[ESL Tour in Giles LaRoche's gallery at Danforth]
A while ago while doing one of the ESL tours at Danforth, I was quite surprised by elated instant responses of ESL students as they got off the museum elevator & stepped into Giles LaRoche's gallery. Some of the responses I documented were:
- Ahaa--I've been there when I was a kid!
- Look at that-these small people - they are so colorful & beautiful.
- Maravilhosa! Patterns in cathedral's glass windows make me so happy.
- Puxa - I'll get my cousin here for sure.
I hoped that one day I could share these euphoric responses with the master illustrator. Thanks to Danforth-I could not only meet Giles Laroche today but also hear him speak about how he creates the intricate paper collages, get an overview of his drawing style (use of exactoknife, paper, book dummy etc) & see him give a jaw-dropping demo of carving paper-house from a plain sheet of paper (he calls his work PAPER RELIEF)!
[Shri Meenakshi Amman Temple, Madurai, Tamil Nadu, India, 2000]
Later during one-on-one conversation with Giles, I told him that I see a strong connection(art/aesthetics wise) between his illustration of Shri Meenakshi Amman Temple and Ashland Temple snaps (erswhile blog post) and to my utter amazement he smiled and nodded in agreement! He said something on the lines of "There are amazing things everywhere-one just needs to be able to observe(closely), capture (carry a sketchbook) & express it with the best of one's ability!", which I found quite impressive! When one pays close attention to subtleties in his artworks, his statement does make immediate sense. Unless one observes vivid details of things with a still mind, it seems quite difficult to transfer the same from mind to a sketchpaper.
Visit our museum between now & May 16th to see "Bridges Across Cultures!" exhibit and join us in appreciating illustrations that celebrate construction & architecture from around the world! Also check out Giles website to view his artworks and these 100 extraordinary works of paper art when you have a moment :D
Art is not about thinking something up. It is the opposite - getting something down.~Julia Cameron
[Image Courtesy-Giles LaRoche]
2 comments:
Wonderful..colourful..cheerful.
An exceptional and vibrant blog..
it covers lot of ground and gets absorbed in the heart and mind of readers .
ESL students must be delighted to have an insight of great cultural heritage in a divine ambience in the company of great artist Giles Laroche and a boloved docent who speaks through the depth of his heart with lot of enthusiasm. The links in the blue ( provided in the blog ) lead us to fascinating world of marvellous paper art exhibits .
Such links provide an excellent icing over a perfectly baked cake.
It is worth enjoying again and again.
Artists are great individuals..they prefer to convey their silent messages through their innovative creations yet ..whenever they speak, the words are more precious than gold.
Such messages are always loud and clear yet they are subtle.
Quite a contrast ..isn't it ..?
Gile Laroche has rightly highlighted the universal connection between various objects and exhibits of nature through his brief comment.
His preferred choice of medium of expression is Paper .Very interesting..simple, colourful and readily available to all.
The specimen of his great creations which are depicted in the blog are truly exceptional.
They help us stay connected with and admire nature .
Euphoric responses from young customers speak a lot about their passion and taste.
Such positive group interactions create strong positive vibes in society.
I am impressed by the parting message from Julia Cameron stating that " Art is not about something up- It is opposite -Getting something down.." great thought indeed..A winning shot..
It leaves us with a question.." "whether Impressions are more important than Expressions !"....
Agree 100% with @skgupta viewpoints-to me ART is more of an internal magnified image of what I see (impressions) and this image is known ONLY to me.
The way I express it may be merely 1-2% of the impression I have in my mind!
This blog is magical and sort of puts my own thinking process in black and white :=)
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