According to Webster’s
Dictionary a mentor is someone who teaches or gives
help and advice to a less experienced and often younger person. At RFAA mentoring has a similar but somewhat
broader application. Every Friday and
Saturday, members “Gallery Sit” to provide open hours for guests to view the
current show in our Gallery at 9100 Fouts
Road in Roswell Georgia. At first glance
the concept of gallery sitting sounds pretty dull, kind of like watching paint
dry, but for our members it is an opportunity to share what we love best –
making art and talking about it. Members who are less
experienced are often sitting with more experienced artists and it’s the
perfect opportunity to find out how to do something. If several more experienced artists are
painting together they might have an impromptu critique session, another form of
mentoring. More often than not, looking
at the work of others’ inspires all of those present to try something they hadn’t
considered doing before. Members often invite their friends to come paint with them, creating a new outlet for an artist who might have previously only painted alone. The prospect of
sitting with a person you haven’t met is another positive that creates
relationships that might otherwise not
have happened. When a group starts a
dialogue, painters might share places they’ve been that were wonderful for plein
air (outdoor) painting or talk about workshops they’ve taken and what they
learned. Regardless of how the
conversation starts or where it leads, there are so many things to be gained
from painting together and sharing our expertise and our delight in discovery
with one another. Members, if you haven’t
signed up to gallery sit, don’t miss one of the best experiences about being a
part of Roswell Fine Arts Alliance. To sign up visit http://www.signupgenius.com/go/20F054BAFAB2CA3F85-gallery
