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Jul

TASNY’s Growing Global Community

Our virtual art classes make New York enrichment accessible to anyone from anywhere in the world.

The Art Studio NY has had the pleasure of serving its neighborhood in the Upper West Side for about 15 years now. We are a place for children to hang out after school, a place for retirees to spend their mornings, and a place for friends to unwind with a bottle of wine after a long day at the office.

As TASNY grew through the years, one of our biggest “problems” (albeit, a good problem) is we just didn’t have enough space for all the students who wanted to be a part of our studio. Who knew the solution was right under our nose!
TASNY initially made the transformation to zoom art classes to keep up with the developments of the COVID-19 pandemic. We wanted to continue to provide a much needed outlet to our students, many of whom have been taking art lessons with us for years.

In doing so, we accidentally discovered that TASNY can provide that same outlet to more than just New Yorkers.

Within the first week of switching to art classes online, we began receiving registrations from folks in Virginia, Massachusetts, Florida, and more. I remember being so excited to see inquiries coming in from other states. Eventually, we started getting registrations from people in Canada, Italy, the Caribbean, even India and Australia! I thought, how cool is that? We have people interested in our little studio from thousands of miles away.

TASNY is more than just art lessons, it is a community.

And apparently, it took closing our physical location to see just how strong that community really is. People are now able to get the NYC art studio experience from literally anywhere in the world. Zoom art classes are the perfect way to meet people with similar interests as you no matter where you are located.

It’s a place for you to make a new friend, share a laugh, and mingle with people who may offer a new perspective from their side of the globe.

Check out our class schedule to see which Zoom art lesson is best fitted for you!

Jul

Stay Centered

“It is better to conquer yourself than to win a thousand battles. Then the victory is yours. It cannot be taken from you.” -Buddha

You can’t control what happens to you, but you can control how you react to it.

These last few months have been quite trying on us all. Not a single person is left unaffected by the Covid-19 pandemic. This pandemic has cost millions of people their loved ones, their jobs, and their way of life. Our lives as we knew it completely changed almost overnight. It is a very traumatic thing to have your sense of security stripped from you. We are all experiencing a distressing moment in history together. Many of us are in a highly emotional state right now.

And that is okay. Be easy on yourself.

We are all trying to figure out how to come out on the other side of this.

It is such a cliche to hear that meditation will change your life. Well cliches are cliches for a reason! If you know something works, why wouldn’t you do it?

When most people think of meditation, they think of the traditional way of sitting cross legged with a straight back and your eyes closed chanting “Aum”. That can be quite intimidating for those without prior knowledge or experience with meditation.

I’m here to make the benefits of meditation more accessible to you.

Find your “anchor” and focus on it.

In simplified terms, meditation is completely experiencing the present moment. Your anchor is what keeps you grounded to the present.The breath is the most traditional anchor, but rules are meant to be broken.

Get creative, perhaps your anchor is your feet as they hit the ground while you walk to work. Or maybe it’s the knife on the cutting board as you chop onions for your family’s dinner.

My yoga teacher taught me thoughts can be grouped into two categories; past thoughts or future thoughts. Tidy up your mental space by filing away your thoughts into either the future or past category. Then bring your attention back to your anchor.

In art meditation, the anchor is your paintbrush.

Focus on your breath and you suddenly remember that you’re alive. You made it this far.You’ve learned from your mistakes and you’re just trying your best.

There’s nothing to worry about until there’s something to worry about.A good friend of mine would always say “Stop worrying, Kristen! When you worry, you suffer twice.” Why waste valuable mental real estate on things that upset you?

Stay present, stay healthy.

The more you think about the things you don’t like, the more those things control you. And if you avoid thinking about the things you don’t like, they similarly control you as the avoidance surrenders you to external circumstances.

The key is to find balance. Be brave and acknowledge the truth. If something is bothering you, think of resolutions. The sooner you make the change, the faster you will reap the rewards of said change. Many people are hesitant to begin art classes because they claim they are unskilled. Well, duh, of course you are unskilled if you’ve never taken a class!

