Introduction - Juliana Coles

Introduction
Field Notes:
A Book of
Reminders
829.0
Coles, Juliana
Section 1
Booklet 1
With Juliana
Coles
Notice of Copyright:
All rights reserved. Once these educational materials, herein
described as “workshop” have been downloaded/printed for
your private use in adherence to terms of contract for use,
please do not distribute these materials in any way through
reproduction or by email. This curriculum is available for
nonnon-commercial use only.
No part of this “workshop” may be used or reproduced in
any manner inconsistent with use in a course of study without written permission from Juliana Coles. No part of this
“workshop” may be used to teach or facilitate others. Any
artwork you create using my methods is your own. While
you may incorporate my methods into your teaching, practice, or therapies, please do not use this “workshop” or these
materials as your curriculum. And at least if you do use
them, against any authors /artists “moral rights” please at
least credit me. Do not use my soul child as your own or
claim it as your own.
My terms and terminology are created and copyrighted by
Juliana Coles and relate soley to the process of Extreme
Journaling®
Journaling® and should not be used in conjunction with any
other methodology.
All “workshop” content, unless otherwise noted, is copyrighted by Me and Pete Productions. Unauthorized use of any
content constitutes unlawful, unkind, and unethical use of
my soul child, as well as serious copyright infringement.
This will be extremely damaging to your Karma and will constitute grounds for expulsion from the Institute, ridicule in
the tribal council forum, and serious retribution from the universe.
-CONTENTSField Notes
Booklet 1 Contains the
Introduction to “Field Notes”
Introduction
Class Description pg. 4-6
What is an Extreme Visual Journal? pg.7
What is an Artist Sketchbook? pg.8
Choosing your book pg.11
Resource and Reference Library pg.14
Introduction: Summary
of Tasks pg.15
Every reasonable attempt has been made to identify owners
of copyright. Errors or omissions will be corrected in
subsequent editions.
-1-1-
Thank You
-2-
Field Notes
A Summer Art Tour
Introduction
Mixed
MEdia
Join an expedition team of budding as well as seasoned Visual Journalists on a Summer Art Tour and learn to combine notes from the
field with a sketchbook of sorts while creating a book of reminders
that begins with your own imagery. This unique book will become
your constant traveling companion: an enlightened witness to your
remarkable journey. Create on site: while traveling, camping, picnicking, with friends at a cafe, alone in a restaurant, in your own
backyard, at a store, a gallery, anywhere you can go, your extreme
journal as testament to the journey, will travel with you. Its simple
drawings, collages, mixed media, writings and observations will be
the foundation for your Extreme Visual Journaling process when you
return to the studio to deepen the experience. This workshop is enhanced by sharing with fellow journalists in optional discussion forums by gaining valuable insight into your work from myself as facilitator and moderator, while receiving tremendous support and cool
ideas from your newfound tribe.
Though Extreme Visual Journaling is typically done privately in a
studio setting, at a desk or table with our myriad supplies set before
us, summer is here and it’s time to get out of the house. This Summertime Online workshop is geared towards Visual Journaling on the
go. Have Sketchbook Journal, will travel. Explore artist as traveler
whether you are planning a trip or staying home. Your assignment as
journalist on site or reporter in the field will be to capture moments in
time by combining sketching ( yes you can!), easy collages, and
mixed media with thoughts, memories and ideas, snippets of conversations overheard, words from songs, etc., using creative lettering
techniques. These spontaneous collages, gestural drawings and
notetakings will serve as future assignments to explore in our Extreme Visual Journal as we combine journal writing and our unique
one- of- a -kind imagery, with mixed media. There are enough creative assignments in this workshop to last well beyond the summer!!!!!!
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-4-
Oh I know, I really hate to call it sketching or drawing; so many of
us are intimidated by that, so we’ll call it notetaking. That’s really
all it is. You can all draw, though it may not be how you expect it
or how you think it should look. So people are convinced they
can’t do it. Not good at it. Don’t know how. (Don’t want to know
how!) Can’t draw a stick figure. Can’t even draw a straight line.
Well I will show you otherwise, because drawing a straight line has
nothing to do with expression or collecting evidence. The Visual
Journalist uses drawing in order to document the world around hernot to be a great artist or render a perfect image. There’s little life
in that. Drawing is simply note taking. Drawing is research.
