we unveil our portraits. Can you guess what beloved things we painted? (No, not our dogs. And yes, our dogs were mad at us because of it)
Did we, indeed, feel very, very proud afterwards? (Yes, of course, that was the assignment) And we wrap it up with a discussion on accessibility and the Level of Integration Score (LOIS).
The episode ends a little abruptly due to technical difficulties, but if we could have recorded more, we would have said a big THANK YOU to Jaime Lynn Henderson for her amazing homework selection and for getting us into painting!!
Logo design by Marielle Martin
Song: Upbeat Drums with Stomps and Claps by music_for_video
BlueSky: @canweinterestyouin.bsky.social
Instagram: @canweinterestyouin
Email us your interests! CanWeInterestYouIn@gmail.com
Website: canweinterestyouin.com
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Transcript
Introduction and Listener Invitation
00:00:00
Speaker
You know that thing you love that your friends and family don't want to hear about anymore? Tell it to us, Patty and Charlotte. We want to learn all about your weird and wild obsessions or your perfectly normal hobbies that you've taken just a little too far.
00:00:15
Speaker
We want to dabble in your curious interests. Can we interest you in today's episode?
Charlotte's TV Show Obsession: 'Slow Horses'
00:00:35
Speaker
Well, hi, Patty. Hey, Charlotte. How are you? i am pretty good. oh wait. No, I am.
00:00:47
Speaker
I'm good. I'm good. true. know. um I mean, yeah, sometimes I really do have to think. ah ah How am I?
00:00:59
Speaker
I accidentally stayed up too late, later than normal. I usually stay up pretty late anyway. What were you doing? Watched Slow Horses. and Have you watched Slow Horses?
00:01:13
Speaker
No. Is it a movie? A TV show? No. It is a TV show. It's on Apple TV and it's like British spies, MI5, except it's like the sort of the outcasts of MI5 have this like group and they're led by Gary Oldman, who plays like this kind of like steward.
00:01:38
Speaker
smelly, gross, really good spy who's very like, you know, kind of rude to everybody, but really good at his job. And it's it's a very funny show. And I dressed as Gary Oldman for Halloween a couple years
Analyzing 'Slow Horses': Humor and Pacing
00:01:55
Speaker
ago.
00:01:55
Speaker
in that show so I was just gonna say now I'm remembering because you told me about it okay yes and i'm like yes yes oh that's fun so it's like what season is it in Now I think it's season five. And each season only has like maybe six episodes. But are they like an hour and a half long each in the true British way? No. I think they're like 45 minutes or ah an hour.
00:02:23
Speaker
So it goes very fast. It's very fun. It it can be quite violent, but it's
00:02:30
Speaker
that doesn't's not deterring me. It's not the kind of violence that I can't stand, like horror violence or that sort of thing. It's just like... action Occasionally something that you're like, oh, but.
00:02:46
Speaker
Not torture, not gruesome, not only women. Yeah. Oh, yeah. No, definitely Okay, maybe some torture, some gruesome. Well, I'm just trying to think like that in the most recent episode we watched, Gary Oldman describes torture, but he it's but it's a very good scene. um So i I highly recommend it because it's just it's just fun. It's very fast paced and the characters are really, um they're just really either likable or you hate them, but you you love to hate them.
00:03:23
Speaker
Like you're supposed to hate them. So they're doing a good job. Yeah. And they're there's hilarious. Yeah.
Understanding 'Slow Horses': Title and Characters
00:03:29
Speaker
I love the premise like outcast and then wait, are they called slow horses because they're like.
00:03:36
Speaker
Because was the name of the the outcast little like um group, they don't even get an office in like the main MI5 offices. They just have like this, this old building that they're in. It's called Slough House.
00:03:49
Speaker
And so that's why it's called Slow Horses, like as if that's their nickname. Because it's all the people who were sent there either. One of them is like sent sort of because of politics. ah But, ah you know, another one is sent because he's so annoying that nobody can stand to have him in the main office.
00:04:11
Speaker
Yeah. it's like school. It's like, oh, yeah, you get sent to the like alternative school because of behavioral issues or you get sent to the counselor's office because we just don't want to listen to you anymore.
00:04:27
Speaker
or it's like you ah you know something that you we don't want other people to to hear about and so we're going to pretend that you did something and then send you there.
00:04:38
Speaker
You're too good at your job sometimes, but that's not generally it except for Gary Oldman's really good at his job. they They're all pretty good at their jobs. And then it's like they're all misfits in different ways, which then is fun to see how they interact and yeah bring out the best in each other. or Yeah, except for it's they do it in a way that doesn't end up being too sappy like at all.
00:05:05
Speaker
Right. You said humor, so that that helps. Yeah. Was it one of those where you're like, Let's just watch an an episode. And then it's like, one more. One
Viewing Habits and Coping with Awkward Scenes
00:05:15
Speaker
more. It was like we watched two and then we were going to watch half of the the first episode of Pluribus, which is Vince Gilligan, I guess his show and ah the guy who did Breaking Bad and Better Call Saul.
00:05:31
Speaker
And it's an hour long. And we were going to watch half an hour of it, but ended up watching the whole thing, which yeah is interesting because it's it's an interesting kind of weird, very weird show. And Adam has a lot of trouble watching certain types of things, like anything that could potentially be very awkward or very intense, like the TV show Pen15, he needed like an emotional support person, which would be me to sit with him through the awkward scenes and just be like, it's gonna be okay. It's gonna be okay.
00:06:06
Speaker
It's gonna get resolved. And he was in this one. i mean, it wasn't like awkward, but it was definitely sort of in intense and weird at times. And he you know there were times where he was on the verge of leaving the room. um but so yeah, it's it's kind of funny because like i can't – and he also can't really handle – certain kinds of violence, but I can handle awkward like a lot. Yes. Your tolerance for awkward in both art, but then in real life is, is high. And so like, I'm wondering, and that's like such a compliment, I think, like, I think it's such a wonderful skill. Um,
00:06:55
Speaker
But so is he and I know he's like in very social. Does he also get anxious when things are awkward in real life? Those moments where it's like, we don't really know anybody or like there's yes a silence. okay. Like if- you are a good Yeah.
