Sunday, October 23, 2011

Providence Zentangle Teacher Seminar

What a trip - Wayne and I just finished a 3,200 mile trip which took us from KY, OH, PA, WV, NJ, NY, CT, and RI to get to the Zentangle Teacher Seminar in Providence, RI. Along the way we spent a couple of days in the Poconos where we visited Ray and Linda (Poole) Williams and Linda's parents, Gero & Gloria Grohs. We took a trip through the mountains in NY and went to a big craft fair on the grounds of Woodstock.

Ray and Linda Williams at the Craft Fair on the grounds of Woodstock.





Wayne and I had our photo taken in front the tye-dye shirt booth - the only visible remains of Woodstock.

Then we all went to the Williams new home and enjoyed some delicious grilled shis-ka-bobs. It was fun to see Linda's new office and studio area, and their beautiful new home tucked into the woods.




Then Wayne and I headed to Hotel Providence, Providence, RI, where the Zentangle seminar was held. Neither of us had been there before. Since we arrived a day early, we did have a chance to explore downtown Providence and their 6-story art museum. One whole room was paintings by Impressionist painters - Monet, Degas, CĂ©zanne, Pissarro, Gauguin, Picasso, Matisse, and Rodin. They also have a lot of very old - 3500 B.C. carvings of ivory and other materials.

A view of the river running through downtown Providence








Zentangle creators Maria Thomas and Rick Roberts.


After we completed our first Zentangle tile, they were pinned to a background.
 
Class members studying our first Zentangle tiles.
 
Samples of Zentangled items we brought to share.

This photo shows off some of our Zentangled shoes, including my colorful ones.

More samples, including some quilted Zentangle designs.



Check out the knee-high sneakers with red shoestrings, and the Zen-opoly in the upper right corner.
All of the properties on this game are Zentangle designs.


How about this Zentangled flag!

And when we concluded the seminar on Friday morning, we received our Certified Zentangle Teacher certificates.


Before we left RI, Wayne and I had to do a little sightseeing of the area. We enjoyed seeing the ocean and having dinner at the Top of the Bay Restaurant in Warwick, RI. Take a look...

A boat harbor near Providence.


I guess we were supposed to be in this harbor because this boat is called My Zenda - coincidence?!

Wayne and I enjoyed dinner at the Top of the Bay Restaurant where we could see the ocean. It was a bit rainy but that didn't dampen our spirits or keep us from enjoying this for dinner....


And we ate every bite!

More in the next blog on our trip to Iowa and home to Kentucky.











3 comments:

  1. Excellent post, Bonnie, and excellent pictures of the workshop. Thanks for sharing!

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  2. Thanks for posting about your Zentangle experience, Bonnie. I had never heard of Zentangle until your status update appeared on Facebook. Curious, I ran a quick but thorough investigation to find out more. It certainly looks like a great way to get more people drawing more comfortably.

    I teach a class for Quilt University called Goodbye to the Grid. In it, I teach a most intuitive way for quilters to draw compositions that can and do become art quilts. You might want to Google me and search my blog to see some examples of what my students and I have produced.

    What I see as an interesting difference in the two methods is that whereas Zentangle uses pattern as a means of creating value and textural contrasts, my method puts the emphasis on the underlying composition.

    Eventually, my students get around to value, color, pattern and texture in the interpretation of their compositions as quilts, but in the early stages, I struggle to keep them focused on variation in size and shape and the identification and strengthening of a focal point.

    I see that Zentangle also begins with an underlying line drawing. It might be most interesting to put the two methods together and see what comes up.

    Unfortunately, enrollment in a Zentangle course is not a possibility for me in the foreseeable future. Please do keep us informed about what you do with your Zentangle training; thanks!

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  3. Hi - it was great to meet you at our CZT certifcation class in Providence. I loved your photo diary of the experience!

    Thanks for posting the picture of my framed quited pieces and my tangled purse! I didn't take a picture of them on display - could you send me a copy?

    Thanks!
    Elaine Huffman

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