NAEA - 2013

Rick writes:

Maria, Molly, and I returned home yesterday from the National Art Educators Association annual convention in Fort Worth, Texas (US).

We enjoyed a wonderful whirlwind of conversations, classes and cuisine. We also fell in love with Fort Worth and the friendly people we met. It certainly didn't hurt that the sun was shining there while at home, 20 inches of snow was falling!

During the convention, one teacher came over to us to say, "Thank you for bringing so much joy to my kids." What better reward or compliment could anyone want? I quickly wrote down what she said so we wouldn't forget it.

Here are a few pictures to give a sense of our time at NAEA:

Using our Zentangle Apprentice™ Classroom Pack materials that we designed for youths in schools, we gave several mini-workshops from Sakura of America's booth.

People gathered around as they tangled on palm-boards or the booth's counter.

 

Many would then gather their tiles into a mosaic. It's always a meaningful moment to appreciate how each person heard the same instructions yet interpreted them in their own unique style. This is a great way to explore one's creativity in a structured method, but which also does not have any preconceived "right answers." I think everyone had a different perspective of their own tiles when viewing them in a group mosaic.

One teacher brought some comments her students had written about Zentangle. (There were many more, but these are all that fit in one frame.)

We autographed and personalized copies of The Book of Zentangle to benefit Youth Art Month (YAM). It was a great success. 100% of the proceeds went to YAM and we sold all the books that we and Sakura of America contributed. We continued to personalize books for teachers because Angie Vangalis, a Texas based CZT, had a booth right behind us and she had some books, too.

We didn't have a lot of time to walk the show, but when we did, we found some great patterns like this chair seat fabric. This would make a neat tangleation of w2.

Here, Molly, Maria, and I are tangling a large poster used in a workshop that Angie gave the previous evening. Two other CZTs, Amy Broady and Denise Rudd, also gave a Zentangle workshop at NAEA. Zentangle had a strong presence at the convention. That tangle that Molly is doing is pea-nuckle. It's one Molly created and it's a fun and surprising tangle. See this newsletter for step out instructions.

Maria and I taught a large class Friday night. It was so much fun because instead of the 30 minute workshops at the booth, we had a full two hours to enjoy each others' company. However, we didn't have a large enough table for our regular mosaic tradition, so everyone held up their tiles in an "air mosaic"!


We're expecting to receive more pictures from NAEA, particularly from teachers who were sharing some of amazing pictures of what their students were tangling. We asked them to send them, so after we receive them (hint, hint!) we'll post them here for your enjoyment.

Maria, Molly and I are still appreciating and talking about the important interactions, conversations and sharings that can only happen in face-to-face events. We are so grateful for everything that happened and for everyone that we met.

Click images for larger views. 

And speaking of images, any picture that has Maria or me in it was taken by Angie Vangalis. Thanks, Angie!