00:07:14
Speaker
If people just like break out in song in just everyday life, ah yeah he cannot handle it. like When he first met my family or came to ah came to you know Christmas, we come in the the room and then my nieces and nephews, other grandma is like singing Christmas carols with them and immediately...
00:07:39
Speaker
i was like oh no, poor Adam. of
00:07:43
Speaker
And also sometimes like I want to break out. I do break out in song just randomly. Like like I used to sing the Star Spangled Banner a lot. I like really like that song. I don't know why. no idea. Yeah. But He asked me to stop, I think, mostly when our country started really, really going downhill. So I have stopped, but sometimes I will break out into that, look at this stuff, isn't it neat? Wouldn't you think my collection's complete?
Social Gathering Awkwardness and Coping Strategies
00:08:16
Speaker
That's such a great song. Yeah.
00:08:19
Speaker
Oh God. that and That is so of our era. The Little Mermaid. I think about that regularly. I don't know if your nieces and nephew are into demon hunters, but it was really cute over the summer.
00:08:31
Speaker
there were we were at the playground and these kids who all like didn't know each other, but you know how kids will be just playing with each other. All of a sudden, they're all just singing songs from like the Huntrix song. And I was like, yes, this is how we were about Little Mermaid. It just was the best to sing it. and you And her voice is amazing. So you really felt, I'm such a good singer. Yes, know. Singing it really, it feels like, wow, how am I so good at this? But it's just a good song. And a hard one, but like not so hard that, yeah, you can't hit a note. Now, wait, for the Star Spangled Banner, would you, do you always start at the beginning or is there a point? Oh, yeah.
00:09:12
Speaker
Always at the beginning. Yeah. Okay. Yeah. I don't, I don't know. Why? i didn't know this about you. Yeah. No, I mean, it's mostly like driving in the shower just on my own, but it's not something I advertise a lot.
00:09:29
Speaker
Well, and would you say like if someone had asked you, oh is there a song constantly running through your head or like your default song, would you have said, oh, yeah, it's the Star Spangled Banner or. Yeah, I don't know that it runs through my head. It's just like when I'm going to sing like it is.
00:09:48
Speaker
it what You know, and songs that run through my head are just whatever the last song i heard is usually. so it's different. It plays a different part. Yeah. It's more of a vocal exercise.
00:10:01
Speaker
Gotta keep them exercised. it's It's really similar to what we learned last time on this podcast with Jamie about it's about exercising it. Yeah. I do quickly want to go back to, though, when you were saying, yeah, Adam, it's really awkward. He feels uncomfortable when people are singing, burst into song. And, you know, when he met my family, I was like, who? and I cannot picture anyone in your family just like bursting into song. So it made sense when it was like, Oh, Charlie's mother-in-law. Okay. Okay. so And, and the kids, like it was like, they were singing Christmas carols. So it it made total sense, but even the Christmas carols, I think he's gotten better about it. He's, he's gotten less awkward about it, done karaoke, but that's like on purpose. I think it's more when it's spontaneous that that's, it's, it's hard for him.
00:10:54
Speaker
it's like i didn't I wasn't warned. I didn't know it was coming. What's your tolerance for awkwardness in everyday life? Oh, so low. So low. Yeah. and And I'm working on that because that is part of why I will leave social gatherings. and I'm like, no, just push through. like But my my immediate reaction is, okay, leave, exit. is it If it's like your own feeling of awkwardness or if there's awkward things going on.
00:11:25
Speaker
Yeah, that's a good distinction. um Well, what would be what would be an example of awkward things going on? um Okay, like you go to a party and nobody knows each other and everybody's standing around. There's a lot of people who are like
00:11:48
Speaker
pretending to do things that I don't know. like what does me, I guess it's different for everybody, like what they would consider awkward. Like I have a hard time when a lot of people or even just one or two are not talking to anybody. I'm like, should I go talk to them? Do they, do they do they need some support or, and but then like,
00:12:10
Speaker
Also, if I don't know anybody, I'm like, ah, then that's why i I freak, you know, if I freak out when I don't have anybody to talk to, then I'm worried that they are. I'm like, should I go talk to them? There's too many people to keep track of. Or if there's like a lot of people at a party and you know some of them, but like some of them you don't know very well and you're like, should I say hello or should I wait? I i do get very awkward, which is probably why i have a high tolerance for it, because I just already know it's going to happen.
00:12:42
Speaker
It's inevitable. We all are. Yeah. Awkward. Yeah. That's okay. So with that distinction, i definitely, it if it feels like, I think it's both because yes, I've been in situations where I'm also like, this is a weird hang.
00:12:58
Speaker
It just all feels awkward. And I don't, I'm not a like, oh, let me stick around and try to be part of the solution. i'm like, let me get out of here. Yeah. I don't want this credit assigned to me. um And I definitely, as soon as I start feeling awkward, like if I wouldn't have somebody to talk to or if I attempt to talk to somebody and it doesn't go well, you know, like it's not reciprocated or whatever, then i I definitely am like, okay, and goodbye. And part of that is like always telling myself like, oh, nobody else pays nearly as much attention to you as you pay attention to you. You know, that's like just true for all of us. Yep. Everybody's paying attention to themselves mostly.
00:13:41
Speaker
But back to how you are. so sorry, you stayed up way too late. But today i' I'm doing okay. So...
Patty's Disney World Travel Dilemmas
00:13:50
Speaker
What about you How are you?
