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| "Still Life with Lemons, Oranges and a Pomegranate," Jacob van Hulsdonck, c. 1620-1640 Digital Image Courtesy of the Getty Open Content Program |
Hello friends,
I want to discuss for a moment the importance of having access to an artistic community. For those who seek to be creative - whether as a full-time career, a part-time job, a fulfilling side hobby, or more as an appreciator than as a maker - being surrounded by likeminded others is the emotional equivalent of flopping down on a fluffy pillow. They support you, get you excited, provide inspiration while also acting as a much needed critical sounding board. Lately I've been making more of a concerted effort to meet other artistic types, and through them I have learned about opportunities in my area for developing new creative skills and gaining exposure to others' work.
That said, the Washington, D.C. area is tricky. D.C. is a great place for those of us with careers in law, government, non-profit work, policy, advocacy, etc. There's nowhere like it in terms of having access to regulators and legislators and people who can make change at the highest levels of government. But what D.C. lacks in comparison to other places like New York, the Bay Area, Austin, Nashville, Portland, Denver, you name it, is a large, overt, and thriving arts scene.
This, of course, is changing, thanks to a number of artists who find their way here for whatever reason (a spouse's career, for example, or a job working at one of D.C.'s amazing museums). But frequently Washington area artists find that they have to start from scratch in terms of a broader community, and if they are looking for a creative support network or other creative resource, they're going to have to build it themselves.
So you can imagine how excited I became when a friend told me about the Lemon Bowl.
The Lemon Bowl is a cute little shared workspace founded by three woman artists in an up-and-coming area of D.C. These creative ladies realized they needed a dedicated space in which they could get down and dirty with art (see my earlier blog post, The Fantasy of a Beautiful Work Space for more thoughts on the difficulties of finding crafting space in a cramped city environment). So they teamed up and founded the Lemon Bowl.
Brilliantly, the Lemon Bowl's founders have realized the space's potential as a work and learning space for others. The founders teach a wide variety of classes at the Lemon Bowl and have opened the space up to other artists who can either rent the space at an hourly rate or sign on as members - with perks such as a key to the joint and unlimited use of the workspace for teaching classes.
So far I have taken three classes covering block printing (more on this in a later post!) with surface artist (read: designer of world's most adorable wallpaper) Kate Zeremba, vision boards with the lovely Kim of DC's own Beauty School, and winter foliage flower crowns with Holley from Sill Life, who also provides epic terrarium classes and floral services (also, see my in-depth prior post on crafting with living materials for much more discussion of this class).
While the workshops themselves were fun and the skills I learned were valuable, I think perhaps my favorite thing about attending classes at the Lemon Bowl is getting to be around other women who have pursued creative careers and are making it work. It's incredibly encouraging to be in the presence of others who are actually making it happen.
How about you readers? Have you discovered creative places/people/communities in your area that have encouraged you to focus in on your creative pursuits? Discuss in the comments.
Emily
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