One of my favorite places to rediscover my inner child is at the John C Campbell Folk School.  I taught a floorcloth class there last week .  My daughter says it’s just like camp.   I learned to contra dance there and continue to enjoy it.  I relearned to waltz there and took a few turns this time around encouraging other non-waltzers to take a spin on the dance floor.  We had a waltz one night that had a bit of tango mixed in and I was fortunate to have a fabulous partner for that one.

We went to morning song every day and learned some new sing-a-long songs.  One song inspired my student to create a painting about the story of the catepillar who longed to be a butterfly.    There was music everyday on the porch before lunch and of course the delicious meals and conversations with all kinds of interesting people.

I encourage my students to come with ideas of pieces they would like to paint so that they can use their floorcloths when they return home.  We always get an interesting mix of designs and each one is fabulous.

I hope you will join us the next time you are looking to fire up your creativity.  Every day is a new discovery and you will be in touch with skills you didn’t know you had!

Tonight I am teaching a workshop to homeowners at Habitat.  I am really excited to meet them and hear about their ideas.  We are focusing on the family table and I get to share some of my ideas about the value of a shared meal.  We will be painting placemats and talking about how to get those kids engaged, eating healthy food and talking.  Its going to be fun and I am thrilled that Piedmont Craftsmen is partnering with Habitat to work with the homeowners.

Next month I will be returning to John C Campbell Folk School to teach a week long workshop on painting.  Its dance musicians week so I think its the best week of the summer.  There will be a contra dance every night!  The first year I taught there I was determined to learn how to contra.  The first night’s dance almost did me in.  The caller was visiting from Scotland and I could not understand a word of his call.  It sounded very melodic but the words just floated over my head.  But I kept going every night and eventually I caught on!

I have also been painting some interesting pieces for customers all over the US.  I love hearing from them and enjoy designing for their homes.  So life is good!  Please check out my new web link for KathyCooperYogaMats and tell your friends.  And if you have time to travel to the far reaches of the North Carolina mountains please come paint with me in July.  The scenery is stunning, the food is delicious, you will make new friends and take home fabulous memories.  And the painting will inspire you!

It does not seem possible but December has almost flown by!  So please excuse this late post on a wonderful class at the John C Campbell Folk School.  We traveled up the mountain in the snow to get there and endured a week of bitter cold but it was warm in the studio.

The students made some amazing floocloths.  We had a great week of fun and painting that resulted in lots of new friendships.

There was terrific music, a cookie decorating challenge (see red truck), dancing from the Morris dancers, a fabulous bell concert and all that wonderful food.  It was a terrific way to jump start my holiday season in the Appalachian mountains.  On the way back down the mountain we stopped in Asheville to take in the gingerbread cookie display at the Grove Park Inn.

Then it was on to Winston Salem and preparation for five choral performances.  Throw in a few family parties and neighborhood socializing and suddenly Christmas was here in all it snowy glory.  I hope each of you had a wonderful holiday season.   Thank you for being part of mine!

Color! It’s all around us in every part of our lives.

So after thirty years of playing with color in my paintings I decided to travel to San Diego and participate in several seminars sponsored by the International Color Consultants of North America to learn more of the science behind color. Back in the spring of this year I was perusing the internet for information about color consulting and came across their website. Several months later as I tried to figure out how to pay for my trip, I was able to present and receive a regional artist project grant from my local arts council and off I went to study the psychology and physiology of color. ( I did mention in Part One that I never really liked science in school so this was a bold adventure for me!)

There were students from Australia, Nigeria, Canada and seventeen states in the United States representing a diverse selection of mostly women interested in various aspects of color. We were a collection of color strategists, interior designers, color consultants, facility managers, faux painters, colorists in transition, teachers and artists, all of whom shared a passion for color!

Led by Frank Mahnke/President of the IACC and author of numerous publications on color, the focus of the IACC is to educate color consultants to create healthy environments for humans to live, work and heal from illness. Much of his research and writing is focused on the universal understanding of color. Across the globe colors are often associated with the same emotions. Understanding color research helps us explain and support why we choose colors for clients. It helps us to understand the reaction in our brains.

As an added bonus to cap our week of color we had a short course with charming Prof. Edda Mally, founder of First Vienna Institute of Color Design and Deputy President of IACC. She led us on an adventure through all of our senses to experience the world using vision, smell, taste, sound and touch. Color can communicate to us in ways we never imagined! We experimented with colors to counteract smells and sounds.  We envisioned colors with taste and touch.

Over eight days I made a new family of friends. We shared many delightful meals talking about our businesses and our lives full of color. It confirmed to me how much I love color and how important it is for us to see color and surround ourselves with colors that help us to feel our very best in every part of our lives. Paint is one of the least expensive ways for us to change a space in our home or work space.

I tell my students and my clients to remember that when they were in kindergarten they loved color and had no fear of using it. So get out your paints and play with color.We are so very lucky to live in a world of amazing color!

After my house was on tour this spring I kept getting requests to help my clients and friends with their homes.  Each was a different scenario but the recurring theme was to impart color courage to them when they were in the process of repainting spaces.    I found that I loved guiding them through the process.  So I began perusing the internet for information about color consulting.  I came across a conference that looked very interesting.  It focused on the physiology and psychology of color and how color is used to influence our moods and our senses.  I marked the website for a return visit and wrote for information.

One day while listening to NPR I heard an interview about the sluggish economy and the best way to handle our funds in rocky times.  Should we pay off our bills with our savings or keep holding on waiting for the stock market to rebound?  The response I heard from the financial analyst was to do a little of both but also to invest in a brighter future through additional education.  I called one of my friends in the non-profit world and started talking about ways to fund some coursework in color.  To my delight she said I had just enough time to finish a regional artist project grant from my local arts council and suggested I look into it.

I have applied for and received this grant before.  It is designed to assist artists in projects they are working on or educational opportunities to enhance their careers.  In 2000 I received a RAPG grant to create a video on making floorcloths.  So with a little experience in grant writing I revisited the website on color.   Grant writing is a challenge that can sometimes be tedious and difficult to pull together on paper.  You have to get your point across with limited words but this one seemed to fall into place with ease.  I had just completed the redo on the massage space and had some fabulous photographs to illustrate the significance of color in our living and work spaces. 

In September 2010 I received a call from the Winston Salem Forsyth County Arts Council that I had been awarded a grant.  Suddenly my one college course in basic color theory would be put to the test, along with thirty years of hands on experience as a painter.  I have an innate skill at mixing color and seeing color but what would it all mean when I learned about the psychology and physiology behind my choices?  Did I mention I don’t like science? 

Stay tuned for part two of my blog on Color Courage!

I have been working on collecting some photographs of rooms to show you exactly what I mean.  Remember my spring sale and the wonderful story about the judge loading her purchase to take home and try?  Here is the finished room.  The floorcloth picks up on all of her favorite colors and completes the space.  And as a bonus to my customer she does not have to worry about her dogs on this rug.  It cleans up with a mop!  A floorcloth might be just the addition in your home to infuse your space with energy, spirit and enthusiasm!