Drawing is learning to see and to make comparison‘s between this
and that. A scratch here, a line there, that we carve through our
years and smear across the pages of our Visual Journal. This is not
drawing 101. We will not be learning any boring mechanical drawing exercise taught in art school. I am going to challenge you to
redefine what drawing is and how it should look while you learn to
make marks in your own unique style, in your own strange and
beautiful hand through my pioneering methods of Expressive
Drawing. But drawing and sketching is only part of our explorations out in the field!
-5-
Your task then, as Extreme Journalist, will be to take these
notes from the field, and return to the studio for further and
deeper exploration. Doing our inner work in public, while on
vacation, on the road, or on location is not so easy, and can be
far too intense (as I learned in Greece), so we begin in the
field by taking notes and playing. Then we expand on these
notes back at the ranch, or studio, by developing our pages
from these random collage items gathered in the field, incomplete doodles, vague, kooky, fun, playful, gestural sketches
and written notes into a solid foundation
for expressing our personal mythology: the legendary
tales of ourselves.
-6-
Gestural
My drawing and sketching assignments are fun and easy and no
matter what you say about your ability, talent or experience, everyone can do these assignments and feel like a success! It’s time to
get
outside whoever you think you are (or aren’t) and take
notes, watch carefully, and pay attention to the world
around you. Not a day goes by without signs and symbols calling out to you: learn to record and incurporate this synchronicity into your Sketchbook
Journal. You won’t need magazines, rubber stamps
or stock images: the stuff of your life is the real
journey into juicy raw imagery that only you
can create. Take the time to see the sacred in the
everyday. Your life has meaning.
I did this Journal Page while looking in the bathroom mirror on a
ferry ride from Athens to Mykonos,
Greece!
Summer
SKETCHING?
But What is an
Extreme Visual Journal?
What is the difference between diaries, art journals, scrapbooking
and memory making, sketchbooks, altered books, artist books, and
Visual Journals? Some of these terms are very specific and have
their own definitions, while others can be used interchangeably. I
have a unique definition for my process, and use the term Extreme
Visual Journals as the container for that process. A Visual Journal
is a blank book, sketchbook, altered book, scroll, used scrapbook,
antique photo album, classical record set, a well traveled atlas, a
worn wallet with pages stapled in, antique handkerchiefs sewn together, or any other form that might be considered or used as a
book. These Visual Journals come in all shapes and sizes with rice
paper, Bristol paper, watercolor paper, old ledger paper, graph paper, notebook paper, glittery paper, painted paper,
whatever anyone can imagine.
What makes these books Extreme Visual Journals is the act of
combining journal writing assignments such as non-dominant
handwriting, letter writing, Declarations of Independence, lists,
dreams, word associations, etc. with art making assignments such
as collage, sketching, drawing and painting, photography, rubber
stamping, totem/fetish creating, and various mixed media techniques to create a unique book of self expression. In a visual journal, we are after the rich interior. We are concerned with our own
and unique inner, ancient wisdom. We want to find our voice, our
style, our flair for life, by documenting our past, present and future
in a book. We are NOT concerned with making art. We are NOT
concerned with a product or pretty picture. We want to know how
to unfold and in that moment, there is remarkable beauty on the
page we did not know we possessed.
WELCOME, TO THE REVOLUTION
REVOLUTION
-7-
To get started, you need to find a book...Think of
some things that could be used to house your art and
words in a book format…Don’t worry, you can always
start another, and another...
An artist’s sketchbook, while personal, is not necessarily private. We
see artists out and about sketching the world around them- they
don’t need to hide what they do, nor do they feel ashamed - it’s just
practice, note taking, observation, and not an attempt to be great.
Learning to see and hear and then translating that vision or voice to
the paper or journal involves practice, practice, practice, and that is
how we eventually make great art or write that incredible poem. And
most often, it is by accident.
Daily Practice
But an Extreme Visual Journal is an altogether different and entirely
private affair. It is not meant to share with anyone, let alone
passersby on the street or fellow customers in a café. It is a witness
protection program, a place to go for safe keeping. It is not for public
consumption or viewing. So we extreme journalists tend to create in
isolation because we need to protect our inner voices. And that’s fine
in the Winter, a time of hibernation. But it’s Summer in the city: it is
time to get out! So we will learn various visual journaling assignments that we can explore as reporter in the field. We can go anywhere and do anything and document it all along the way without
fear of our inner most feelings, incomplete ideas and tender memories
being exposed. We will use our extreme visual journal as more of a
combination sketchbook
scrapbook notebook and set up
our pages out in the field.
