41 Comments
User's avatar
Bronwyn's avatar

Love the idea of office hours and I think it should be for subscribers only IMHO! speaking of subscriptions, is there a way to donate to the GUT? I value it so much and sometimes have some spare shekels that I’d like to send your way, but not enough for a while second subscription…

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Smiley's avatar

Sharing a thing I just watched. I find abstract art a bit inscrutable and intimidating, even if I like it. This was an interesting conversation focused on Joan Mitchell’s work and how to understand it. Fun to see some old interview clips of the artist herself, too. https://youtu.be/dYMZ2MfMDqY?si=Vwxk9GpcmWxu6EUN

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Lois Baldwin's avatar

I love your “Office Hours” idea & title! And further readings! Truly I don’t know how you manage it all! Thank you!

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Rhia's avatar

Loving office hours so far (including the title and further reading section — no changes necessary)! For those interested in digging into Joan Mitchell’s life and work a bit more, there was a great post about her on Art Dogs last weekend: https://open.substack.com/pub/artdogs/p/joan-mitchells-13-dogs?r=4wacm&utm_medium=ios

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Barbara Rohde's avatar

I love Joan Mitchell! And I’ve seen the YouTube video above, a great conversation about her work & Abstraction. My husband & I went to SF a couple years ago to see the Retrospective of her work. What an experience to see so many of her works in person. The thing I really like about her work, is that it seems that she didn’t second guess herself, every brush stroke looks so sure. I also love her use of color.

Office hours, great idea

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Julie Stink Bug's avatar

I love the name Office Hours! (always took advantage of time with the faculty I connected with) I’d like to suggest a GUT Library we can go to, maybe organized by the categories you gave to our questions? You post so many great books and videos and sometimes it’s hard to recall which post they are in.

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Cátia S's avatar

Minutes before reading the GUT newsletter, I was reading Bluets by Maggie Nelson where she was talking about the painting Les Bluets by Joan Mitchell. It is her favorite. Bizarre coincidence that made me smile. Splendid book, incredible painting.

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RG she/her's avatar

That book is incredible 🌹

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Hermione (she/her)'s avatar

Also I appreciate you Wendy and your generosity in sharing. Whatever is reasonable and workable for you works for me :) 🌈

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Colleen Mlecoch's avatar

As a freebie, I am thankful for and sincerely value everything you offer! Of course, I would like to have it all. This is not possible for me, and I respect your need to make a living doing what you love. I'll try to be satisfied with what I can have.

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Wendy MacNaughton's avatar

Scholarships available :)

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Andrea Dooley's avatar

Wendy, if you want to know more about Joan Mitchell’s origins, as well as the origins of other great (female) artists, read Ninth Street Women. It’s SO good. It looks long but it’s gossipy and smart and helped me really understand abstract expressionism.

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Sophia Fields's avatar

Love further reading section - please keep that going. I look forward to each Sunday for the next post/assignment.

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Tina Barbour's avatar

Thank you, Wendy! “Artists need something to work from, and something to work with or against.” It’s one of those sentences that says what I needed to hear. I have always appreciated how you encourage us and tell us that we don’t have to follow the rules. But I still carried a lot of self doubt and self-consciousness about my drawing. Your office hours answer was so helpful and I will be taking it to heart. 💜

I like the further reading section, if you have time to include it in future office hours.

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Tric's avatar

As to the question “Should Office Hours just be or subscribers?” I feel like maybe one free one & then if it appeals …

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Martin Willers's avatar

Link to chat/posting thread did not work for me.

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Art Auntie Kathleen's avatar

Are you good now, Martin? Sorry I didn’t see this sooner.

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Martin Willers's avatar

yes, I got weird error messages and links not working. But updating the app on the ipad made it work.

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Pat Coakley's avatar

Me, either!! Substack has been weird for weeks with double posting and now everything I try to post ends up as a response to someone else.

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Colleen Mlecoch's avatar

Wow! How can I apply for one? Thank you!

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Art Auntie Kathleen's avatar

Are you referring to the scholarships? Write to community@drawtogether.studio. No questions asked.

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Ryan Johnson's avatar

Love the office hours and I always appreciate the additional reading suggestions. And thank you for curating your previous dispatches, Wendy! There’s so many valuable lessons and exercises, but it’s not always easy to scroll Substack to find a specific topic. I love when you group them on a relevant theme. And speaking of depth of content, I lean to the paid subscribers only side for the deeper conversations and the really good stuff. But I agree with @Bronwyn - maybe there’s a way we can support the scholarship fund periodically that’s not always gifting a full subscription.

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