Talent is not something you are born with, it is ambition and practice. If you set your intentions on something and put in the time to work on it, you will be successful.

Don’t let negativity distract you. Be powerful. Be in control of your happiness.

If you are looking for a safe space to practice self expression and exercise your intuition, I highly recommend signing up for our online Art Journaling class. Your instructor will encourage you to stop overthinking and just express yourself freely. Basically, art journaling is like keeping a visual diary to talk about various struggles or aspirations you may have. It is an aesthetic way to document your life!

Join Rebecca on Sunday Nights for her FREE online art class live streamed to Facebook and Instagram.

Instagram: @theartstudiony

Facebook: The Art Studio NY

Jul

Studying Art Is Really Just Studying Yourself

We are all artists and most of us don’t even know it.

Name: The Art Studio NY LLC
Address: 145 W 96th St #1b, New York, NY, 10025
Telephone: (212) 932-8484
Price range: $
Location: The Art Studio NY

Art, in simplified terms, is just expression.

Hanging up posters of your favorite band expresses who you are through the music that resonates with you.

Cooking dinner for your family is a way to express your love and affection for them.

Photographing a particular scene expresses the desire to remember that particular moment forever.

Many physical and mental health benefits are linked to artistic practice.

Just one google search will bring up enough articles about it to keep you reading until quarantine ends. There’s plenty of literature written on that subject by people way more qualified than me. So instead, I’ll share a quick anecdote.

My grandmother was a very feisty lady. When she passed away, I was faced with the typical existential anguish we all experience when a loved one passes. I felt grief, guilt, sorrow, fear, distress- all of these emotions just swirled around in my brain, making me feel as though I was a prisoner of my own mind.

Then one day I found a beautiful photograph of my grandmother from a vacation we took together. I thought this picture was so beautiful it just had to be a painting. I wanted to give the painting to my grandfather because I knew he was also having a hard time dealing with her loss. So I picked up a paintbrush and got to work.

As I painted, I could feel the emotions that have been tormenting me travel from within my brain, to my hand, onto the paintbrush, to then be deposited onto the canvas by the oil paint.

The emotions were no longer disrupting my mental peace because they now existed on the canvas.

I turned an invisible foe into a tangible art piece . Through my own art, I was able to express my love for my late grandmother, and share a vulnerable experience with my grandfather.

My grandmother, Haydee Jimenez.

TASNY’s goal is primarily to teach the technical applications of art- how to use your medium as a tool to craft the elusive visions within the mind. But it is more than that; it is a community, it is a support group, it is a home.

One of my many mantras are, “I want to be a blessing to everyone I meet”.

I think this exists in TASNY’s philosophy as well. We want to help improve each one of our students’ lives by creating a nurturing, welcoming environment- a safe space to be vulnerable. By providing online art lessons, TASNY acts as a catalyst for new friendships, new ideas, and a new You. By simply logging on to Zoom, you can enter a place to learn how to create a palpable expression of who you are so you can share it with the world, just like I shared my expression with my grandfather.

I love this butterfly that our student Onagh painted during Rebecca’s online art class on Sunday nights.

Click here to register for Rebecca’s FREE Sunday night online art lesson!

And here’s Onagh’s kitty lazily enjoying our virtual art lesson 🙂

Jun

Virtual Art Lessons; A New Technological Frontier

Restore the Community One Zoom Art Lesson at a Time…

One of my dad’s favorite episodes of Seinfeld is the Bubble Boy episode. Ever since I was a kid I thought the idea of Bubble Boy was hysterically absurd. Well, I wouldn’t have laughed if I knew in 2020 we would all be living like Bubble Boy.

I think all of us are going to remember the week before the NYC lockdown until the day we die.

There was an air of anxiety that hovered over the city. With every passing day, the streets became less and less populated. We all had that one friend ‘who has a friend who knows someone who works for Cuomo’ and they warned us: “Go to the store, buy supplies for a month, they’re going to shut everything down.”