-8-
You don’t have to be a world traveler to see the world: it is right
in your own backyard., or on your front porch, or out your window, down the street, at your favorite cafe, or pressed between
the pages of a sketchbook as extreme visual journal. It’s time to
get out of the studio, workshop, or home office and take a field
trip or road trip with your “Journal Mobile Unit.” You won’t need
a lot of mixed media materials but you will need a basic Sketching/Journaling kit that will contain your book as well as a few
supplies. Each Journalist’s day tripping kit will be different as it
reflects each individual’s unique needs. Become artist as tourist.,
as distant traveler, as pilgrim on a summer art tour and learn to
document the world around you. These are fun and easy projects
designed for the beginner as well as the seasoned visual journalist. You can do it with the whole family! (I hope they’ll all sign
up...)
Your lesson plans will include many sketchbook journal dates in
the field as well as road trips to help you develop your travel kit
from choosing your Sketchbook Journal, to supplies, to journal
bag or whatever container will be necessary to become your Journal Mobile Unit. In the studio or at art conventions or workshops, journalists typically bring too much crap: you will be surprised by what you can do with very little. You won’t need any
fancy or expensive supplies. You will love how these quick notes
and sketches become intricate Extreme Visual Journal pages as I
give you the tools to complete these gestural images with creative
assignments aimed at guiding you to explore your own
mythology. Many of these sketches will be great as is,
without further need for information or embellishment.
Pack your journal bags, this is the journey of a
lifetime. For all levels of drawing/writing
experience and personal growth.
We are all seekers.
-9-
Uncover, Discover, Recover
Your book is an extension of YOU. Pick it
up. How does it feel? Put your hands
around it, touch the pages- it must feel
right - like an old friend, or a new one
you instantly fall in love with. Will it
be leather bound-do you imagine your story
to be an Out of Africa or an Indiana Jones
Discovery Book? Should you alter
Grandma’s old cookbook, or even your own
baby book? Should it be brand new, pristine, a clean slate to begin your journey
fresh? Only you can decide.
Starting a new book is fun, but you can always use a book
you all ready have. Maybe it’s a sketchbook you started
years ago, or a notebook with graph paper from college,
or a journal or a blank book or a book you make specifically for this purpose. I have some samples of
sketchbooks and journals I would like to share with you
from my Enchanted Studio. It might give you some ideas
to help you choose your book. You probably have a great
idea all ready…
Check out the video where I share with you some of my
Sketchbooks as Extreme Journal to give you some ideas
for possible book forms
e
-10-
Choose Me
DOCUMENTATION:
Finding your Extreme Visual Journal for Field Notes, or rather letting it
find you, will be easy. You may have a great book, full of potential, lying
around the house that someone gave you years ago. Or one you started,
but didn’t get very far in. You can use a blank book, journal,
sketchbook, you can alter a book and use any kind of book with any kind
of paper. It can be good quality paper, it can be cardstock, it can be water
color paper, it can be graph paper, tracing paper, lined notebook paper, it
doesn’t really matter because we can always change our minds and our
paper as we go. Size will be the greatest consideration as we make decisions regarding our Journal Mobile Unit. How will you get around conveniently with your journal and supplies, because is if it’s not easy, or if
it’s a burden, you are not going to do it. Will you need a special journal
bag? Or a box or basket you can carry? Should your book fit neatly into
your purse or in your pocket? You’ll need to think about what is going to
work for you. It will be trial and error, and we will constantly be making
alterations.
You may want to journal about it or discuss it verbally with a trusted
friend or supportive family member to brainstorm, get your ideas out in
the open, and get to know what your needs and desires are.
Tribal Council: You can even pose your questions, concerns,
Journal Writing Assignment
to discover our perfect book:
Well, I don’t know if this is really a journal writing exercise, maybe it’s a
list making experiment, but it is definitely our very first assignment.
You don’t need a special book for this so don’t worry about having to
-11-
Prepping Pages
No, not quite yet, but whichever book or journal you choose you
will have to test it out first to see if you like it and so you may
want to explore a few different options. And you may need a few
different ones anyway for different experiences and various journeys. Like what you take to a coffee shop or restaurant may be
completely different than what you will need at a park or on a
hike. You can also alter a book for this process, and I recommend
preparing your pages before you go out into the field.
-12-
Read All About it...
needs, and ideas to the “Tribal Council” or discussion forum for
feedback. Look under “Discussion Groups” on the workshop’s main
page. It will be listed as “Journal Mobile Unit.”