00:13:53
Speaker
I'm good. Yeah, it's been a productive day already, which is great. And Emilio had his final basketball game today at 8 a.m., which the pro of going to an 8 a.m. game at the y is that you get a parking spot.
00:14:09
Speaker
So um just, you know, trying to focus on that. And then had a dog park day and did some dishes. So like, I feel like, yeah, okay, good, good things. I am a little anxious because I'm leaving on Monday morning really early for vacation. And I've heard that with the partial government shutdown, that tsa you know, they're starting to call off and things like that. And so the lines can be
00:14:39
Speaker
crazy and then just trying to get everything done before you leave you know how that goes so yeah a little bit of a mixed bag but I feel like when I'm under the gun I can tend to be more productive so Yeah. Yeah. I am the same. Yeah. I forgot about that, about the, you know, airports and I hope that it all goes okay. Can you guys drive if you if you can't fly? Probably not. Layla would love to because she's afraid of flying, but no.
00:15:11
Speaker
Like, I mean, could we physically? Yes. But we're going Monday and coming back Thursday. So it's one of those, like, it's not to Florida. So it's not worth it. Not worth it. Okay.
00:15:23
Speaker
Well, I wish you great luck that everything is just fine. Thank you. And you're going in Florida to Orlando. All right. Yeah. We're going to go to Disney world. So yeah, it's spring break for my sister and her two youngest children. And so Emilio just turned six last weekend and then Lila's eight. So it feels like a really good age for them. And neither of them are super Disney people. We aren't either, you know, my parents are going to come along and they're not super Disney, but it feels like a fun excursion. And so we have very low expectations and have done minimal planning.
00:16:05
Speaker
Nice. That sounds great. We'll see how it goes. Have any of you been there before? You know, like when I was probably three or four, we went as a family. I went with my high school. i think it was the orchestra, maybe orchestra and band. and I can't remember exactly who, but like in high school, it was really fun.
00:16:29
Speaker
It was so fun. But that's the last time I went. So I'm sure it's even better now, but also more expensive and yeah probably lots more to do.
00:16:40
Speaker
Right. and And also so many things to know about it. It's like, oh, if you get there before the park, you can do your drop rope choice. ride and I was like what's that so I had to like google so many things and it's basically like as soon as the sometimes there's a physical rope that drops at certain park entrances um when it opens and so like you just rush to whatever ride you want to see and then there's like a lightning fast pass so that you don't you can skip the line but then it's kind of like TSA pre-check where everyone has TSA pre-check so the line's not that much shorter And that's extra cost. And I don't I'm not willing to invest in something like that when I don't even know if the kids are going to want to go on rides.
00:17:25
Speaker
Do they are they not ride kids or you don't know yet? I don't I don't know that they've ever had an experience to do anything other than a carousel. Oh, okay. You're going to find out some things. Like, are they into And Leela's afraid of heights. Okay, yeah. Or is it maybe she's ah going to be a vomiter or just a, nope, don't go on there at all. I think I just know.
00:17:49
Speaker
Which, hey. Potentially very fun. Potentially very fun. And that's the thing. I'm like, we're just going to have a good time regardless what happens. Yeah, it sounds great.
00:18:00
Speaker
Well, should we talk about painting and drawing? Yeah. So Jamie was going to join us today and she is helping out a fellow human get some help that they need. So that's awesome. And it's a bummer not to have her, but this was really a very fun, a fun topic.
00:18:21
Speaker
Yeah, it definitely was. i was ah looking forward to having her here, but we will send her the pictures of what we did so that she can know give us feedback if she wants to, but we'll also post them on our Instagram and Blue Sky.
00:18:37
Speaker
I will say that I was, well, okay, well, let's say what the
Art Assignment Preparation and Anxiety
00:18:41
Speaker
assignment was. So it was to do two watercolors, one, just kind of like freestyle, like whatever you want, i using, you know, different techniques, doing basically anything, get creative.
00:18:55
Speaker
And then the other one was to paint something you love. And then, oh, and then be very proud of yourself afterwards.
00:19:05
Speaker
Yes. And doing this with watercolors. Yes. So all how did it go for you, Patty? It was fun. i went to, I realized like I thought I had tons of watercolors and I just didn't. So I went to Michael's on a Sunday and that's always fun because I still don't really know the areas very well outside of the city and some of the city too. So it's like you end up in random suburbs, you know, like where's the nearest Michael's? and then I'm like,
00:19:37
Speaker
Oh, this is kind of fun. So I went to a Michaels to get Crayola watercolor palette, which was fun. I got the deluxe version, so more colors. And then I also found this really fun um ah watercolor pad. And so I'll hold it up to you.
00:19:55
Speaker
and it's like four by six and it's 15 sheets. They're like tear off sheets. And so it's that watercolor paper that has like a little bit of a texture to it. And I liked the size, like a I just liked that it was, i like the size of it in general. I like things that are a little bit smaller and that it's postcard size. So i'm like, Oh, that could be fun to like make your own postcards. And it also didn't feel as overwhelming to have to fill a big space. Yeah.
00:20:23
Speaker
yeah And then while I was there, I also found these really cute mini canvases. Oh, cute. Post-it size, like the square post-it size. And so that came with a pack of sticks. So that was fun. I didn't do any of the canvases yet, but i was just excited about them because i like i I found that I like things that are a little bit smaller in size. So that was kind of my start of it. How about for you?
00:20:51
Speaker
I, let's see. So I went to Barnes and Noble and what? Yeah. I get a discount there. Cause I'm like a member. Uh, okay. I don't know what i do with my thing, but I got, they had on sale this thing that is essentially like,
00:21:08
Speaker
some watercolors, the little palette, some paper, and then like a book where the woman who, you know, wrote the book teaches you how to do some different drawings. So it had everything that I needed to kind of get started at least so that I could see how it went. And then it had a couple of like little more glittery sorts of paints and then one like like a gel or glitter pen. So very exciting. Oh, nice.