Some of us were panicking, some of us thought it was all baloney, but really, we just didn’t know what to expect. While a lot of tragedy has followed this unprecedented event, I am one to look on the bright side of things and I will say there’s a silver lining to everything.

Because of the global pandemic, Zoom has become a household name seemingly overnight. Zoom is now the number one software for “modern enterprise video communications”. Here we are, emerging out of the golden age of technology. Almost our whole country began operating virtually in just a few short weeks. During this time, there’s a lot of talk about what is essential and what is not. Something that is missing from the conversation is the essentiality of human connection. Human interaction is not a luxury, it’s a necessity.

When TASNY first made the announcement that we will be operating online in reaction to the Stay At Home orders, we had a few doubters. “What’s the point of online classes? I can just watch a video on youtube or something.”

Anyone who’s taken an art class knows it is so much more than just instruction and demonstration.

It is a dialogue, it is an exchange of ideas. It is time that you specifically set aside to work on something for yourself. It is a place to nourish the creative being that exists within you.

Zoom is a software that will instantly connect you with anyone anywhere by sharing a link or using a meeting ID number. It is a brilliant innovation that has proven itself to be an incredible resource.

Zoom art classes are a fabulous way to learn something new and meet new people literally from your living room. TASNY is here to provide you with the environment to not just improve upon your skills, but to connect with the world around you. Zoom art lessons are a platform to access the in-studio experience, right from the comfort of your own home.

Jun

Online Summer Camp: Staying Safe During a COVID Summer

Corona Can’t Stop Our Summer Camp Magic

With the school year coming to an end and an air of ambiguity surrounding the months ahead, one question that keeps being asked is “What about summer camp?!”

Some of my most cherished childhood memories are those that I made during summer camp. Summer camp is a classic staple of American culture. It is an integral part of almost every coming of age tale.

My heart aches to think that the children of today might not get to experience the same charming nostalgia of a summer camp experience.

So, we have made the decision to move forward and provide COVID-modified Summer Art Camp for our community!

Let’s keep the magic in summer and provide a nurturing, expressive, and SAFE environment for our kids to remain socially connected during this uncertain time.

TASNY will be strictly enforcing all of the CDC’s guidelines for a safe and healthy summer camp experience:

-There will be a maximum of 8 campers per day per group

-Campers will have their own set of art supplies to prevent the sharing of objects

-Masks are required for teachers and students for all indoor activities

-TASNY will provide all necessary hygienic supplies such as hand sanitizer, soap, and disinfectant.

-TASNY will follow an impeccable cleaning and disinfecting schedule multiple times throughout the day

Socially Distanced Studio Summer Art Camp

TASNY has provided our community with a loving and nurturing art camp at our studio for years. That will not stop this year! Our Summer Art Camp offers a variety of interactive and spirited creative activities every hour of every camp day.

Socially Distanced Outdoor Summer Art Camp

Join us for summer days in Central Park, Riverside Park, and various other spacious outdoor locations. Our Socially Distanced Outdoor Summer Art Camp is an opportunity to stay safe while also enjoying tailor-made, encouraging one-on-one expert art instruction in drawing, painting, artistic techniques and individual self-expression from a variety of artistic mediums.

Online Art Camp

Our virtual summer camps are a fabulous option for those who would like to experience the magic of summer camp from the safety of their own home. We offer a high-quality art experience where kids and teens can learn from our expert art teachers. Online art camp is the perfect way to expose your child to new painting, drawing, and mixed-media activities and help them discover new friendships this summer. Kids are sure to experience a boost in self confidence as they enhance their social and communication skills through artistic expression.

Online Creativity Camp

Not only are we offering our typical Summer Art Camp online, but we are pleased to announce we now have an ONLINE Creativity Camp option as well!

Creativity camp is an excellent program for the kids who are artistically inclined but want to participate in a range of exciting guided camp activities.

Creativity campers will engage in a variety of fun activities such as creative writing, art journaling, TikTok dance competitions, singing, yoga, and so much more!