THE PERFECT BOOK
Finding a Book:
find your book before getting started. Some loose scrap paper
will be fine. I have separate writing journals I maintain, in addition to my visual journals, as tandem or companion pieces, so I
always have somewhere to do my writing. You can write free
form or you can make a list, but I want you to brainstorm about
what you would like or what you think you need in terms of a
book for this workshop. Big? Small? We’ll figure out the logistics later, like how to pack it up, but for now, try to imagine what
your perfect book would look like. What kind of paper? Thick,
thin? A book with various papers and textures? Do you want to
work in a series or one thick book? Do you need it to be light,
convenient? Do you think you need it to fit inside something? Do
you want to alter a special themed book? (Whichever book you
choose we will be doing prep work, so don’t let concerns about
how to alter, or how to create thicker paper or texture stop you
from choosing a book.) Go ahead and write it down. You are not
committed to anything. You can always change your mind. But
we start by starting. So sometimes it helps to get your hand to the
page- you could begin by writing... “my perfect book would be,
or looks like or I wish, or I need or I want,” or anything that resonates that might help you get at the answers you seek. Because
it’s funny, you know, that which we make tangible soon manifests itself. But we have to make our desires known. So go
ahead, start writing or list making, and see where that takes you,
and see if it helps you find your book...
on choosing a book). There are many ways to do this, and we
will discuss this in later chapters. It’s fun to work on different
Library Sales, used book stores, junk and thrift stores - and don’t
forget kids books! These are great resources for finding books to
alter at a good price. But I bet you have a great book lying around
your house!
textures and backgrounds, so we will learn many exciting ways
of setting up our pages for future exploration both on site, and at
home, for more in depth explorations in our studio. If your
pages are too thin, you can always glue pages together, build
them up with collage, gesso them, etc. So pick the book that
seems to choose you, that calls out to you. Don’t set it aside
saying, no, not this... too thin, too whatever. If the book seems to
say “pick me pick me,” as if raising it’s tiny hand, then you
really have to pick it because it has something important to teach
you. We will practice all kinds of cool set up later so don’t worry
about prepping pages for now. We’ll go into this more later, but
be considering all this as you begin to contemplate choosing your
Extreme Visual Journal for Field Notes….
Getting your Gear
together
And while you are considering all this in terms of searching for
the perfect book for your process and practice of notetaking on
the go, start looking around for containers for your Journal Mobile Unit. A journal bag? A basket? A plastic tub or carrying
case? How will you fit in your supplies. Everything will work in
tandem: the book, the container and supplies. We’ll need to limit
our supplies- this is not our studio, nor do we want it to be. And I
On the Go...-13-
will give a list of necessary supplies in the next chapter
and then you will be able to add to what you like to
work with. It all needs to be easy: easy to pack, easy to carry,
easy to get around. So start looking around your house and get a feel
for what may work. Collect it all with a few different options so
that we can begin to put into practice our Extreme Visual Journaling
on the go...
Artist’s Sketchbooks
My favorite books are facsimiles of artists’ sketchbooks. I am more
interested in how artists work, and how they feel as humans. Typically artists’ sketchbooks are more raw and energetic than their detailed artworks. Sketchbooks are the stuff of real life vibrating with
dynamic energy. I especially love those that incorporate text/ collage! Here are some of my favorites and many of them verge... or
merge with Visual Journaling:
Dan Eldon’s, “The Journey is the Destination”
Candy Jernigan’s, “Evidence”
Frida Kahlo’s, “The Diary of Frida Kahlo”
William Burrough’s, “Ports of Entry”
Claus Oldenburg, “Notes in Hand”
Orson Welles, “Les Bravados” (this man was so
incredibly multitalented!)
Sabrina Ward Harrison, “Spilling Open”
Merce Cunningham’s “Other Animals” ( very
sweet!)
Christian Schellewald’s “LA><SF: A Sketchbook
from California” (Simply Great!)
Kim Donaldson’s “Africa” (Incredible!)
Danny Gregory’s “Everyday Matters”
Jennifer New’s, “Drawing from Life”
Drawing
from Life -14-
-SUMMARY- INTRODUCTION
Tasks:
Brainstorm “Perfect” book for
Extreme Visual Journal
Check out video: “My SketchBooks”
Download Audio: Field Notes: Introduction
Field Notes:
End of
Introduction
Please Download
Chapter 1
Tribal Council
1.)Show /describe/ discuss the book you are
thinking of working in and why under “Journal
Mobile Unit.” (This does not have to be definite, this is just our introduction, we are only
brainstorming here)
2.) Share your favorite recommendations for
resource/reference books on
Artists’ Sketchbooks.
15
With Juliana
Coles