DRAW-FAST-NOW-YES!!! This Saturday!

Happy New Year! If one of your new year’s resolutions is improving your drawing skills, I’m teaching the perfect class for you if you’re in the NYC area. DRAW-FAST-NOW-YES! at Classeteria in Bushwick
is a short & sweet class on how to draw faster this Saturday 1/12! Only $25 ! Only 1 hr long! Drawing fast is more about quick thinking than about technical skill XD We'll do lots of drawing exercises to loosen up & it'll be lots of fun - please join! 2-3p. Classeteria is 284 Suydam, between Irving and Knickerbocker, 11237. Take the L train to Jefferson or M train to Central.

Please register here: http://www.classeteria.nyc/draw-fast-now-yes?fbclid=IwAR3MUyvgGeNd6j0FeJLsIFB1cKzGB2PVGFwUVWi-kLOlF4JN3QvtDwm2fQs

Classes for Kids and Adults at CLASSETERIA!

In January I’ll be teaching 2 FUN classes at CLASSETERIA in Bushwick! For adults, a quick one hour workshop called DRAW-FAST-NOW-YES!! Do you want to draw faster?  Are you frustrated by how long it takes to create a nice detailed drawing?  This fast-paced class will help you break out of your perfectionism and sketch on-the-fly!  I’ll take you through a series of exercises (set to music) building upon repetition, speed, and creative thinking.  This class is inspired by my experience sketching at comic conventions, Inktober, and my doodletunes.

DRAW-FAST-NOW-YES!! is Saturday, Jan 12, 2 - 3p, $25

I’m also going to be teaching Cartooning for Kids! Students will learn the basics of creating elements of a comic, such as character building, styles and usage of word balloons, panels, coloring, and more. The main project will be creating an 8 page mini comic.

It’s a 10 session course starting Jan 7 and running until March 25. We’ll meet Mondays from 3 - 4p. It’s for 3rd - 5th grade and is $350.

Classeteria is a brand new program in Brooklyn and I’m very happy to be getting in on the ground floor. The space is very cute & comfortable, which is great for creativity. Please spread the word if you know anyone with kids in the Bushwick area who would like to participate in Cartooning for Kids or other after school programs at Classeteria. There’s an OPEN HOUSE this Friday December 14th from 5-7pm at 284 Suydam, between Irving and Knickerbocker, 11237. Feel free to drop by - I’ll be there to answer any questions and pass out mini comics!

Since Classeteria is just starting up we need help in getting the word out. Fell free to share this post on social media & everywhere! Thank you and cheers to a fantastic 2019!

Business Basics for Freelancers THIS SATURDAY!

There's still time to sign up for the new class I'm teaching: "Business Basics for Freelancers!"  With tax season approaching, now is the perfect time to start thinking more seriously about the business side of your freelancing.  (By the way, the $75 you pay for this class is TAX DEDUCTIBLE!  We'll go over stuff like that.)  If you're on the edge of deciding, GO FOR IT!  A class like this pays for itself many times over.  Here are the details:

Business Basics for Freelancers is a one session workshop on:

Saturday, February 24th from 2-5pm

Shoestring Studio is 640 Classon Ave in Brooklyn, NY 

You must sign up through the Shoestring site (no walk-ins) here:  http://shoestringstudiony.com/classes/business

Hope to see you there!

Future Former Exhibition

I have mixed memories of college - on the one hand, art school was very difficult and stressful, but on the other hand, I got to try some amazing things I may have never attempted if professors didn't push me.  Sometimes I think about how productive I was in college, and it's hard to keep that kind of momentum going for personal projects long after graduating.  In my art submission to the exhibit "Future Former" at the University of Michigan Stamps School of Art & Design, I photographed some progress I've made on my comic series "AER HEAD," and wrote about my struggles with completing this enormous personal project. 

More about the exhibition, from the Stamps School site: "Future Former: An Exhibition of Alumni Work honors the creative work and careers of all Stamps School alumni, creates an aspirational connection between generations of U-M artists and designers and current Stamps students, and inspires reflection during the university's Bicentennial year. Funds raised through this exhibition will support new studios and collaborative spaces at Stamps.

Curated by Stamps Professor Franc Nunoo-Quarcoo with alumna Emily Schumer (BFA 2017), Future Former will be on view Monday, January 8-Friday, February 9, 2018 on the first floor of the Art and Architecture Building 2000 Bonisteel Blvd, Ann Arbor, MI 48109.

Join us for an artist panel and exhibition reception on Monday, January 29 from 5 - 6:30pm. The artist panel, moderated by John Luther, Career Development Coordinator, includes Janna Coumoundouros (BFA 1998), Nawal Motawi (BFA 1988), Robin Wilt (BFA 1971), and Matthew Zivich (BSDes 1960)."

I'm sure all the art is phenomenal, but I'd encourage anyone to go this Monday just to see the moderator, John Luther!  I probably wouldn't be living and working in NYC now if it wasn't for his encouragement.  Among helping me with many other struggles of college stresses, I remember he first planted that little seed of "what if" I moved to NYC.  I was scared at first, because I'd never been there.  But here I am!  And have been for 7+ years, making it as an artist!  Now that I'm teaching cartooning myself, I hope that some encouragement seeds grow for my students.  You never know what will stick with someone or be life changing. 

The Daily Misfortune 228

This is certainly the case whenever I change purses!

Yesterday my cartooning workshop for Make It On Myrtle went well.  Had a good turn out in the morning, and they asked me to do the second session in the afternoon as well.  But it was SO freaking HOT!  At least I didn't get sunburned though, because there were tents.  Overall, a good experience.  It's always great to see kids (and adults!) learning and being creative in their own unique ways while having fun too :)  If you know of a need for a comics teacher anywhere, let me know.

Make It On Myrtle: Cartooning Workshop

I'm teaching a cartooning workshop THIS SUNDAY JULY 7th at 11AM!  (Goes until 1pm).  You'll learn the basics of cartooning, from creating your own unique character from basic shapes, to putting that character in your own comic strip!  Go to www.myrtleavenue.org for more info to register, or just drop by.  It's $10 per participant.

It's fine in small amounts though, like any other sweets.  Yep, taken right from the label.

Teaching Kids Comics @ Utrecht

Had a blast teaching kids how to draw and ink comics at Utrecht Brooklyn this past Saturday!  Lots of talented kids (and their parents!) came and I taught them step by step how to create their own character and three panel comic strip.  When it got to the inking part, I was a little nervous having open ink bottles around kids, but everything was ok.  We mostly inked with Micron pens :)  I did get to show them a little of how you can fill in large areas of black with a brush and ink, and how to do ink washes.  Initially I thought it would be more of an inking demo to show college students how to use the supplies (this Utrecht is right by Pratt University).  The students seemed busy buying art supplies for the back-to-school season, though.  But live events are always different and turn out great.

With each new event I do I learn something.  I usually teach on a big white board to a big class (at MoCCA), but this time I drew on a bristol board page to show how cartoonists really create their art.  I had to keep turning the page around so kids wouldn't see it upside down!  Also, it's difficult to do a linear step-by-step routine when people are jumping in at different times.  I had to keep tabs on who was at what point while I started over again with new people.  I did have some already-drawn simple comics for people who wanted to just jump in with the inking.  Maybe I'll do more of that next time.  It was a super fun experience though and I love doing this stuff!  The Utrecht manager said the event got lots of positive feedback and maybe they'd have me do another one!  It's good publicity for me and I sold a few comics, but most of all kids had tons of fun learning and drawing!