Flexibility and Customization

Choose from a variety of online summer camp packages best suited for your scheduling needs and your child’s interests. Our various online camp programs offer the largest range of interactive and diverse creative activities to match any child’s interests and needs.

We are also now offering a Create Your Own Bunk option. Grab your besties and create your own private bunk! We will customize all online activities to what your bunk loves best. Choose activities from a curated menu, and let us create the magical summer your kids are dreaming of, all from the safety of home.

Register for a half day, a full day, or a week. Visit our website to find more information about our summer camp program!

May

The Guardian: Zoom with a view: how lockdown art classes are booming online

Original article posted on The Guardian on May 14, 2020.

Zoom with a view: how lockdown art classes are booming online

Quarantine has led to a rise in those with and without artistic experience heading online for a range of immersive classes

On 30 March, Big Bang Theory star Jim Parsons posted a selfie on Instagram holding up a painting of two vases – which he made himself.

In the caption, Parsons told his followers that he created the artwork with the help of an online art class. “They’re doing live classes via zoom and, quit to my delight, I was not only able to figure out how to use zoom, but I also painted this in the process!” he wrote. “No museums are asking to display my first still life painting, but I feel just a little bit more peaceful from the process … and I got to see real life other people who were also taking the class – a real gift right now!”

Parsons is not alone. Thousands of us have been turning to Zoom, the video conferencing platform, to get a creative workout. From life drawing art classes to small-town museums, pandemic cartoons and upcycled sculptures, it seems to be the perfect answer for cooped-up creativity in our current quarantine.

Parsons took his class with Art Studio NY, which hosts painting classes, from watercolors, to oil, acrylic and a “fear-free drawing 101”. The school’s virtual art classes draw the likes of international students (one artist recently tuned in from France). “It’s really amazing to see people coming together from every corner of the earth to make art together,” wrote one of the teachers on Instagram. “In uncertain times like these, this is the least we can do to help keep our spirits alive and our feelings united.”

May

CNBC: How arts and crafts can help to keep the mind active during the coronavirus lockdown

Original Article can be found at CNBC. Posted on April 14, 2020.

valentinrussanov/Getty

Anxious thoughts can be more difficult to escape in sustained isolation, such as the widespread lockdown measures due to the coronavirus pandemic, but arts and crafts have been shown to help distract from these feelings.

The coronavirus has so far infected more than 1.9 million people worldwide, with 119,686 deaths, according to latest figures from Johns Hopkins University.

The scale of pandemic and its impact on billions of people, in limiting physical contact with others, has meant that many are looking for ways to distract themselves while stuck inside their own homes.

Clinical neuropsychologist Katie Carey Levisay, who runs a private practice in Denver, Colorado, explained that crafting can help as it requires focused attention and forces us to be completely immersed in the moment.

“We’ve all experienced that phenomenon when we completely lose track of time and our awareness of what’s going on around us diminishes,” she told CNBC.

This is what is known as “flow,” Carey Levisay said, a term popularized by psychologist Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi in the 1970s.

Being engrossed in a creative project temporarily allows us to stop worrying about the future or dwell on the past.

Creating something for ourselves and others also helps our sense of self-efficacy, or the belief in our own abilities, Carey Levisay said.

Using time purposefully has also been linked to lower depressive symptoms, she added.

“The rewarding experience of creating, sharing, and using our time well all stimulate the reward centers in the brain to release ‘feel good’ neurotransmitters (dopamine) and our endogenous opioids (endorphins),” she said.

Crafting can also keep the brain effectively stimulated because, in many cases, it combines the learning and perfecting of new skills with those that have already been mastered, Carey Levisay explained.

These activities also use many different parts of the brain, or require “whole brain recruitment.” For example, quilting requires visuospatial processing, which is the ability to perceive, analyze and transform images, while knitting requires working memory and math.

She said it is also unique to other cognitive enhancing programs, such as the memory enhancement present with computer games, because it is a blend of “intellectually stimulating” and “rewarding/relaxing” activity.

