Ria Sharon

pondering creativity, process, and making art

Magic in the Making: A Weekend of Nurturing Your Creative Soul

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songbird-studio-heart

I hold fast to my commitment of making art every day but that requires another commitment… to devoting space and time in my life to nurturing creativity. I can’t do the first without the other. Some days, that may be as simple as giving myself permission to daydream for half an hour or to sleep in for an extra 10 minutes. You know, being an artist often doesn’t look like being an artist! 😀

This fall, I’m giving myself permission to indulge in a full weekend of nurturing! And, I’m inviting you to join me. If you too would like to get away, to unplug, to share and time and space with like-minded souls, come join me and fellow artist, Alisha Hastings-Kimball on Sept. 30-Oct. 2 for Magic in the Making. All the details are here.

There are just a couple of spaces left.

It will be PURE MAGIC! xo
Ria

 

2016 #RSselfiesketch Gallery

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#RSselfiesketch is the result of a 10-day live Skillshare Workshop I hosted in May 2016. Participants were invited to contribute sketches focusing on the practice of self-portraits. Selfies are not just for narcissists! 🙂 Drawing people and faces can be intimidating and selfie sketches provide us with an opportunity to practice on the most available model—ourselves! We have the freedom to experiment with different techniques and different intentions such as how to capture a particular mood or expression without the pressure of having anyone else in the room.

I also find that capturing how we see ourselves and how we show up for ourselves is a powerful exercise in self-awareness, one that requires a certain vulnerability and courage. I am deeply honored to have shared this experience with all the participants. Thank you for sharing your work with the world!

blendastudio.collage

@blendastudio

catseatdogsmake.collage

@catseatdogsmakes

donnavieth.collage

@donnavieth 

instabyclairette.collage

@instabyclairette

jamessulpizio.collage

@jamessulpizio

jeanf.collage

jeanf

joannesketchesstuff.collage

@joannesketchesstuff

johnandkateplus3.collage

@johnandkateplus3

kmdleavens.collage

@kmdleavens

kristymichele.collage

@kristymichelestudios

mariellak.collage

Mari Ella Koons

nichole.wolfgang.collage

@nichole.wolfgang

ninjavelli.collage

@ninjavelli

qurratulayeen.collage

@qurratulayeen

renatao.collage

Renata Otfinowska

roladraws.collage

@roladraws

sm0gs.collage

@sm0gs

stafaniedangelo.collage

@stefaniedangelo 

stephieecarson.collage

@stephieecarson

susannedolman.collage

@susannedolman

thejodylinn.collage

@thejodylinn

Tundrakuikka.Collage

@tundrakuikka

rsselfiesketch

and yes, I did it too. 😀

Are you looking for inspiration?

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On January 1, I’ll be publishing my second class on Skillshare, Sketchbook Magic II. The journey to this point has been it’s own form of magic… as over 3,000 students have discovered and committed to their art and creativity in the first class.
In this second class, we continue onward together. Or, you can jump right in with Sketchbook Magic II if you are specifically interested in learning a few techniques on how to find ideas for your art.

This class is perfect for you if you are cultivating your art as a means of self-expression, or if you are honing your craft in a creative profession or if you simply want to connect with your right brain! I’ll be sharing five more simple sketchbook practices that consistently fill my creative well. Just like in the last class, I encourage you to watch one of the videos every day (less than 10 min/day) and complete each day’s simple activity.

Are you ready? Email me at ria(@)riasharon.com if you want to get on the list for a free pass! I’d love for you to join. It’ll be a lovely way to start the new year… with ART!

Magic starts here

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art-supplies

Clockwise from top left: @marjoleinvbm, @honeycomb, @squiggleandswirl, @pixieposie

This is where magic begins… with one step, and then another, and then another. Check out these lovely artists who are walking the walk. I give you permission to do it too.

The thing that makes your heart skip a beat, the thing that lights you up doesn’t have to make sense. It doesn’t have to be purposeful. You can do something just for the sake of doing it — just because it looks like fun and feels good. I promise you, if you go with that feeling, it will feed your soul.

This is what soul food looks like to me. Ask @marjoleinvbm, @honeycomb, @squiggleandswirl, and @pixieposie how it feels to play in Sketchbook Magic! ;P

Play is Serious Business

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Untitled design-2 “Play allows children to use their creativity while developing their imagination, dexterity, and physical, cognitive, and emotional strength. Play is important to healthy brain development. It is through play that children at a very early age engage and interact in the world around them.” ~ Kenneth R. Ginsburg, MD, MSEd, and the Committee on Communications, and the Committee on Psychosocial Aspects of Child and Family Health in the Journal of the American Academy of Pediatrics

I propose that this goes for children of any age!

Personally, I feel more imaginative and emotionally resilient with my daily art practice. Dexterity I’ll attribute to yoga. 🙂

These sketches are just a few of the wondrous, amazing, playful projects from my students in Sketchbook Magic. Clockwise from top left: @nicolerpeery @samsalenger @bywaycreative @danutzi

Obviously…

Play allows someone to use their creativity while developing their imagination, dexterity, and physical, cognitive, and emotional strength. Play is important to healthy brain development. It is through play that we engage and interact in the world around them.

Check out the back story behind each of these pieces in the class gallery and so many other wonderful sketches. Join us anytime!

 

 

Beyond Reason: Day 1 of Sketchbook Magic

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sketchbookmagic-day1(clockwise from top left) @mommakatmack @mszobeck @tacrowder @jhjmilner

These are just four of the wonderful pieces that students have shared in Sketchbook Magic on Skillshare.

One of the benefits of approaching art-making in this way is that it disables our thinking mind. As much as we need our right brain for all sorts of things like… oh, logical and practical reasoning, it is often the death of creativity. So in the case of beginning an art project or art practice, we need to sneak past the part of ourselves that questions whether any of it makes any sense!

In the process of pushing that critical mind aside, we allow our more playful, whimsical side some airtime. Fun!

FUN is exactly what I’m observing in Day 1—lots of fun, lots of spontaneity, creativity and innovative ideas. Students have used toothbrushes, pipe cleaners, corks, even flowers to make their marks. It’s just the beginning as we begin to explore and open up to new possibilities. What can you create with readily available materials?

Check out the back story behind each of these pieces in the class gallery and so many other wonderful sketches. Join us anytime!

Sketchbook Magic: Start and Feed a Daily Art Practice

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Sketchbook-blog

I was invited to teach a class on Skillshare. So for the last month, I’ve poured my heart into creating Sketchbook Magic, an experience for you my friends who yearn to come alive with a creative pursuit, to feel paint on your fingertips, to experience the unparalleled delight of making something.

This class was born out of my commitment to myself to make art every day. For me, art is self-care… more than a long bath or a day at the spa. Yes, life is busy!

Yet, this “busy-ness” is the very reason that it’s essential for me to do this simple thing for ME! If I add up all the hours of the day I devote to what it takes to keep life humming along, including taking care of other people or doing things for other people, it seemed rather ridiculous and awful to not be able to commit to 10 minutes on something that is simple, pure JOY.

In this class, I share my secret tips for making time and space for art while busy with my job and my kids and my relationships and… my life! ;P

If you are ready to claim some me-time, self-care, join us. It’s self-paced, it’s 10-min a day for 5 days. No previous art experience required! Just an openness to fun and a little magic.

This link gets you a FREE month of Premium Membership on Skillshare for access to my class and unlimited access to hundreds of other awesome online classes.