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Making connections
I’ve been listening to Mindwandering by Moshe Bar and the role of the default mode network. The idea is that your mind makes associations with similar ideas. However the difficulty is that we create ideas based on past experiences and some associations may be unknown to us consciously. I tend to listen to multiple books…
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Create more than Consume
When I’m tempted to sit and just watch hours of videos, or catch myself scrolling through social media, I’m reminded of the mantra to create rather than ton consume. The idea is that the pay off is much greater to make something and put it out into the world. It’s easy to be a consumer.…
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The Uncertainty Index
I have nearly finished Nassim Taleb’s Black Swan (yes, very late to the party). It’s a book about uncertainty. Some parts are very complex but it is written accessibly. The title of the book is based on the concept that for a long time, humanity believed swans were only white, until they came across a…
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10 Key Takeaways from a Perspective Drawing Class
I very much enjoyed my Perspective Drawing class at the Toronto School of Art by our teacher Lindsey Rosenow. A few things stood out to me as interesting takeaways: 1. Use large drawing paper (18×24 in) and make the drawing on a small section of the page within a frame. This was critical so I…
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An Artist’s Guide on Failing Badly
I received my first rejection letter on my art in my application to a major art conference in Toronto. While it would be a blow, I’ve also been listening to the book Nobody Knows What They’re Doing by Lee Crutchley. It’s a book written for artists on their creative endeavours, discussing unique things that no…
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Creativity by playing in and out of rules
I like the idea that creativity comes from having rules and then breaking the rules. You have a sandbox to play in, and then when you get bored, then you can make something else outside the confined space. Mind you, I was the kid who didn’t colour inside the lines in colouring books. Go figure. …
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Getting up
I got up today and made 5 two point perspective boxes. Realized I forgot how to do this but the instructions were clear from class. I watched again the Studio Ghibli Howl’s Moving Castle yesterday part way through. There is so much detail that is mesmerizing. I read the book by Diana Wynne Jones many…
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A Real Classroom of Learning
Learning a new skill leads me to make use of the skill. We didn’t have a perspective drawing class this week due to Thanksgiving, but were given extra homework. We’re still on one point perspective but I’ve gotten better at it. The banality of drawing boxes has led me to new territories to make other…
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Perspective Drawing: Closing the box
I’m now taking a perspective drawing class at the Toronto School of Art. It’s a longer course than the other ones I did this year, about 10 weeks. So far we have been working on one point perspective. I was hesitant at first of whether this was too basic for me, but there is plenty…
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8 Tips on Your First Outdoor Art Show
The Queen West Art Crawl was a big it for me! I learned a lot from this past weekend and thought I would share so others can make a great first outdoor art show. How to set up the booth How to engage with patrons 5. Make descriptions with your art. Many people appreciated my…