Online classes

Most in-person arts and crafts classes have been cancelled as a result of lockdown measures, requiring the closure of many non-essential businesses in order to limit the further spread of the virus.

New York-based school The Art Studio is hosting online classes for adults, teens and children, as well as offering online art parties for children’s birthdays.

Adult online classes include oil and watercolor painting for beginners, as well as “fear-free drawing 101.”

U.K.-based business Sew Confident is holding “Virtual Sewcials,” in addition to online classes teaching people how to make their own dress or jumpsuit via Zoom.

Marvel illustrator Will Sliney is also giving live classes on YouTube to teach children how to draw comic book characters.

Apr

I’M AFRAID: 3 Ways to Create Inner-CALM

Dear TASNY Friends,

If the unknown of Coronavirus is making you feel afraid, YOU ARE NOT ALONE. Creativity is a spiritual practice that boosts your mood, relieves your anxiety, and leaves you feeling soothed during uncertain times. Practice these 3 EASY tools to ease your stress as we get through this together.

1. CREATE PERSPECTIVE: When you change how you see things, what you see changes. When you have fear-based thoughts that trigger anxiety, ask yourself, “What new way can I see this threat?” With creative problem solving, you transform your perspective. No face masks available? I wear fun scarfs, take selfies, and I share my “daily look” with loved ones to uplift us all.

2. CREATE TIME FOR GROWTH: During this challenging time, what do you miss the most in your life? What do you NOT miss at all? Make an honest list and reflect on it. How can you create change that will serve your best self when life “goes back to normal”? Start now. Getting real with yourself is grounding.

3. CREATE CONNECTION: We are social beings, we need each other. Join a structured online activity and put it in your schedule. I am grateful that during this dizzying time, people worldwide share that our online art classes are soothing, healing, and providing a community that feels like home.

Wishing you safety and health,

Rebecca

Feb

Student Spotlight: Michele Bontempo

Going to The Art Studio NY was the best and continues to be the best gift I have ever given myself.

When did you start taking art classes at The Art Studio NY, and why did you begin to take classes (what was going on in your life at the time)?

I began with The Art Studio NY in September 2015. I was a fashion photo art director in print retail advertising. By 2015 and earlier print advertising was not the way anymore. More retailers chose web advertising and my creative services were no longer necessary.

I began designing photo storybooks. They were albums that contained stories the client would supply in their own words. They involved being given their photos that needed to be edited, the story, then design and produce as a hard covered book. Very time consuming. It was a great idea and people loved them. However, they were not willing to pay the price.

What class/e did you take, and what classes are you currently taking?

I decided to sign up for art classes. I never had fine art training. Never picked up a brush or oil paint. I was really, really scared and at times, frozen.

My first class was Mixed-Media and I did it for about a year and a half. Then I combined Mixed-Media with a landscape, and abstracts.

By around 2017 I switched to “water based oils” These are oil paint that has been manipulated to clean up with water. The paint acts and feels like oil without the toxics. I started off with a landscape then I began painting people. Now I am taking Intermediate Oil Painting classes with Rebecca and I love it.

What makes your experience at The Art Studio NY unique and memorable?

Going to The Art Studio NY was the best and continues to be the best gift I have ever given myself. Everyone who works there is great. They are friendly and make me feel like I belong. In the classes, the students are welcoming and very supportive of one another.

What is something you have achieved because of your art classes that you never thought you could?

I can paint well.

What are you most proud of when it comes to your artistic journey?

That I worked very hard and I had the ability to listen to my instructors. If I didn’t understand I was not ashamed to ask. The instructors are patient, tolerant and kind.

What fears have you overcome, on and off the canvas, since starting to paint?

ON THE CANVAS: Being afraid that I would not be able to achieve what I chose to paint at the time.

OFF THE CANVAS: Constantly hoping that my eyes, brain and hands would work as a team.

How have your art classes allowed you to relax and relieve stress?

It is the opposite with me. First, I stress and once I have succeeded, I can relax.

