Summer 2013 Challenge

Summer Challenge                       The Artist Date             May 13th / due Sept 14^th

Your assignment for the summer is to take your inner artist on at least 2 artist dates (weekly would be ideal).  By doing the artist date, you are opening yourself to insight, inspiration and guidance. The artist date concept comes from The Artist’s Way by Julia Cameron.

“What is an artist date?          An artist date is a block of time especially set aside and committed to nurturing your creative consciousness, your inner artist.  It is an excursion, a play date that you preplan and defend against all interlopers. You do not take anyone on this artist date but you and your inner artist, aka your creative child.

Spending time with your artist child is essential to self-nurturing.  Commit yourself to the artist date and watch your killjoy side try to wriggle out of it. Watch how this sacred time gets easily encroached upon.  Watch how this sacred time suddenly includes a third party.  Guard against these invasions!”

From Julia’s blog   http://juliacameronlive.com/blog/
“The Artist Date is a once-weekly, festive, solo expedition to explore something that interests you. The Artist Date need not be overtly “artistic”– think mischief more than mastery. Artist Dates fire up the imagination. They spark whimsy. They encourage play. Since art is about the play of ideas, they feed our creative work by replenishing our inner well of images and inspiration.”

In September, be prepared to tell us a bit about your artist dates.

Some examples/ideas for artist dates:

·         Visit a museum of any kind. 

·         Go to the Zoo

·         Ride the merry-go-round in Nederland  http://www.carouselofhappiness.org/

·         Take a long drive in the mountains to enjoy the scenery

·         Take a hike or explore your own neighborhood…take a camera

·         Have a picnic…take a sketch book

·         Go to a little town and walk around (Niwot, Georgetown, etc)

·         Go to a concert

·         Go shopping somewhere you’ve never been, look at things you usually don’t.

·         Visit bookstores, art galleries, jewelry stores , art supply stores

More ideas here:
Some cool museums: http://www.denverpost.com/music/ci_20801035/get-your-culture-10-museums-beyond-history-colorado   http://mcadenver.org/index.php
http://paperartstudio.tripod.com/artistsway/id4.html
 http://madelineclairefranklin.com/artist-date-ideas/ http://theartistswayblog.wordpress.com/2010/10/17/101-artists-date-ideas/

Links:   Julia Cameron’s online course http://juliacameronlive.com/the-artists-way/