M. Pia De Girolamo

Me at the workshop.

At least once a year, usually in the fall, I schedule a five day workshop with artist Tim Hawkesworth assisted by artist Lala Zeitlyn at the Norristown Arts Bldg.in Norristown, PA. The NAB was a beautiful old textile factory converted into studios, two gallery spaces (first floor Pagus Gallery and the lower level Project Space) and a workshop on the second floor.

My first workshop five years ago with Tim turned out to be totally different than I had expected. It was not another class in technique or color theory but a training course in accessing a deeper source of intuitive knowledge about making a painting, from marks and paint to subject matter. Though Tim acknowledges the place of academic training and will help you with technical matters if you wish, he would “rather teach a practice of in-built finding”. He firmly believes in being attuned to “the body’s response”. “Pay attention to the energy shifts, to the glimpses, be open to those nuggets of seeing”, he says.  Noting your body’s response to your mark-making is the best way to gauge whether your painting is good technically as well as being true to your deeper experience.  If the mark-making produces a sense of “uplift” then it’s right; if it produces no excitement or boredom or repetition then it’s not.

The practice calls for focus, receptivity and Self-awareness. Lala calls this “being honest”. As a result, these workshops can be very intense, equal parts euphoria and aching muscles.  I use these workshops strategically to help maintain my own studio practice, scheduling one after a series of shows when energy is drained or around a holiday period when I know it will be difficult to get into the studio. 

Each day of the workshop starts with a lecture on how to access the source of your art and “create not just another picture but a meeting”. Tim makes his points with well-chosen readings including powerful poetry, artists’ writings, and the teachings of Eastern and Western contemplatives, all lightened by a self-deprecating sense of humor. There is discussion afterwards, often led by Lala who comments and emphasizes particular points.

As you work, Tim places art books on your table with paintings by artists that resonate with what you are doing. “The best teaching is looking at the paintings you love and reading what artists wrote,” Tim says. “Look at the paintings and see how the artists made the brushstrokes, how their hand moved"! You learn from those who came before, adding your own voice to the art historical continuum. 

Towards the end of the week you can move your body of work to his large studio or one of the galleries and you look at it together and learn from it. Tim tailors his teaching to where you are in your artistic journey; you see people with a variety of experience at the workshop, from those without any art training to artists with gallery representation. 

It amazes me that after all the years that I have been attending the workshop, Tim is still so enthusiastic and his lectures still so fresh. I asked Tim and Lala what they derive from running the workshops. According to Tim, in the workshops “you just don’t know what’s going to happen; it’s mind-blowing what happens…fresh, exciting stuff”. Furthermore he says, “It helps me with my own centering seeing others get centered”.  Lala puts it this way, “we are lifted as others are lifted”.

Interested in taking a class? See http://drawingworkshops.com/

The Norristown Arts Bldg. workshop space.

The workshop has a central platform which accommodates 2 models. It is surrounded by mini-studios which afford each person extensive wall space, some privacy, and a good view of the models.  The space is also bedecked with natural and man-made objects for study and drawing. The workshop is also served by an extensive art library for pictorial reference.