Love & Glitter

I ' m Not Good At This Part

It is soooo weird putting myself out there in the way that I do. My past attempts at on line community building had definite boundaries between myself and the people I hoped to serve. As a literary magazine publisher, my only real contact with people was as editor. I read submissions, accepted or rejected them, created the magazine, put it on line, crashed for a week, and did it all again. That earned me a stalker who was unhappy with being rejected. They happened to live in the city I lived in at the time, and they terrorized me for a year, setting up a blog specifically to post about my activities, posting pictures stolen from my own blog and adding nasty captions, and making threats on my life and livelihood. I didn't quit making the magazine until I felt truly done with it for reasons unrelated to stalker-girl and her rage at receiving a rejection letter, but I did find my life very much changed by it in ways I won't go into here. Then, podcasting. Even less interaction with others. I recorded the cast, put it out there, got letters I could ignore if I chose. I didn't use my legal name, and only billed myself as being from 'Southwestern Ontario'. No stalkers, but having a public persona invites public scrutiny. People I met in person in my role as a podcaster were, for the most part, lovely, but there was a contingent of people who were envious of my relationships with people *they* wanted relationships with, and the rumors started flying about what a snob I was, how I was all ego and no substance, how I was only interested in 'big names'....etc. etc. Then there is the added bonus drama of being perceived as a community 'leader' and 'teacher' ~ roles I had no interest in to begin with ~ in a community that is in its infancy and full of  the crazy. I quit after being nicknamed the "Oprah of Podcasting". It was just...too much. Not the nicknamers fault, to be sure, but it squicked me out soooo badly to be thought of in that way. I didn't want to have any kind of influence that might lead to future liability. Remember The Fisher King? The movie with Jeff Bridges and Robin Williams? I had nightmares that I would say something that someone would take out of context and I'd be all over the news as the woman who caused the slaughter of a dozen innocent people because some crazy person took something I said to heart. Irrational? Probably, but it was a very dark time in my life. One would think I'd have learned my lesson, eh? By all rights, community building should be the last thing on my list of things to do for fun and leisure. I should be running in the opposite direction, hiding under a rock somewhere and never daring to put myself out there in anyway that might attract negative attention. And I'm tempted. Because this community building thing? It comes with a healthy (some might say heaping) dose of drama. And though I am just healthy enough to know it isn't necessarily about me, I am not healthy enough to experience it without feeling totally disappointed,  hurt, frustrated, angry, totally responsible, and ready to toss the whole thing out the window. When someone is unhappy with a choice I've made and then behaves in ways that are obviously designed to discredit me or cast the light of doubt on my intentions, it *slays* me. So that happened in a space I believed with all my heart could *never* produce such a thing. And I am slain and doing everything I can to pick myself up and dust myself off. But oh, slain is the Effy Bean! Silly, no? Wish me dragon scale armor to see me through? xo Effy

Changes to Church of Art

Many of you know that The Studio has a weekly Livestream on Sundays at 2 p.m. EST. The time is changing to 1 p.m. to accommodate us as we share, talk, art, laugh, and go on and on for hours on end. This change will mean that I am off the computer by 4:30 p.m. at the latest. Otherwise, my family starves, and a grumpy family makes me grumpy. *laughs* Another change will be that these will no longer be recorded and saved as is. We talk about some pretty sensitive stuff during Church and we'd rather not have that stuff out there for all the world to see/hear into perpetuity. Instead, I will record with two cameras ~ one for the livestream and one for the edited version, which will be timelapsed and focus on the art done during the stream. Once a month there will a video slideshow of the art y'all did during the stream, too. I hope these changes serve us all well as a community! *** Despite the hurricane, we will have CoA tomorrow at 1 p.m. EST. for all who can attend. You can find CoA here: http://livestream.com/wildprecious Those who wish to can send images of the art they did during the stream to effyswild@gmail.com. Please include the MONTH and CoA in your subject line so I can maintain some modicum of organization in my inbox. Love ya! Effy

Ah....Sunday

I love Sunday. Not only is it Church of Art day, but there's always been something so restful, so peaceful about it for me. Even when I was a kid I felt the magic of Sundays. The weekend has been a lot of fun. Friday, the Girl and I arted on the couch for several hours. I was teaching her how to deal with stress by art journaling, and she picked it up pretty quick. We played with papers (my favourite mindless thing to do) and ripped and glued and smooshed paint around and ripped and glued some more. Yesterday, I hunkered down to get this site up and prettified and organized. I had a few hours to myself in the evening, which I spent swilling beer and testing links and such. When the fam dam piled back into the house, we watched a movie and then went to bed early to read. Both the Mang and I are hooked on Game of Thrones. I'm still on book one and he has raced ahead and is just finishing up book three. He keeps exclaiming, loudly, and often using dirty words about some bit of action in the third book. I'm DYING to catch up but it isn't going to happen. I erected the WPS Sketchbook Project in the Studio and people are piling in to practice the basic skills of drawing and sketching. It's a no pressure kind of place where I will post a challenges and prompts, but with no time limit or agenda beyond practicing sketching. I'm discovering that the best loved groups at WPS are really super casual. That makes me happy because I am a super casual sort of girl. I like flying by the seat of my pants when I sit down to art. I have trouble sticking to any given theme or plan and sometimes even find myself feeling resentful. Rebellious girl is rebellious. :) But I'm keeping up with the sketching and loving it ~ loving how a blank page challenges me, how lines and shapes capture and keep my attention, how an hour can fly by without my noticing when I'm crosshatching a little here and a little there. I'm aware of how badly I suck right now, but I have embraced the suck (as I've encouraged my EssCees to do ~ I practice what I preach, you know!) and even the suckage is fun. It is such a good learning experience! Church of Art is on today. I hope you'll join me. xo Effy  

