Emsleys Inspiration and Emsley as Inspiration

 Overcoming Shyness

by Rebecca Lewis

Reserved and not sure of unknown surroundings, she hides her face in her moms hip. Her face is turned just enough to peek out of the corner of her eye, taking in the strangers. Some time passes by and the tight grip on her moms hand loosens. With a little courage, she lifts her head from the safety of her moms side and speaks a “hello”. She realizes the stranger isn’t so strange after all. A hello turns to a question, “Do you want to play with me”. And at that moment, her shell softens just a little. 

Emsley is 5 years old and has always been shy. Candace Garlock is Emsleys Booma. Two creatures cut from the same cloth, Emsley and Booma are best friends, two peas in a pod, soul mates. These two artists spend hours together in the studio, often collaborating on pieces. Walking around the space, you can find hearts and drawings of rabbits and birds hidden in all corners and surfaces. Little pieces of Emsleys mind are scattered all around. Most of all, Emsley is Boomas little helper. She is more than aware that Booma suffers from Multiple Sclerosis. She is protective of Boomas energy. They rest when it's time to rest. 

So, Emsley did not hesitate when Booma asked her to help at the RTIA show. Running around with excitement, Emsley said “I will be brave! I will sell your artwork!”. She agreed she would run the booth alone when it was time for Booma to go home to rest.

Wearing her best dress and hair done up, Emsley held her moms hand walking into the show. Her mom was waiting for the moment she would change her mind. Emsley was really shy. There was no way she would interact with people, especially with Booma leaving to go home.

That moment never came. Emsley power walked from the front door all the way to Boomas booth and not one second passed where she looked back in fear or unsettledness. Instead of burying her head in her moms hip, she walked right behind the booth and asked the first person she saw “What would you like to buy?” From there, Emsley blossomed like a spring flower. She showed strangers her Boomas artwork and explained her interpretations of it with so much joy and confidence. She stamped their hands and drew them special characters as keepsakes. To her, she was sharing her special world with them. Surrounded by the birds, sculptures, and prints that she is used to seeing in her special space she shares with Booma. She was letting people into her heart and the shy little girl that used to be was no more.

Le Petit Atelier Participants

More love from Fallon!  Anne Johnson, founder of Le Petit Atelier organized to have her students participate in NV Awe: Tiny Treasures.  Why the hard to pronounce name?! Le Petit Atelier (at- all- yay) translates to “the little studio” in French, but the atelier has a much deeper meaning in education. An incredible European education system called Reggio Emilia has atelier’s in each of their schools. These atelier’s are lead by an atelierista (studio guide) who doesn’t tell the students how to create, but rather guides them to explore their own creativity with different materials and techniques. 

This is the basis of Le Petit Atelier in Fallon, Nevada, to nurture and explore one’s own creativity as opposed to everyone creating the same art. Anne Johnson has been teaching art since 2009, from private studio classes to k-12 schools. She received her bachelors degree in Art from the University of Nevada, Reno in 2004.

NV AWE Prompt: Gather with Friends

Jill Aschenbach and Candace Garlock were elementary school best friends in the little town of Elko, NV. Both reconnected in person at the Holland Project in Reno, NV in January, 2024.  The NV AWE Prompt: Gather with Friends, inspired Jill to organize an art activity with her girlfriends in South Reno.

The Hollands Project - sitting in the gallery by Candace Garlock

 

Nathanial Benjamin and Doomed Movement

The For Good Luck show at The Holland Project in Reno was the first of 2024 and it allowed me to really think about awe. We all had to sign up to sit in the gallery during open hours. I signed up for a Saturday sitting and I had asked if I could bring the NV Awe: Tiny Treasures project with me. I was hoping that I could get more participants involved in the project. My best friend from elementary school joined me in this little adventure. Jill Ashenbach and I had not seen each other since high school, so that in itself was an awe moment!

During that day, I realized that for me, it’s the quiet times in the gallery that I enjoyed the most. I was able to find awe while looking at the art. I had time to slow down and just observe and think. I enjoyed the company of Jill, remembering the days of childhood. I enjoyed the “play” from fellow artists coming in that were willing to take a chance with the NV Awe: Tiny Treasures project. For me, that time is precious and unforgettable. 

One of my former students, Terrence Hammond from doomedmovement.com came in with his companion, Magpie, and they both sat down and created the first layer of two discs. The discs were then discovered by avid "awe" 5 year old artist, Emsley Lewis, who has taken this project as her own.  She decided that Magpie needed a bone and some food in a doggie dish. She found some Sculpey clay in my studio and built the remaining pieces.  She also created the fire icon out of fuse beads for Doomedmovement's character.

 “And so, in awe, we go in search of new forms of understanding.” – Dacher Keltner