00:21:39
Speaker
And yeah, it was just kind of an easy way to be like, I don't know what I need, but here are all these things together. Mm-hmm. Yeah, because How many brushes? Three brushes. like Oh, that's cool. Like one kind of bigger, flat one, and then two of the like smaller, pointier ones of different sizes.
00:21:58
Speaker
But I think I had a lot of anxiety about it beforehand because I had a dream about getting watercolor paints, and I don't know what that's about.
00:22:09
Speaker
I will say that like art in general kind of gives me anxiety. But like since I took the pencil drawing class, it helped me.
00:22:21
Speaker
But then I haven't taken any sort of like watercolor painting class. And I think it's just like the not knowing what I'm doing. But also i think mainly it's like the blank piece of paper or the blank canvas and being like, what the hell am I going to draw or do? Right.
00:22:38
Speaker
Which Jamie had mentioned that, like, don't let the blank paper intimidate you. I also find that I, yeah, I get anxious because I want what I'm about to make to turn out the way that I want it to. And I know that it's historically has not. So I'm like, okay, it's not gonna, it's, I'm going to be disappointed. um but when you said that taking the pencil drawing class helped, what about that helped you?
00:23:07
Speaker
or like not be as anxious about at least art in general. It helps me because I think in the past when I've tried to draw or paint things, I go based on what I'm looking at, but also based on how my brain's interpreting it, which is not actually what it looks like. So the things that she taught us were things like, I mean, if you look at something and you're drawing it,
00:23:32
Speaker
And you're like, okay, I think naturally I would think the outside, the outline is darker for some reason because it's an outline. But a lot of times if you look at it, it's like light on part of it where the light source is coming from. And then there there's like a shadow next to it. And then that's how you kind of delineate it. So it just helped me to look at things in a way that made sense for drawing or painting it.
00:23:57
Speaker
And gave me knowledge about where to start, what to do, and also like how quickly you can get better at it. So it just knowing that I couldn't do anything at the beginning of the class. And by the end of the class, I could draw something like a piece of fruit. And it looked pretty much like that piece of fruit. It was pretty amazing.
00:24:23
Speaker
And like you so yeah like you said last time, that it's about the practice of it and and that you had thought you either have that skill or you don't. And it's like, oh, wait, no, it's it's something you can you can learn and grow.
00:24:36
Speaker
The other thing is, I didn't realize this until I was doing the watercolors, is i really don't really like to get my fingers sticky or like dirty or gross. And Painting can do that. So that that might have been sort of like a partial kind of reason that, you know, I like pencil drawing, but painting is more, i mean, it's not gross, like, like having wings or something. That's the worst. Luckily, I don't eat meat anymore. But it's also not as tasty as wings. it's Yeah, definitely do not lick your fingers.
00:25:15
Speaker
But you're right that there is an opportunity for things to get messier, especially like, yeah, it's not an oil paint where it's going to get all over everything or like ah be more permanent, but there is water that you're dipping.
00:25:32
Speaker
So yeah. Like I've heard this about um art therapy, ah which is that like you start with kind of the more things like pencils or colored pencils, the things that are more like less messy and mushy and all of that. And then as you get more into the art therapy, you can go into those things. So I think they probably just do feel a little bit more like vulnerable or you're getting into stuff like things like clay.
00:26:03
Speaker
I got all of these materials and then Layla was homesick with me, I think, two days the week after I got the materials.
Watercolor Experimentation and Learning
00:26:12
Speaker
And so she cracked them open and worked in them first, which also was really helpful because then I wasn't as precious about, but it's unused in there. So... It's like, okay, great. the The color, the watercolors are already mushed up together, you know, and also seeing kind of the art that she was making was very helpful. And then they had the start of their spring break. They had a half day on Thursday of this week and then they were off yesterday. So they were with me while
00:26:41
Speaker
I was at home for work. And so she was like, I'm going to start making cards and art for, to give to the different Disney characters. And so she did. And then she like, so that was really cool. I came back from ah out of a meeting at one point to check on them. And it was like a full gallery of art that she had created in that time. And then Emilio was like, I want one like that. And so then she made him a piece of art, which I'll hold up because I put it he He left it here, of course, then. But she made him this cream cone. That is amazing.
00:27:17
Speaker
Yeah. It's so cool. Ice cream cone with what? It's a tie-dye background. He wanted something that was tie-dye. And then she added these little characters all around, like a kuchibara. Is that what they're called? Or I don't know, some kind of animal. and hearts and then she put like Emilio's the best and all of these things she said she wanted to add affirmations for him oh my gosh she is truly her mother's daughter yeah art right and therapy together
00:27:52
Speaker
So true. um So that was pretty cool that, that, you know, they were just, she was, was making art with it. So, and then it was all really just ready for me when I got started. I was like, okay, the water's already here. The, you know, everything is here. So I started with the The one that I thought I was going to be more comfortable doing and and enjoy more, which was the it can be anything abstract. And I had a really hard time with it. I'm not great with colors. It was hard to get used to kind of how much water is good.
00:28:33
Speaker
i definitely found that the part of the reason I asked about how many brushes. Yeah, yours came with is because mine was just the one crappy Crayola paintbrush. And I didn't realize just how, you know, I wanted to get things that were exact. And this does not lead to that. And so I'll show you this one.
00:28:56
Speaker
It's kind of embarrassing. Yeah. But whatever. um That's the point. Let's see. me It's coming up from the bottom of the screen.