How have your art classes changed your life, either in your art or your everyday life?

I see myself as a different person now. I am very proud that I took such a huge chance for me and it worked.

What advice would you tell a total beginner who feels afraid of taking an art class or they feel they “have no talent”?

I would say that if you think about taking and art class, it is a sign. If you have no talent then you would not have thought to take an art class.

When I was 13 years old I had an opportunity to apply to Art and Design High School and I did. A while later I received a letter telling me that I need to come and take a test to get in.

I put together a portfolio of work that was required in the letter I received.

My Dad took me down and on the Subway I told him I was scared. He said “of course you are scared, that’s normal. But remember, just try your best. And besides, the other kids are scared too.

Jan

JOIN THE 10-MINUTE DAILY CHALLENGE (it’s free!)

How to Create A Life You Love

CHANGE YOUR LIFE. NO MORE EXCUSES.

I’ve officially begun my own 10-minute a day challenge, and I invite YOU to join me.

What nurtures you, fulfills you, what’s that “thing” you want more of but you “don’t have time”?

The things that make me happy, make me come alive- meditation, painting, exercise, nature, deep connection to others- I push them aside regularly for other “more important” tasks. And yet, what could be more important than our own happiness, health and fulfillment?

Starting my days from now on, I’m creating the time for what matters. And it won’t even take much! Creating just 10 minutes, day after day after day, are baby steps… that combined, equal BIG leaps.

10 minutes daily during:

1 week= 1 hour 10 minutes

1 month= 5 hours

1 year= 60 hours

5 years= 304 hours= 1 week and 6 days!

You have 10 minutes. I have 10 minutes. NO MORE EXCUSES.

When our lives end, no one will say, “Damn, why didn’t I work more?” And yet, if life ended tomorrow, what would you wish YOU had made more time for?

Create time for what makes you come ALIVE in these easy steps:

Choose one daily practice that inspires you, fulfills you, and makes you the “you” that you want to be.
Choose a time daily when you’ll spend 10 minutes engaging in this activity uninterrupted.
Add it to your calendar. Daily, for 30 days.

Rebecca Schweiger

Dec

CREATE Big 2020 Dreams: The Time is Now

What do you WANT in your life? I mean, reeeeaaaallllly want. In a dig-down-deep-in-your-soul-kind-of-want. Now is the perfect time to get quiet, take a pause, and ask yourself important life questions as the 2019 cycle ends and 2020 soon begins.

My questions include the following. What questions will YOU ask yourself? Share them with us on FACEBOOK. We’re in this together!

*What makes me happy, and how will I build more of my life around what feeds my soul?

*What stops (sabotages) me from doing more of what I love, and when/how will I address this roadblock, in action?

*My health is my wealth. What will I do to enhance my health and well-being?

*What angers and resentments (aka poison) can I let go of, and how?

*When I get very quiet, what does my inner-voice say, and what do I need to do to listen and act on it daily?

My beloved best friend and I experience and talk a lot about a space we refer to as “beyond”. This “beyond space” is a reality that we find ourselves in together often, and yet often, we couldn’t have dreamt it up even if we tried. The magic and wonder of life’s grandest possibilities are available to you if you surrender and open yourself to a bigger reality. When you make space for more goodness, it will rain upon you.

In the next days ahead, I’m going to spend time nurturing the seeds of my grandest dreams. I hope you will, too. Plant those seeds. Water them, and they’re sure to grow.

Our hundreds of weekly students at The Art Studio NY rave that our inspiring art classes nourish their spirits, enhance their wellbeing, provide stress relief, help to achieve goals and dreams “beyond”, and in a nutshell…. it’s the best part of their week. We hope to nurture YOU through art this coming year.

Wishing you a meaningful and creative 2020! May you make the time to nurture your grandest dreams.
Rebecca & The Art Studio NY Family

Dec

The Art Studio NY Featured on E

E! Online

Oct

Student Spotlight: Annette Back

“I was working, had 3 little kids and a household to run. I wasn’t doing anything for my enjoyment or self-fulfillment. I needed more free creative time. The decision to join the art class changed my life!” – Annette Back

When and why did you start taking art classes at The Art Studio NY?

