Doodling Improves Learning

Managers and teachers, don't get pissed off if your employees or students are doodling in meetings or classes!  I was sent to an expensive sales training course and my boss found doodling all over the seminar booklet and concluded that I had not listened to a thing the instructor said.  He couldn't have been more incorrect. Have you ever created fun, or intricate drawings while talking on the phone or listening to a presentation? Most likely, unless you were completely bored, you were able to listen to what was being said, respond to the person on the phone and draw at the same time.  If you were bored, then most likely you were thinking of your next vacation not the drawing.  I knew someone who had a note pad beside the phone that was reserved for her phone call doodling. She said she could look back on pages and recall who she was talking to and what effect that phone call had on her energy levels just by examining the doodles. 

According to a study published in the scientific journal Applied Cognitive Psychology, doodling can aid a person's memory by expending just enough energy to keep one from daydreaming.

Thus, it acts as a mediator between the spectrum of thinking too much or thinking too little and helps focus on the current situation. The study was done by Professor Jackie Andrade, of the School of Psychology at the University of Plymouth, who reported that doodlers in his experiment recalled 29% more than the average of 5.8 recalled by the control group made of non-doodlers.

Not only this, but I argue that the space in which you occupy also affects the type of doodling you do. The sounds, smells, temperature and light within a room can all affect if you draw light and slow with soft edges or fast moving with hard weighted lines and jagged edges. If in a classroom situation, your doodles could be influenced by your mood or reaction to the particular lesson or to any interactions you see or participate in with other students. 

The whole week while in Portland my doodles were very open, colourful and organic.  Very much like the city itself and the lessons I was participating in.  I believe my doodles helped me to experience the city more fully and deeply than if I would have just sat there and listened.  Try it for yourself if you are not already an avid doodler.

 

Tips on buying artwork for your home

Things to consider when buying Art for your home
Look for artwork that will make a positive contribution to your well-being.  Why buy artwork that only does the work of wallpaper? Is art all about colour and form? No, those are the tools used to convey a thought or a feeling.  If your emotions are not moved by the art then you are just buying really expensive wallpaper.

The FIRST things to look for when deciding on new art work are:

Does the piece linger in your mind long after you have seen it?
Does the work invoke an emotional and passionate connection for you?
Does the piece offer an opportunity for discovery either about the subject, process or your own personal journey?
Does this piece offer a complexity which will intrigue you beyond a few weeks or potentially for years to come?

Questions 1 & 2 are easier to answer if you take your time to look around.  It is often an instant response to a piece.  The second two points take a bit more time or help to discover.  Here are some other things I ask myself before purchasing or trading:
Who is the artist and how does a particular piece fit within their process and development?
Was the work created with quality materials?
How should my artwork be framed and protected?
Best placement of art; will I be able to find it a suitable spot in my house?
 
Question 1 is important because knowing about the artist can give you some great insight into the work.  By viewing other works by the artist you will gain a greater understanding of the piece you are considering.  It can add to that complexity I was referring to earlier.
 
Question 2 has become more important over the years with contemporary work.  All sorts of surfaces and mediums are being used.  It is really exciting to see new boundaries being pushed and the materials used are something to consider when purchasing.  Sometimes archival is necessary, sometimes it isn't.  This all depends on what your priorities are for your artwork.

Questions 3 is something that can hold up many a buyer and an artist.  Framing can be expensive and there are so many alternatives.  I try to go for the least amount of frame I can get away with while still offering the most amount of protection for the piece. Once in a while an artist might go for something flashy, but in that case, the frame becomes part of the artwork.  Over the last year I have been using Sheppard Fine Art Services in Kensington for my framing.  Carol and Terra do a great job protecting the pieces.

If you are considering purchasing some artwork you should consider attending a really fun and informative seminar Denise of Panakagos Designs and myself are teaming up to provide.  Denise is one of the top designers in the city and has years of experience and happy clients in her portfolio.  She has a wealth of knowledge to share on where and how you hang your artwork can change a house.  I will be going into more details on the above notes and suggestions.  Watch for more details on the seminar - date to be announced shortly. 


Reduce stress with spontaneous action

Feeling Stressed and Stretched to Your Limits?

Road rage one minute and later you feel like crying when someone says, "Can you do me a favor?" Cursing people for not getting back to your emails in the same hour as you wrote to them? Feel like you need a really long vacation from the daily grind?

Sure a vacation would help, but you need to learn how to destress and live happily on a day-to-day basis.  This is not advice. I am just sharing how I see things on this subject.

Some people think they need to plan better. They are just not organized like other 'successful' people.  Really, is one more gadget in your life going to improve things? That reminds me of the food processor I bought to make my life so easy in the kitchen. It has been used twice. Now I spend time thinking about how to get rid of it :-)

You don't need to learn how to stay on track, you need to GET OFF THE TRACK! Clear the decks for some spontaneous time in your daily or at least, weekly life.  Pure unplanned, non-results oriented, no expectations - SPONTANEOUS TIME. People go through great lengths to have spontaneous time. Like the couple who took a kayak down the Amazon river to see what would happen.  Yes, it took a plan to get there but they had no idea how each day was going to  unfold.

Spontaneity doesn't take an Amazon River trip - but it does require an element of the 'unknown'.  I will talk more about this in the upcoming B&B ezines. (marketing guru told me not to call them 'newsletters').

Point Zero Painting is one of my places where spontaneous expression happens.  Don't be fooled by the dark images, I have a lot of fun.

SIGN-UP FOR THE POINT ZERO PAINTING WORKSHOP!



Wood Burning Projects



Applying the Resin

1. Lay out all the paintings to wear resin.
2. Place paper underneath each peice.
3. Make sure there is no debris on the paintings and the paintings are dry.
4. Make sure you have enough resin to completely cover each painting with a good thick layer.
5. Have a heat gun near by for the bubbles.
6. Wear gloves and have some paint stir sticks around.

 This is me in my messy studio.  Applying resin is a lot of work. To complete 3 paintings it takes me about 2.5 hours to layout the resin, spread it evenly and make sure all the bubbles are blown out.

The resin brings the paint back out of the wood and provides great protection to all the mixed media in the artwork.