00:29:10
Speaker
Okay. wo Oh, it's beautiful. What are you talking about? I love it. I had wanted, so first I had wanted to like fill the screen, like the screen, the palette or, or canvas or whatever, the paper with like a really light green color. Cause the, the water when I got started was kind of a light green color. So I was like, Oh, that'd be cool. If I just put my paintbrush in it and then it picked up like the the slightly tinted watercolor and it didn't really work so then I tried to make it green and then it was too green and then I was like okay now I'm gonna do some like light dappling on it almost like a hydrangea would look if it were just a not a realistic version of it a hydrangea
00:30:01
Speaker
And that kind of looked funky. And then I was like, well, let me see if I put water down first and then put a color on it and like watch it bleed. um And that was enjoyable, but it wasn't one got a little phallic. And then also it was just like kind of strange, the combination. and then, yeah. And then I wanted blue. So I put some blue in the corner, but then that was weird. then I got water to it. So it is a very forgiving medium.
00:30:36
Speaker
Yes. Yeah. that like i did I did like that. We were encouraged to be playful, you know, uh, and just like take risks with it. So I wasn't, I wasn't pleased with the outcome by any means, but i did and enjoy the the process.
00:30:53
Speaker
But will you will you let us post it on our Instagram? Yeah. Okay. Great. So, yeah, it's I like what you've done there, though, because you filled up the whole page. So it's colorful. It's kind of got that tie dye feel to it. And then it has like with green, but then the different blotches of color. It is kind of like a cool abstract painting.
00:31:16
Speaker
And it's very bold, I think. Thank you. it's a Good job. I also started with the freestyle one. I knew that it was going to be the one I liked less, but I decided to start with it because then I could experiment with how to do some colors and use the brushes see colors.
00:31:38
Speaker
and see just get an idea of of what techniques i could try so mine is definitely very much like what a a child with a lot less talent than layla would do and who's like half her age um and doesn't have control of like their motor skills uh let me get mine hold on I always tell my parents that the reason that I don't have good fine motor skills is because they never sent me to Montessori because they sent my sister for a few years.
00:32:11
Speaker
that Yeah, it's their fault. Okay, here we go. It's coming up from the bottom of the screen.
00:32:20
Speaker
Oh, love. Oh my gosh. And yes, yours is a bigger piece of paper. Is that like an eight and a half by a 11? Charlotte, I love the the top portion portion too. Is it like swirly? Yeah, it's swirly. it says ah Who is the person who does the swirls?
00:32:37
Speaker
And go. Yeah, moonch Munch, Edvard Munch, and Van Gogh. We just looked that up because I was saying Munch and Layla was saying Van Gogh. And yes. Oh, my gosh.
00:32:51
Speaker
Cool. Thank you. I did try the salt thing that Jamie talked about, although... I didn't like go back and listen exactly to the technique that she said. I just remember she said something about you could put salt on there and then put paint on.
00:33:06
Speaker
and and it does have these little speckles on it because of where the salt is. The salt is still there. i don't know if it's supposed to stay or not, but. Oh, that's kind of fun. too but So it's like 3d.
00:33:17
Speaker
Yeah. Element. I kind of like that idea that you could do 3d stuff and then, know, cut things out on magazines and stick it on if you want. Yeah. Like that they're being multimedia. Which is some of Jamie's style is that collage collage style. Yeah.
00:33:34
Speaker
It did make me really appreciate how hard it must have been to do those huge paintings that Jamie had in her. I don't know if those were watercolor or a different kind of paint, but either way, good Lord, that had to be a lot of work. Amazing.
00:33:52
Speaker
Right. And I could understand also why she was like, if I don't sell them, that's not the end of the world because I really like these and I'd like to keep them. Beautiful. Yeah.
00:34:04
Speaker
Yeah, for sure. Yeah. The thing with the salt, which I didn't do, is that it like separates out the color, the colors. So if it's like a purple, you know, it would separate out the blue and the red and kind of have them So what color did you use the salt on?
00:34:23
Speaker
Green. Oh, okay. I don't know that it did anything. So in theory, it would have been like blue and yellow, but. Hmm. Yeah. I might just not have done it correctly. It's okay.
00:34:39
Speaker
Was that technique not covered in your book? I tried not to look too much at techniques so that I could just practice. And then I figured if I like it, I'll go and I'll i'll look more closely at techniques. But then that that made the first one feel more like just kind of practice and trying things out. So that felt good.
00:35:01
Speaker
It did. Yes. Like I was like, it's okay. This is supposed to be experimental. So yeah, that was really smart that she told us that was part of the the assignment, you know, included the in the instructions.
00:35:14
Speaker
Yeah. Well, I'm pretty excited about the second one because i i do better with some guidelines and like something to follow. Okay. Much like Project Runway. Okay.
00:35:27
Speaker
Really? And Top Chef. So how did that one go? And how quickly did you do them? How closely to each other did you create these pieces? One right after the other. What about you? okay, cool.
00:35:41
Speaker
Did you do separate, like, your other one? I did. Yep. I had to, yeah. I had, like, different settings. and and And it was pretty cool. Okay, so one of my very oldest friends, like, we've been we've been friends from, like, when we were three. um And she came into town last weekend for a concert. She was going to go see camp. And so I went with her, and she brought a a newer friend of hers.
00:36:07
Speaker
I'm like... It sounds like I'm very competitive. like It's newer. She doesn't know her as well, but it is a very new friend. um And so I had never met this person before and she was great.
00:36:19
Speaker
And then we went to brunch with one of, Kelly is the name of her friend, Kelly's friends who moved here recently. And so then I was like, yeah, it's such a gorgeous day. i might just go to the park that's right near here because I have to complete my art assignment. And they were like, can can we ask you who assigned you art?
00:36:39
Speaker
to do it. And I was like, oh, this is a great way to like tell about my podcast without whatever. And it was funny because I said, oh, I just feel so obnoxious. Like everyone has a podcast and the one woman said, oh, I just don't want to hear men tell me about podcasts that they've started. I want to hear anything a woman tells me. Yeah, that's I've heard that too. Yeah.
