Noormah's Reflections: February

This month, we finished our animal cloud forms then jumped into observational portrait and gestural figure drawing!

I probably say this every time, but I'm always pleasantly surprised when students not only do well, but respond to the assignment in a way that they feel it was made for them. Observational drawing often intimidates my students. However, because these lessons were quick sketches, they slowly eased up and gained confidence. Some students required extra assistance, but most were pretty independent after the initial demo and did exceptionally well.

I also really enjoyed seeing the students interacting with each other, responding to each other's work and offering encouraging comments like "You're really good at this," 'You've gotten so much better," "I don't think that looks right, the back has more of a bend to it," and my favorite comment: "You guys are gonna weep when you see mine."

Noormah’s work at Children’s Workshop School is supported by the Emergency Arts Education Fund, which provides free arts education to NYC school communities whose art programs have been decimated by recent budget cuts.

Children’s Museum of the Arts’ three Residents Artists are currently implementing ambitious arts curriculum at each of our partner sites throughout New York City: Hudson Guild in Chelsea, Sid Miller Academy in Crown Heights, and Children’s Workshop School in the East Village. Come spring, our residents will showcase their students' work through exhibitions and installations across the city. Learn how you can support the work of our residents here.