Following what i say?

This Monday we had Painting class in water colors.

I wasn't much enthusiastic for it, as i have been using water colors since i was may be 7 - 8 years, almost two decades.

This class turned out a pleasant surprise to me as i had great fun experimenting, I didn't know about so many possibilities combining it with other mediums, like salt, soap, wax or even water spray !

Amazing, I am glad i didn't decide to skip it.

Instructor for this class was new to me and so when i introduced myself, i did it in English to make sure she knows i might not be understanding everything she speaks. ( have come with this trick after some experiences hehe)

Then as usual class started in Dutch, after while taking presence call when my name came she asked me :

" Lopa, begrijp je dat veel Nederlanders naar de klas te volgen? "

( translation : "Lopa, do you understand Dutch to follow the class?" )

My immediate reaction before she completed the sentence was :

"Nee"

( translation: "No")

And whole class broke up laughing !

Yes, including me !

First Expositie

I keep mentioning my love for Painting on this blog so those who have been reading it knows about my it and how i wanted to learn Oil painting !

Year 2010 started with a new joy as that meant we were going to have our first Oil painting lesion finally.
We started it in a traditional way, the way Oil paintings were done in 17th century.
Ok i didn't mind how and which way, as far as i was learning how to do it!

Two weeks and two lessons after we were ready with our canvas preparation, drawing of composition and base colours and it was the day we were going to put the Oils, finally.
So happy i was since morning ! Finally, yes finally we were there !

But alaaaas, Not yet.

Our instructor/ teacher Derek had something else in his mind. He informed us that he would like to put our half-done paintings on display in the coming Exposition. He had thought over it that it would be nice to display our work as well with others even though it was work -in progress.
So nice of him !
But wait, Doesn't that mean we have to start over again ! Ohh ya, it did.
Best thing that atleast our work got a place beside so many other nicely done works.

This Monday evening, during the Painting class a classmate, Ruud, was taking pictures of whole class. I thought he is taking the pictures just like that, as many times we take pictures to remember our compositions when we have to continue same in the next lesson.
But his e-mail arrived as a surprised as it contained the link of his website where he had uploaded them all along with pictures of our half-done paintings displayed in our institute's Exposition 2010.

I liked his idea and so though to share a link to his website.
If interested, you can check the photos of our "half -done" paintings displayed in Exposition and work-in-progress photos of class here.
CKC Expositie Schilderen 2010

Images in this post i have taken from the same website, courtsey: Ruud Zwijnenburg
Thanks Ruud for sharing this :o)

Mind ... again at it's best...

Aaaahhh I was suppose to write this post on Tuesday... but a busy week!
This is about my painting lesson on Monday. This was second lesson (as you might already know looking at how i keep mentioning them) and we were doing 'still painting' in black and white...

Now it happened that this time I didn’t go for coffee break and kept painting.
I wonder why I would need a break in 2.5 hour class, ya I would need if anything else but not when I paint. I can forget to eat or to sleep for hours... and even when I don’t paint for so long there are chances that I lose my sleep even... (Don’t believe? I had written about it here - second para.)

Ok so I preferred continue painting and it happened I was the only one in studio left then!! But what does it matter, right?
After few minutes break when all started getting back to studio, it happened so that many of them came to have a look at my painting then directly going to their Aisle. I felt a little surprised, but then thought it might be out of the curiosity as I was the only one present in studio so may be they wondered what was I upto... !

Soon I was able to guess when at the end f lesson we arranged out paintings in a raw and we started discussing each painting. It was in Dutch and I could not follow everything but then I heard my name and I couldn’t stop myself asking someone standing beside me that what it was about. And she explained me that he said your painting is of advanced and higher level and it will still take time and we have to work hard to reach there, and there I stand confused and embarrassed that why did I ask her !!

Anyway, then came turn of my painting and this time he talked in English ( yeah good, i need to understand everything atleast about my work !)
As he stand there, he looked at me, he smiled... everyone smiled... and the words came out ...
Well.... what can I say Lopa..... you are good. I can already give you the diploma.

Aaaaah can you imagine how I felt? Out of the world... I felt so happy, even in my sleep/ dreams that night I felt so happy.
Even right now remembering that moment is bringing a smile to my face.... yeah i am blushing ;)

But then there was this other day and mind game began....
human mind again at its best!!