00:37:03
Speaker
And I was like, okay. So a potential new friend here in St. Louis, which is great. a great And then potential guests because I told them if they are interested in coming and they're both very, very interesting. um And I'm still trying to get Laura, my friend, to come on. She said maybe this year. So. Anywho, it was a gorgeous day. And so I went and I painted at the Tower Grove Park, which is right near where one of our mutual friends lives. And or like she lives kind of close to that, ah that park. I won't dox anybody. And and there's it's a huge park and it kind of goes down across several streets. like major intersections. And so there are different segments. One area is this pond area where they have gorgeous old flowering trees and and things like that. And with things in bloom, I was like, oh, this will be so wonderful. So I ended up going there and painted for a bit. And it was really just fun because there are other artists around as well. People that like set up and their little easels and, and go there on a regular basis. Like I've been there not making art when they're there. So that was a lovely experience. That sounds so nice. Did you have an easel?
00:38:24
Speaker
No, no. Sounds amazing. And I was worried i was worried it was going to be wet because it had rained like pretty hard the days leading up to it. So i was like, am I going sit in the grass and then it's going to be wet? But it wasn't too bad. So that was good. Where is it? Very nice. So I did ranunculus, which are my favorite flower currently. Gorgeous. What?
Art as a Hobby: Techniques and Exploration
00:38:48
Speaker
That really looks like them. I mean, I don't know what the flowers look like, but it looks like flowers. Yeah. That's beautiful. Yeah. And it was really fun to do like several different shades of reds and yellows and oranges and then greens for the different leaves and to pay attention to details and want to get some of the details, but then also certain things being a little bit more like, let's just give a sense of leaves, you know, not each individual petal, but like.
00:39:20
Speaker
hears It does have that look. Yeah. Right. It's just sort of – it's not – yeah, kind of a little bit abstract in the sense that it's not like entirely realistic, but like so it's got a lot of style in it.
00:39:36
Speaker
I really like it. Yeah. And like you can recognize, like you said, like it's a flower. So – Yeah. Yeah. because The essence of the flower. And then when my sister saw it, she was like, oh my gosh, good job. And she's, she's a very talented artist, but she's also an art therapist and a former teacher. So she knows all the right things to say about how, like to encourage people without being like, yes, good or bad or value judgment, whatever. And then I was like, Layla, um, Hey Layla, what, what do you think of my art? She was like, yeah that's good. Yeah.
00:40:10
Speaker
Like, oh my God, I need her approval. approval and Like when people are like, oh, how did you like it? Like, you know, they don't give their feedback. They're just like, oh, do you like it?
00:40:26
Speaker
Like, great. Thank you that i said
00:40:30
Speaker
you. Oh, did you get a haircut? How do you like it? That's happened to me. ah oh I'm like, I used to before you said that. right But yeah, I really loved, I loved, I loved doing natural elements. I liked um playing around with trying to do like the first flower that I did. rinoculars have like a ton of petals. It's like, They are very, very so tight and small. And then like the petals are really delicate and thin, but they open up. And so it's just like a ton of them, you know, making this like little sphere. And so I tried to get like really detailed with that and then realized a, because of the, how stiff, not stiff really the brush was, it made it difficult. And then also,
00:41:29
Speaker
I was like, oh, I'm not getting the angle or the perspective right. And so then playing with that and then moving to more like, let's get the sense of it and like more of a far away perspective versus really tight in exacting was fun. um And then I tried also mixing up some colors. Like I was getting really nervous about, oh, I don't want any green to get into my yellow because then my yellow won't be yellow anymore. And I was like, okay, how can I do this without creating an entire palette, which I don't really even know that you can do for watercolors. um So a lot more mixing and then also being patient to wait until what I had just painted was dry before coming over it with another color so that it wouldn't bleed.
00:42:16
Speaker
And so it really did feel like it was kind of quick-ish learning process. And obviously there's so much more the more I engaged with it that I could learn, but it did feel like, okay, this this is kind of intuitive.
00:42:31
Speaker
Yeah. I would love to see what you do with more brush options and just like, you know, different kinds of implements. Cause that that's amazing with just like the one brush.
00:42:44
Speaker
Yeah. Maybe I'll start making brushes. Like I'll just start cutting my hair and like turning it. Yes. Oh my God. You should do that. And then you could do the the handle of the brush by using your lathing, your like wood turning skills yeah that we got from Mariel. Oh my gosh. That would be so cool.
00:43:07
Speaker
patty Patty hairbrush. Yes. Yeah, we'll work on some naming options. Okay, so how did your more, how'd your second one go? It was good. I went full opposite of you and did not really very natural, but Jamie had said to do something that you love, so I did.
00:43:26
Speaker
oh Oh, Angela! Oh my God, looks so great. With a magnifying glass and like a bucket hat. Oh, oh my gosh. Wait, so was this based on like an image of her? A photo. Yes, let me show you that image.
00:43:46
Speaker
I will tell you though, I did not have that many color options, so I had to do a lot of mixing of colors. Oh, yeah. This is the photo. Oh, yeah.
00:43:56
Speaker
including the like Great dark um eyeliner. That is so good. Yes. Thank you. oh my gosh. The skin color was extremely difficult.
00:44:09
Speaker
She was pretty orange for a little bit, but but her hair is a little bit glittery because I use that glitter stuff. A shimmer. Wait, so how did you yeah how did you go about the mixing then? just mixed them onto the palette and then in some cases, like I didn't even mix it very well. I just like mixed it a little bit, put some water in and then put it onto the paper and then like smash it around with some water.
00:44:36
Speaker
And then if it was not looking good, I would then maybe take some more water and then dilute it and then use a paper towel or something to...