Everything Effy

My ladies joked of late that they would like an 'everything Effy' so they could just go to one place and get it all ~ the bloggity stuff, the studio news, the videos and art posts. The whole EffyBang. Well, here it is. I hope you like it, that the navigation is intuitive and clean and that you feel good poking around in here. I know I feel much relieved to have *one blog* that will take the place of all the others out there. This will mean that personal stuff gets mixed in with Studio stuff, but you know what? The Studio is my life. My life impacts the Studio. So it's all good, right? Right. *Nods emphatically* It took me about eight hours to get this all banged out and I'm not done yet. I have to create my art journal portfolio and a video page, but all in all, the site is good enough for me to send out the 'Hey! LOOKIT' broadcast and be done with it for today. Tomorrow? Church of Art! And yes, there's a page for that here, too.

What ' s Next For Effy

I have not been very present to this space, my family, my self-care or my own art since I began designing, writing, recording and promoting The Elements of Art Journaling. I received some fantastic advice from Andrea Schroeder (whose Creative Journaling class I am taking as part of my new commitment to self-care ~ HIGHLY recommend this!) early on in the endeavour, and I believe she saved my sanity. I was panicked, exhausted, feeling like I'd never have a non-working day again and she gently reminded me that this wild ride would probably take everything out of me. Then it would end, and I could have a break  before the next wild ride. I'm in 'taking a break' mode. Everything that needed doing for Elements is done. Everything else is essentially a matter of insert A into slot B ~ easy peasy. I have done something amazing ~ conceived, written, and produced an e-course that people are really enjoying ~ and it is time to enjoy this moment in time. (image: "Loved Girl" ~ Mixed media on watercolour paper by Effy Wild) I'm celebrating by making art, and by re-visioning myself as an artist. I learned from the best. Connie Hozvicka, Carmen Torbus, Milliande, Pam Carriker, Paula Phillips, Suzi Blu and of course my soul sistah and unintentional business mentor, the ever lovely Tamara LaPorte.  Since April of 2010, I have read a bazillion books and watched a bazillion YouTube videos. I have thrown myself headlong into mixed media art in a way I never expected I would. I have invested many dollars ~ dollars I dare not count, my loves! I would faint dead away if I did, but I do know that a four figure windfall depleted very rapidly over the early part of my love affair with Curry's Art Supply and Micheal's and on line art workshops. And I love it. I love it more than I ever loved poetry. I love it more than I love eating blue rare steak with baked potato. I love it more than 25 year old scotch. I love it more than COFFEE for crying out loud.

I am in love.

But my love is getting shabby around the edges. It's starting to feel a little like clothing I've outgrown. Like I need new jeans to break in. Like I need more of something and less of something else. I think I'm ready to begin moving out of the boundaries of an art journal and onto canvas and wood and watercolour paper. I think my fear of having my art out there for all to see is diminishing and in its place is a desire to work bigger, more boldly, less whimsically, more loosely, somewhat darkly, a little more bravely, and a little more ~ dare I say it ~ seriously. Because if I've discovered anything over the last year, it's this: I can do anything I decide I want to do. I believed I couldn't draw, and I learned to draw. I believed I couldn't collage to my satisfaction, and I learned to collage to my satisfaction. I believed I could never run my own on line studio, and I up and created one that is so beautifully inhabited that it takes my breath away. I believed I could never dare call myself an artist, yet I have adopted the term without blinking an eyelash. I believed I would never finish anything, and I have four or five art journals full up of juicy goodness. I believed I would lose interest, and my interest has intensified. I believed my family would laugh at me, and they are up to my armpits with love, support, encouragement and belief in me.

Here's what's next for me:

I want to become the kind of artist I see hiding within me right now: an artist that knows her tools and uses them effectively. An artist that can take the experience she's just had and make it manifest on the substrate of her choice. An artist who works at it, never stops learning, and creates meaning and beauty every day of her life. Now that the wild ride of creating Elements is over and I am in the gentler phase of giving feedback and being a glitter flinging cheerleader, I can take more on, and I'm taking on developing my creativity in a big way. This will be the summer of discovering my inner artist. There. I said it. xo Effy

Launch Day!