I started taking classes in the fall of 2014. At the time, I was working, had 3 little kids and a household to run. I wasn’t doing anything for my enjoyment or self-fulfillment.

Some friends of mine took me to a paint party at The Art Studio NY for the evening. That night I had a big AHA moment. Since graduating from School of Visual Arts, I had not painted – I used my creativity only for my clients, and that is not the same as expressing yourself freely. I needed some more of that free creative time. The decision to join the class changed my life!

What advice would you tell a total beginner who feels afraid of taking an art class or they feel they “have no talent”?

Go for it. Just try it. Most of the time, if you have the urge to paint, you have the talent within you. It’s just not tapped.

What makes your experience at The Art Studio NY unique and memorable?

I take a weekly class “Dare to Paint: Intermediate Oil Painting” on Wednesdays with instructor/Founder Rebecca Schweiger. The atmosphere, the teacher and the comradely of the students is what makes my art class experience unique and memorable. We all love to be there and help each other. It is inspiring to see the progress and completion of each others work. The feedback is invaluable. I have made friends for life.

What is something you have achieved because of your art classes that you never thought you could?

I have achieved the confidence to go out into the art world and exhibit my work confidently.

What are you most proud of when it comes to your artistic journey?

I have learned to paint freely, experiment, and recognize a happy accident. Also, I am currently building a body of work.

What fears have you overcome, on and off the canvas, since starting to paint?

I have overcome the fear of “doing something wrong” or “messing it up” on canvas.

How have your art classes allowed you to relax and relieve stress?

There is nothing like following your inner voice to create. I love it. I now paint at home as well.

How have your art classes changed your life, either in your art or your everyday life?

Yes, I am now exhibiting, selling, working at home as well as in the studio. I want to paint more now.

To learn more about Annette’s artwork, please visit her website at :
annettebackfineart.com

Sep

Watercolor Painting in Nature

If you’re like me, you may be feeling a certain stress as summer is replaced with “fall takeover”. Amidst the pressures of daily life, we all need a healthy escape. My favorite way to recenter myself is by spending time in the woods. I could sit silently for hours, just simply “being”, listening to the leaves dance in the wind, watching time pass. In nature, I love to watercolor painting to express what I see and feel, forgetting everything, while letting my paintbrush do all of the talking.

Students at The Art Studio NY always say how meditative and cathartic painting is. I fully agree.

I recently explored the #blueridgeparkway and #blueridgemountains and now that I’m back in Manhattan, when I close my eyes, I still see the expansive layers of blue mountains for as far as the eye can see.

The journey with a paintbrush allows me to visit the woods anytime I want. Through watercolor painting, I re-experience the quiet of nature and visit that same escape in my mind, imagination and through painting, without having traveled a mile.

What and where is your healthy escape that brings you peace in the midst of life’s hustle and bustle? Entering our 15th year at The Art Studio NY, we are grateful to offer nearly 100 weekly escapes in the form of adult art classes, teen art classes and kids art classes. We invite you to our art studio this fall to discover your home away from home, where you can escape, recenter, and reconnect with the fulfilling and meaningful self-expression you’re needing and longing for.

Rebecca

Feb

How To Create A Life You Love

I’m Sick Of Your Bullsh*t

You may find a blank white canvas scary, intimidating. You’re not alone. I once taught a private painting lesson to a woman in her 50’s; She was so overwhelmed with terror that she needed to pause and take a Xanax. Of course it wasn’t painting she was afraid of. Rather, her old self-doubting, “I’m not good enough” narrative reared its fangs.

She could have given up, we all know how convincing fear can be. Instead, she chose courage and chose to confront her own bullsh*t. In time, her fear was replaced with confidence and strength. She created meaningful artwork that inspired her to also make new empowering life choices “off the canvas.”