00:44:46
Speaker
get some of it up off of it oh very cool yeah so yeah that's why i agree that it's a very forgiving medium because i just could kind of erase things that i messed up usually if i did a quick enough or you can cover it up yeah really great oh that's so cool i love that you did jb I originally wanted to do, you know, Vincent D'Onofrio from law and Order Criminal Intent, but it'd be very brown and and beige. And she's, you know, J.B. Fletcher is more like colorful. There was a different photo that was even more colorful, but I wanted the the magnifying glass in there. Well, and also let's focus on the fact that it was a black and white photo that you were drawing from. And so you like. No, it wasn't.
00:45:37
Speaker
Wait, really? It looks black and white to me. got colors, yeah. Okay. Yeah. On my phone, the colors are a little more bright. but Yeah. Yeah. So she's wearing like sort of a purplish scarf, a gray sweater, ah and then like a collared shirt that's sort of off white, which is.
00:45:59
Speaker
pretty hard to to figure out how to do and then like a little bucket hat that's almost like a grayish creamish yeah that was kind of difficult too i started with her eyes because right it it feels like there's a platter there it's a sherlock holmes there's a texture yes yeah And so, yeah, there's ah like a texture there. So I started with a magnifying glass in her eyes because I figured if if I couldn't get the rest of it done, that was going to be like those are the most important parts.
00:46:32
Speaker
Very recognizable, too. Like I feel like Vincent D'Onofrio isn't as yeah distinguished, you know, as a character. Like she is very recognizable.
00:46:45
Speaker
Yes, there's no mistaking it, especially when she's got the magnifying glass. With him, people would be like, why did you just paint a white man it's like a random? Who needs to like increase his vegetable intake and maybe take a nap. Yeah, who's who's just very into his job. That is so fun. i love it.
00:47:09
Speaker
Yeah, I really liked doing this because it like it made it fun. you know I'm like, okay, i I might want to paint something well just for the sake of it. But in this case, I was like, I got to do Angela Lansbury right. you know I got to do right by her. Can't make her look horrible.
00:47:28
Speaker
got to do what I can. Are you going to either hang that or give it to Molly? I really kind of want to give it to Molly. Yeah.
00:47:39
Speaker
I love that idea. What if I just sent it in the mail to her?
00:47:44
Speaker
Maybe I'll get that. You know what? Maybe I should get those postcard sized ones that you have and then just like start doing little. Yeah, can recreate it. like you this is just your new, like you're just churning them out. A business. It'll be my detective series.
00:48:00
Speaker
Yes. yeah You could do like how your uncle did his own illustrations for his book. You could be like, oh, hey, agent, I also want to do a watercolor cover for all of my books.
00:48:15
Speaker
Is that going to make it a harder sell or an easy sell? demanding. That's going to make it a harder sell. Yes. yes This was this was fun. i like that. Like you went outside to do it.
00:48:29
Speaker
Didn't even really occur to me, even though people do it all the time. No. Yeah. And I don't. That's the beauty of hobbies is it like gets you.
00:48:40
Speaker
It's a way. Duh. It's a way to fill time. Like I often am like, oh, okay, I have time. So I should either be like cleaning or watching TV Or napping. And napping often happens because I'm like, i don't want to do those other things, but I don't know how to do it. Whereas, yeah, when you have a hobby, and in this case, a homework assignment, which really got me to do it, it was such a beautiful way to think about time differently. Like, oh, I could go and do this thing there. So I was, yeah, I was incredibly grateful. Yeah. Yeah, it made me think that too, because it's such a like calming
00:49:30
Speaker
kind of hobby. And like once you get in the mindset of I'm learning, I'm trying out different things, different skills, I'm caring less about the outcome, then you just get more into like how can I achieve the the impact I'm trying to achieve or like the effect I'm trying to get at like with her hair? How can I make it as gorgeous as possible like it is? Right. You know. True to life. Feathered.
00:49:59
Speaker
And beautiful. And it's just like, yeah, it's just fun. I did it on the coffee table, like sitting on the couch in front of the TV where I would normally have the TV on. i was like, I could do this instead.
00:50:14
Speaker
And was Janine at all interested in any of the stuff? Janine was definitely like, what the hell are you doing? And can you take me for a walk? And i was like, I promise I'll take you for a walk later, but this is very important. Yeah.
00:50:29
Speaker
I have to do my homework first. Yeah. And she just stared at me while I did it. She's like, something you love, Charlotte. Hello, I'm ah right here and I'm gorgeous.
00:50:42
Speaker
I know, but it's like, I don't know how much black paint I have that's going to be. I don't want to use it all up right now, but someday I will do do one of her because she is gorgeous.
00:50:56
Speaker
Oh, okay. Also in the art world, in my little world, it was so cool. There's this studio, Circle Studio, that just opened near my house. And i walk past it almost every day because it's part of one of the routes that I go on with the dog for a walk. And it's on a main street. And it's just like this little storefront that was nothing for forever.
00:51:21
Speaker
And then slowly they would have things in the window and furniture. And it was like taking, you know, months that they were getting up to speed. And then they had a ah handmade sign that said Circle Studios in the window. And I tried to Look it up online. And there was no there was no information. Well, finally, last week or two weeks ago, there was a sandwich board outside. And so Layla was on a walk with me that day because she had stayed home from school sick. And so I was like, oh, let's go over there to to read the sign. And they they had a grand opening.
00:51:59
Speaker
So they invited whoever wanted to come from the neighborhood. And so she and I went on a Sunday and it was really fun. We saw some neighbors that we knew there and she made a bunch of art. They were using, i think, tempera paints.
00:52:14
Speaker
um, one of the artists that's three different artists that started this studio together. And one of them has a child rainbow who was making art. And so then Layla went and made art too. And it was so cool. And the art there was gorgeous. One of them does oil paints. And I was, I had seen them in the window and was like, I really want that. I really want that. I really want that. She is represented through another gallery. So she's like, I can't really sell my pieces here, whatever.
00:52:46
Speaker
Fine. But it's just lovely to see it in the window every time we walk by. And the other, she does miniatures. So she had like a little Altoids tin that like opened up and it was a dining room set.