Now I feel confused, I had actually gone there for the advanced class, right??? (I had mentioned it here in last para), what I wanted to learn was oil painting, But response was it is an advance course and as I haven't done any course there, I cannot join it directly! After a meeting (Which I mentioned here in later half of the post ), we decided to start with this intermediate course skipping beginner level. Now they say I am on advanced level than them, but then why did I start with this level?

I enjoy painting in any form and anywhere and so I do enjoy my classes too but would I be wasting my time and money with doing something I already can? There are 30 lessons, and out of that only 4-5 contains oil painting basics which I need to go to that advance level I wanted to learn!
I can ask them to shift me to advance class, but then I don’t want to feel stupid not even knowing how to prepare canvas to how to mix oils! So I do want to learn basics, but for that 4 lessons I am taking 30 lessons and that will enable me to attend that level next September, so that means 1 year of waiting!

Ohhhhhhh forget everything it's weekend ... no worries....

Wish you all a very happy, eventful, fun-filled weekend... Enjoy !!! :o)

Finally....It started...

I finally had my long awaited painting lesson yesterday..... about which I had mentioned here and here.

If I were in India, I might be the eldest in such kind of class (I mean may be), so it was a surprise to me when I entered the class that I was clearly the youngest there!!

Well, the class was in Dutch (pat on my back, please) and I don’t need to mention here that how good I am with it. Hehehe

For the first few minutes I really thought to withdraw my name from lesson but then as I tried to pay attention, I realized I can actually make out what was being instructed! When I went to instructor, and just on hearing my "excuse me" he replied, you want me to translate as well right?? (Funny, I don't say it without a reason that somehow it’s written on my face ;o) hehehe)

Everyone who was there speaks Dutch so it was not possible and even practical but they all were very considerate, whenever they saw me with a point blank look on my face, someone will ask me if I didn’t get it and will explain.

I loved the way even painting lessons they were taking in couple, something I would consider for a dance class, but it’s great when you have same interests with your partner, isn’t it?

When I mentioned this to Ashu, he reacted saying ... so he can take those lessons as well, and we had fun visualizing how he would be standing there with brush in one hand looking at my face in a hope of some help which I won't offer... hehehe... I think he is better with his first love, his work and computers ;o)

Okay back to the class, They thought it was brave of me and must be very difficult to be among them when I don’t speak the language.
But I think I could understand it a bit, and painting is more noticing and practicing than theory explanations, and everyone was so nice to offer me help saying I can ask them whenever I don’t get anything, and I think it’s a bonus as listening to more Dutch will improve my Dutch too, so I think I am going to continue with it! :o)

ME, Yeaahh Me & Me ...

Don't waste your time thinking over relation between this post and title of this post... couldn't come up with something better... !

Friends....

I ask my friends to read my blogs sometimes (Ohhh ok, don't give me that look... many times alright?) and even to comment on how they feel.
They being so nice & wonderful friends, They all do comment but not on blog...On messenger!! Yes, They will ping me on-line and inform me that they read, liked or this is what they think about it !!!

Why so why?? What do you think, what can be the reason for it?
Hmmm may be I remain too much on-line?
Yeah I thought so too and tried remain off-line (Okay, not off-line but invisible so all think I am not on-line).

But NO difference.

May be as there wasn't anyone to remind them to read!!

Next time when I logged in, with visible messenger status this time.
I came to know that contradictory to my belief, they checked on their own as they commented... ( Aaaah God how happy I am)
But... but.... but...
Yeah, you got it.... again not on blog but directly to me on messenger!!!

Lots of friends are asking me update on last post. ( Yes, so they indeed read this ... and yeah, guessed it right... as usual on messenger, ohh boy i shall really give messenger a break )

Ok so I had that meeting for painting at Cultural centre yesterday.
He was happy with my work. He explained me all different types and level of courses available. According to which level one course is of 2 years (Phase 1 & Phase 2) and then advanced course that is level 2 (advanced).

He said I can join wherever I want. (Yeeeyyyy)

But looking at the experience I have with oils ( ya by that i mean no experience ), I thought how stupid I will look if one has to explain me how to mix or apply them to start with. (And he also agreed, it is indeed stupid)
So I ended up deciding on this course in which is not with any one teacher but there are several teachers from diverse specializations and they show you techniques of different types.
It is a second year of level one class, after this; I can take any advanced course with any specialization.

Let’s see, I hope I get to learn something which I don't already know.