It's LAUNCH DAY! If you want to join us, please head over here for the details. *Collapses in a heap of happy goo*

Pay What You Can Fire Sale IS OVER :)

That was oodles of fun! Thank you to all who jumped right in and paid what they can! All invites have been sent. If you haven't received your invite, please send me an email to let me know. It would be helpful if you could forward your paypal receipt or transaction ID so I can match up emails with actual payments! Y'all rock my socks. <3 *Flings Glitter* Effy

The Elements of Art Journaling

REGISTRATION IS NOW OPEN! $50 until June 15th, 2011. $60 thereafter.

The course is 6 weeks of lessons and hands on mentoring with an extra two weeks for feedback. The classroom will be open for 12 weeks to accommodate those who need time to catch up! Sign up today and get access to our classroom where there will a pre-party going on until July 1st! Here's an introductory PDF with supply list:

Right click to 'save as' or left click to view in your browser

MORE INFORMATION

 

Here's a video that explains why we'll be working with the elements

Here's a video that explains how accessible the elements really are!

 

~*~*~*Flings Glitter*~*~*~

So, what can you expect from The Elements of Art Journaling with Effy Wild? Well, first of all, you can expect lots and lots of art to happen between the pages of your art journal! Secondly, you can expect to go deeper in your pages than you ever have before! The Elements of Art Journaling is going to take you on a journey through earth, air, water, fire and spirit that will help you to create the most meaningful pages you possibly can. These pages will be beautiful. They will glow with your talent! They will shine with artistry and vibrancy and glorious colour!

Most importantly, these pages will be authentically, gorgeously, vibrantly and undeniably YOURS.

The art journal is more than just a collection of pretty pages, right? It is a snapshot of your very soul preserved forever in paint and glitter and kept like hidden treasure up on a shelf in your studio. It is a gritty, raw, love-oozing, self-reflective testimony! It is a dioxazine purple remembrance! A quinacridone nickel azo gold love letter! It is you – all of you – wrapped up in hemp twine or antique lace like a gift from the you of this present moment to the you of tomorrow.

At least, ideally it is!

If you're anything like me, you want to make pages that sing about what you were thinking that day. You want to be able to flip open an old journal to a random page and know with instant recognition what that page was about for you in the moment you created it. Maybe you struggle with knowing how to to create those kinds of pages, or perhaps you already know how, but you'd like to add new tools to your art journaling tool box! Perhaps you're happy with your art journaling skills but you really want to develop an artistry, a kind of visual poetry that will thrill you AND the casual viewer. You and me? We're going to make that happen. Together, we're going to work on the technique side of thing, but more to the point of this course, we'll be developing a symbolic language that will fill your art and your life with meaning. We're going to learn how to boil our experiences down to their essence so that when we journal, we're getting the reality of our experience on the page in vivid, metaphoric, accessible, yet poetic language. And we're going to do that by employing the classical elements of life.

When, Where, How Much & What Comes With It?

When & Where

Registration is NOW OPEN and our classroom will be held in a private group within the gorgeous cyber-walls of Wild Precious Studio. Invites will go out as payment is received, and there will be a fantastic PRE-CLASS PARTY but class won't start until JULY 1, 2011. After the course is over the classroom itself will remain open for six more weeks to allow for catching up and downloading.

How Much?

There will be an early registration period lasting from June 1st to June 15th during which time, the entire shebang will go for $50.00. After June 15th, the cost will go up to $60 (which is still a rockin' deal!). Payment plans can be arranged. Just e-mail me at effy@wildprecious.com and we'll work something out.

Can I Get Half Off?

Yes! You can apply for Premium EvAngel-EssCee status. As a sweet PEA, you'll get 50% off the class for writing about the course every week for six weeks on your blog and posting an image of the work you did with me. Applications can begin immediately, but please know that I am only looking for ten of these dear souls, so do not delay!

NOTE: ONLY TWO SPOTS LEFT!!!

How To Apply

Write a delicious blog post about Wild Precious Studio that includes a scan or photograph of something you made that was inspired by the Studio in some way. This post MUST include a link back to The Studio, a blurb about this upcoming e-course, and a link back directly to this page. Ten applicants will win a half off spot! ALL applicants will be entered in a drawing for a scholarship! That's right, one sweet PEA will get in for freeeeeeeeee!

Get those applications in asap, lovelies! You really don't want to miss out!

E-mail me the link when your post is up!

What Else?

The course will include video & PDF content along with personal attention from yours truly. everything you post will get my feedback. There will be a live chat every week for the duration of our 'chapter' weeks.

There are six 'chapters' but I will continue giving feedback on your work for a full eight weeks. The group itself will stay open for the life of Wild Precious Studio, and all course materials are yours to keep!

We will be doing 6 projects. SIX! And one of those projects will be an altered composition book journal that we'll make ourselves to keep all our TEAJ stuff in!

Sound Good? Sign UP!