00:52:59
Speaker
And she makes it. like some of the pieces out of clay and then others are like found objects that she's like, oh yeah, this was, she she pulled out this thing and she's like, yeah, like this little cylinder. And I was like, oh, that's a dog poop bag middle thing, you know, like, cause I have a lot of them. And she's like, yeah, now you have, you know where you can bring them She's like, people just give me things. And then I figure out like how to repurpose them. So she makes those. And then also like terrarium um glass house, like glass little greenhouses.
00:53:30
Speaker
And so that was really cool. And then the other artist, I'm not sure which art was hers, but that was just so cool to have art like right in the neighborhood. And it's like they're going to potentially start classes at some point. And so I thought that was really, really fun.
00:53:45
Speaker
Wow. That's awesome.
Miniatures, Dioramas, and Art Accessibility
00:53:48
Speaker
I've always thought it would be pretty cool to do like dioramas or the little miniature figures, that kind of thing. Yes.
00:53:57
Speaker
Like, did you have to do that in grammar school? I remember third grade, we all had to, we were all assigned a different Native American tribe. And then we had to create a diorama of the types of homes that they built. And I did, I was going to say, i always thought I did Hopi, but then I did Adobe's.
00:54:13
Speaker
Is that what the Hopi lived in? Adobe's? Anywho. I don't know. I, yeah, I did one based on whatever that book was about Island of the Dolphins. Was that it? oh Oh, yeah.
00:54:28
Speaker
Yeah. Pretty sure i did something. It might have been more like a float, you know, like you put it on a wagon, but essentially still a model. I've been to like the Meow Wolf in Denver and they have like a whole section that's all just like these amazing, amazing. dioramas and like little miniature figures. Yeah, it's it's pretty amazing. So if you get to be good friends with the people at the studio, maybe one of them would like to tell us how to work.
00:55:00
Speaker
The diorama person would like to tell us how to make those Yeah. There is something just about things in miniature that are so appealing. Yeah. I do like the idea of the little the little canvases and those little postcard size papers that you got. I'm going to do that.
00:55:19
Speaker
Then it feels just like, oh, this could be a very quick, fun little exercise. doesn't have to take up that much time. Yeah. It's not as daunting. Yeah. So what would you say in terms of accessibility? I would say very accessible because, i mean, the whole, let's see, the the the podcast was talking about painting and drawing. So even if you just had a pencil or a pen, you could do it. ah But if you wanted to use paints, it,
00:55:44
Speaker
If you weren't like, oh, I got to have the best or some really good stuff, then you can get it for pretty cheap. You can get it like you got the Crayola kind. was Yeah. Is it pretty affordable? Very. Yeah. And I got, like I said, I got the deluxe. So it's like, you know, double up. Oh. have lots of colors. Yes.
00:56:07
Speaker
And that I think was $5 in this economy. Oh, nice. Yeah. So that's pretty like, i mean, that's very accessible. And then the the thing that I got also had instructions and she had different paintings that you could paint yourself and she would kind of tell you how to paint them.
00:56:32
Speaker
Not exactly like, ah you know, to the degree of like a paint by numbers type situation, but very much like you if you want to just get started with being able to do it without having to come up with what to paint or how to get that kind of color, then she just tells you and then it's in the the packet but you know I think there's also videos online probably tons of them there's Bob Ross watch that for instructions yeah very accessible
00:57:03
Speaker
Yeah. And I was even seeing that at the library, since we got our assignment, there were a couple of activities that they were doing for free of different types of art as well. Workshops or even just, hey, come and bring your own art that you're working on to be in a space with people to do it. So thinking that that's really accessible too, to be able to get access to art supplies that you might be interested in. Yeah. I think are probably...
00:57:31
Speaker
would be very possible to get free or affordable art supplies like through those kinds of resources and like make friends or build community through those kinds of events too. Yeah, definitely.
00:57:47
Speaker
And then how about the like the lowest? So likeliness of incorporating or integrating score integration scale. Yeah.
00:57:58
Speaker
There you go, scale. i was like The other day I was like, wait, what does it stand for? And then I was like, oh, am I saying lowest score and here S is the score? And so then it's duplicating,
00:58:14
Speaker
redundant, then it's redundant. Or what if it's the level of integration scale score or score scale? lowest score. lois like I think it's whatever we want it to be. Yes, right.
00:58:30
Speaker
One out of 100. I'm going to say, okay it's hard because I always am like leaning towards the high and then I don't know what it's actually going to be. But while I was doing it, I did feel like I could keep doing this. So I'm going to say 80%.
00:58:47
Speaker
eighty Cool. What about you? Yeah, I'm right around there too, because similarly, I'm always on a high right after. So I'm like, yeah, I'm going to incorporate this for sure. But I do feel like because I have these, this little booklet, I'm like, oh, you know, maybe I'll, that's what I'll, because I asc send, um no, I can't do that. I was going to say I send cards for all my younger cousins for their birthdays, but I put a gift card in it. So I can't do the postcard, but I was like, maybe I could just create some postcards and then send them out to friends and people like that. Like if I have a project that I could be working on, I think that would help me in staying engaged in creating. so
00:59:33
Speaker
Well, and we both have nieces and nephews. So i think that helps because kids are just into art. And then if you could do it with them, like I, I,
00:59:44
Speaker
could do that with my nieces and nephew and that would keep me into it more as well like just having it as something to do together yeah yeah stay interesting and stay interested bye
01:00:05
Speaker
Thanks for listening to
Engagement and Closing Notes
01:00:06
Speaker
today's episode. Please subscribe, comment, and like the podcast. Follow us on Blue Sky Social at CanWeInterestYouIn. Send us an email at CanWeInterestYouIn at gmail.com.
01:00:16
Speaker
And join us next time.