@elizabeth_gilbert_writer posted this stitching by artist @badasscrossstitch, and my “TRUTH!” bell went off. On the other side of your fear and bullsh*t is freedom. Power. Transformation. PERIOD.

The blank canvas has become my spiritual teacher, always asking (telling) me to face myself full-on. The REAL blank canvas, of course, is facing every day anew. Waking up, seeing the day as the ultimate blank slate. Pregnant with possibility.

Lately, I’ve been making every attempt to apply in my life what I do freely on the canvas: Experiment with new life choices, dare to face and move towards that which scares me. Embrace and play with the unknown. Surrender. Let go of control. Be fully present. Accept that life is often different than what I expected. Make space for a life that is colorful and messy and rich and layered. See that there are no such thing as mistakes, and that I can turn errors into learning and beauty. Realize that I am carving my own life path and it’s not going to look like anyone else’s life, and that’s something to celebrate rather than be ashamed of.

What if everyday, you woke up, clicked OFF your autopilot switch, and clicked ON your self-awareness, your choices, your button of “I’m sick of my own bullsh*t, today is the day I’m going to stop worrying or replaying _________________ (insert your own bullsh*t here), and instead, CREATE and lead with my truth, authenticity and courage.”

What would your tomorrow look like if that’s how you started your day? You’re that powerful, you know.

#1 Rated Art Classes in New York City!

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Our virtual art classes make New York enrichment accessible to anyone from anywhere in the world.

In doing so, we accidentally discovered that TASNY can provide that same outlet to more than just New Yorkers.

TASNY is more than just art lessons, it is a community.

You can’t control what happens to you, but you can control how you react to it.

Find your “anchor” and focus on it.

In art meditation, the anchor is your paintbrush.

Stay present, stay healthy.

Don’t let negativity distract you. Be powerful. Be in control of your happiness.

We are all artists and most of us don’t even know it.

Art, in simplified terms, is just expression.

Many physical and mental health benefits are linked to artistic practice.

The emotions were no longer disrupting my mental peace because they now existed on the canvas.

My grandmother, Haydee Jimenez.

I love this butterfly that our student Onagh painted during Rebecca’s online art class on Sunday nights.

And here’s Onagh’s kitty lazily enjoying our virtual art lesson 🙂

Restore the Community One Zoom Art Lesson at a Time…

I think all of us are going to remember the week before the NYC lockdown until the day we die.

Anyone who’s taken an art class knows it is so much more than just instruction and demonstration.

Corona Can’t Stop Our Summer Camp Magic

TASNY will be strictly enforcing all of the CDC’s guidelines for a safe and healthy summer camp experience:

Socially Distanced Studio Summer Art Camp

Socially Distanced Outdoor Summer Art Camp

Online Art Camp

Online Creativity Camp

Flexibility and Customization

Zoom with a view: how lockdown art classes are booming online

Online classes

Going to The Art Studio NY was the best and continues to be the best gift I have ever given myself.

What do you WANT in your life? I mean, reeeeaaaallllly want. In a dig-down-deep-in-your-soul-kind-of-want. Now is the perfect time to get quiet, take a pause, and ask yourself important life questions as the 2019 cycle ends and 2020 soon begins.

My questions include the following. What questions will YOU ask yourself? Share them with us on FACEBOOK. We’re in this together!

*What makes me happy, and how will I build more of my life around what feeds my soul?

*What stops (sabotages) me from doing more of what I love, and when/how will I address this roadblock, in action?

*My health is my wealth. What will I do to enhance my health and well-being?

*What angers and resentments (aka poison) can I let go of, and how?

*When I get very quiet, what does my inner-voice say, and what do I need to do to listen and act on it daily?

In the next days ahead, I’m going to spend time nurturing the seeds of my grandest dreams. I hope you will, too. Plant those seeds. Water them, and they’re sure to grow.

“I was working, had 3 little kids and a household to run. I wasn’t doing anything for my enjoyment or self-fulfillment. I needed more free creative time. The decision to join the art class changed my life!” – Annette Back

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