Exercises

Some of you may have noticed, or your child may have told you about the exercises we do before each art class. I am no expert on the subject, but I have been practicing simple qigong exercises for the past fifteen or so years. One day I mentioned to a friend that I was about to get into my studio after I did my exercises and she said that that would help with creativity. So, when I started teaching at Summers-Knoll I thought it might be a good idea to start each class with mindful exercises to calm the students. I tell them that they need to slow down and be very quiet in order to hear their creative thoughts. Recently I revisited a book called Design and Form: The Basic Course at the Bauhaus by Johannes Itten and was surprised to see him doing similar exercises with his students at the Bauhaus! So here are photos of his class and the students at Summers-Knoll beginning their art classes in a similar fashion.