This is my second blog post for Indepth. My project is on Indian folk art, and I have recently been learning about Warli art. We started with the basics, and are planning to continue next class.
I learned that to draw the border I have to draw a line 0.5 cm inwards on each side. Then I drew a line that was 1 cm further in from that. In between, I drew triangles with a base of 2 cm each.
I learned how to find the center of the drawing, by measuring the markings and finding the halfway point, length and width.
From there, I moved forward by drawing a circle 2 cm in radius using a compass. Then I drew 6 more circles, increasing the radius by 0.5 cm for each.
From there, I drew a line from the center at every ten degrees, and I started to draw a pattern using the grid made. We will continue this specifically next class.
Frustrations And Solutions:
One major frustration for us was that the paper I was using the first class wasn’t thick enough. When we tried to paint, the paper bent too much. To solve this, my mentor found a better paper and recommended it, so I bought it before the second class, and we started from scratch. However I knew how to prepare beforehand this time, so we got a little further.
Another frustration we had was the time zone difference, as my mentor lives in India. We had planned to do the lessons on Saturday night for me and Sunday morning for her, but this interfered with other things. To solve this we moved the schedule a day back, so my lessons were Friday night, and this ended up working much better.
My mentor is Deepshika Varma. She has gained her knowledge through lessons she took herself, but a part of her knowledge comes from self-teaching as well. She has also been giving art lessons for years.
From these experiences, she has gained a deeper understanding of this art, and has grown a passion for it. Teaching children has also been beneficial because she now knows several different stages in learning, and what works best to teach each one.
As we only have had two classes, I haven’t gained a lot of wisdom from my mentor. However, I have learned that she is very patient, especially with all the frustrations we had. She is also patient during drawing, when I make mistakes or if I need clarification.
In terms of facilitation strategies, I have learned that it is important to be patient as previously mentioned. I have also learned that it is important to be clear when giving instructions, and I sometimes got confused with instructions. For example, I wasn’t sure where to start the triangles, or where to draw the border lines, as through a camera the lines weren’t very clear.
So far, I think this project is going well. I believe that, despite the hurdles, we are going at a steady and expected pace. I am not sure if I will be able to meet my goal of completing one art style per month, but it is too soon to tell. I am looking forward to learning whatever I will learn either way, as this form of art is very enjoyable.