Networked Learning Blog

My 5 year old composed this piece on an old secondhand yamaha keyboard tonight. He was in the flow twiddling nobs and peddles-I’ve taught him nothing except that I often sing and sometimes dance. I have been getting lots of ukelele concerts lately mostly train shanties if you can envisage that folky mix! I’ve decided not to gift him official music lessons. I’ve decided that he will just follow the sounds. I’ve just got to provide the mix of instruments, a plectrum and a tuner. I can help with tuning and basic cords on ukele or guitar when we get one.

The main thing is to get out of his way to give him a variety of experiences, expose him to others music and he will tell me who he wants to learn from and when. It’s very exciting letting him lead. It’s a real trust number!
And one that I want to carry over into other areas of parenting.

If I can get out of my students way and let them lead and trust them to find their flow how would that look?

Ruth

This is a close up of three woven panels recently on exhibit I made from discarded tip shop tidbits.

The red ‘beads’ are cement plugs.
Whilst weaving these I was listening to ideas about how our Junk DNA is not junk- surprise! And thinking about our multidimensional identity. Only 3 % of our DNA is investigated by a majority of scientists the rest being “junk”. Right. I’ve just returned from a meditation retreat. It was very apparent that we are each other. I saw myself mirrored precisely in my fellow meditators. There is only one of us in the room. Could that be our multidimensional identity? One being many personas? The One? The All That Is? It was an incredibly fun week, joyful, blissful too. The Work of Byron Katie. Think Tao, Buddha, Jesus but you get to live it. No texts. Just waking up inside the dream. Wow.

Ruth

This is the recycled cable in the previously posted woven panels. I can only post one image at a time from iPhone?

Ruth Howard

Art From Junk 2011 at the Long Gallery in Salamanca Hobart Tasmania is a local annual community exhibition where schools and individuals utilise cast off refuse for artworks large and small. It’s always incredibly entertaining and taking advantage of the Easter break I entered a series of textile panels.

I’ve had fun with this quick and dirty design brief walking into the local tip shop locating these three panels ( still no idea what their original use was?) plus red and white electrical cable within a half hours browse. I later found some red plastic cement plugs at the hardware store. I handed it in for exhibit same day the following week.

I will bolt them to my garden fence for additional privacy as well as a decorative feature. I believe these are now sketches for further pieces if I can just scout for industrial waste I’d like to continue the architectural textile theme…

Next term I am lining up a few visiting artists to coordinate kitchen garden art projects for my students. I am looking forward to that. I’m too busy teaching the cooking side myself and I’m keen for the collaboration!

Ruth

I’ve just now had a chance to put up images from my mother Naomi Howard’s ‘ALL ONE’ exhibition itself,  it was so gorgeous. The large hanging  branches are Banksia, which along with She Oak grow profusely along the shoreline where my family live in South Eastern Tasmania.  My previous post gives more info about the artist’s intentions, sensibilities and aesthetic as well as more detailed views of exhibited works. Following the success of this show my mother Naomi will study the Italian Masters for a month or so, I’m very excited for her. Hope you love the show. Photos by Sally Curry.