Judith Skillman, a painting student who was one of the original Thursday class painters at the League, also happens to be an accomplished poet. A poet of note! Her poetry has been nominated for the Pushcart, Best of the Web, the UK Kit Award, and is included in Best Indie Verse of New England. Her writing has appeared in many anthologies and journals, and she has published sixteen of her own poetry collections.
Skillman was recently interviewed by Carol Smallwood for Ragazine. In the interview she describes her experience of learning to paint by copying paintings she admires. She compares this practice to the view of student copying as plagiarism in writing studies. Skillman’s praise of me as a teacher is so complimentary I hesitate to publish this on my own blog, but I did want to make special recognition of the accomplishment of poetry and painting: look at this beautifully painted cover! Skillman excels at expressionist texture. Great work, Judith! Thank you for your continued appreciation of my work, and of the League. These are beautiful paintings.
Poetry and painting by Judith Skillman
In the interview below, you’ll also see mention of “Ekphrasis.” In the days where each Thursday painter gave a brief presentation to the class, Skillman inspired us all with her presentation about ekphrastic poetry – a poem based on a work of art. In an ekphrastic poem, the writer describes the work of art, and may extend into the work’s underlying story or significance. One of the earliest examples is in the Iliad, when Homer describes Achilles’ shield. Another is John Keats’ poem “Ode on a Grecian Urn.” Some day I hope to post a V. Note on ekphrastic poetry, but today I most wanted to share this book and her interview.
Interview: Judith Skillman and Carol Smallwood on Ragazine
Smallwood:In Premise of Light you dedicate the collection to your mentor in art and your first poem mentions a famous artist. Please expand on your art study and the cover you did for this collection:
Skillman: I began taking art classes in fall 2014 at the Pratt in Seattle, and stumbled into Ruthie V., a wonderful teacher. Because my first major was visual art, the study of painting has been a gift. Ruthie V. is a talented painter and an excellent teacher. She is thoroughly versed in art history. I found I could employ Ekphrasis while learning about Lucien Freud, Édouard Vuillard, Emil Nolde and the myriad other artists who came alive through a mere skim of their lives, subject matters, and techniques.
The cover art comes from a small oil painting I did as an attempt emulate the work of an artist I love—Joan Eardley. This piece was a pass at her “Seeded Grasses and Daisies, September“. In visual art the student is encouraged to copy, unlike poetry, where both teachers and students consider it plagiarism to imitate another writer.
To me this disparity seems flawed, as the act of copying or modeling one’s work after an artist or a writer one admires may be one of the best ways to learn craft. That said, I did not in any way capture the essence of Eardley’s painting. What happened was more like translation, in which a different version appeared, barely recognizable as the original.
Wallace Stevens’ essay The Relations Between Poetry andPainting, printed in pamphlet form after his talk at Museum of Modern Art in 1951, reinforces the similarities between writing a poem and painting a picture. Both require composition and execution. Neither writing nor art ‘happens’ from inspiration alone. Both require forethought, planning, and then abandonment to the creative process—followed of course by revision.
If you’re looking for a painting class with solid techniques balanced with 1:1 direction to help you develop your own personal style, take Thursdays. No one paints the same way in Thursday class. We’ve got 2 Thursday shorties for spring, and a coupon. Join us!
[vc_row type=”in_container” full_screen_row_position=”middle” scene_position=”center” text_color=”dark” text_align=”left” overlay_strength=”0.3″][vc_column column_padding=”no-extra-padding” column_padding_position=”all” background_color_opacity=”1″ background_hover_color_opacity=”1″ column_shadow=”none” width=”1/1″ tablet_text_alignment=”default” phone_text_alignment=”default” column_border_width=”none” column_border_style=”solid”][image_with_animation image_url=”9985″ alignment=”center” animation=”None” box_shadow=”none” max_width=”100%”][vc_column_text] Wang Yuping Catch something just leaving the frame, or half absent from the picture in some way. Materials are artists’ choice. Thank you for sharing your work! I love seeing these artworks online. People who post to Instagram …
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Judith Skillman; interview on poetry, painting, and the League
Judith Skillman, Sea Spill
Judith Skillman, a painting student who was one of the original Thursday class painters at the League, also happens to be an accomplished poet. A poet of note! Her poetry has been nominated for the Pushcart, Best of the Web, the UK Kit Award, and is included in Best Indie Verse of New England. Her writing has appeared in many anthologies and journals, and she has published sixteen of her own poetry collections.
Skillman was recently interviewed by Carol Smallwood for Ragazine. In the interview she describes her experience of learning to paint by copying paintings she admires. She compares this practice to the view of student copying as plagiarism in writing studies. Skillman’s praise of me as a teacher is so complimentary I hesitate to publish this on my own blog, but I did want to make special recognition of the accomplishment of poetry and painting: look at this beautifully painted cover! Skillman excels at expressionist texture. Great work, Judith! Thank you for your continued appreciation of my work, and of the League. These are beautiful paintings.
Poetry and painting by Judith Skillman
In the interview below, you’ll also see mention of “Ekphrasis.” In the days where each Thursday painter gave a brief presentation to the class, Skillman inspired us all with her presentation about ekphrastic poetry – a poem based on a work of art. In an ekphrastic poem, the writer describes the work of art, and may extend into the work’s underlying story or significance. One of the earliest examples is in the Iliad, when Homer describes Achilles’ shield. Another is John Keats’ poem “Ode on a Grecian Urn.” Some day I hope to post a V. Note on ekphrastic poetry, but today I most wanted to share this book and her interview.
Interview: Judith Skillman and Carol Smallwood on Ragazine
Smallwood: In Premise of Light you dedicate the collection to your mentor in art and your first poem mentions a famous artist. Please expand on your art study and the cover you did for this collection:
Skillman: I began taking art classes in fall 2014 at the Pratt in Seattle, and stumbled into Ruthie V., a wonderful teacher. Because my first major was visual art, the study of painting has been a gift. Ruthie V. is a talented painter and an excellent teacher. She is thoroughly versed in art history. I found I could employ Ekphrasis while learning about Lucien Freud, Édouard Vuillard, Emil Nolde and the myriad other artists who came alive through a mere skim of their lives, subject matters, and techniques.
The cover art comes from a small oil painting I did as an attempt emulate the work of an artist I love—Joan Eardley. This piece was a pass at her “Seeded Grasses and Daisies, September“. In visual art the student is encouraged to copy, unlike poetry, where both teachers and students consider it plagiarism to imitate another writer.
To me this disparity seems flawed, as the act of copying or modeling one’s work after an artist or a writer one admires may be one of the best ways to learn craft. That said, I did not in any way capture the essence of Eardley’s painting. What happened was more like translation, in which a different version appeared, barely recognizable as the original.
Wallace Stevens’ essay The Relations Between Poetry and Painting, printed in pamphlet form after his talk at Museum of Modern Art in 1951, reinforces the similarities between writing a poem and painting a picture. Both require composition and execution. Neither writing nor art ‘happens’ from inspiration alone. Both require forethought, planning, and then abandonment to the creative process—followed of course by revision.
Read the full interview here: https://www.ragazine.cc/2019/03/carol-smallwood-interviews-judith-skillman/
See more of Judith Skillman’s poetry: http://www.judithskillman.com/
Judith Skillman, Lime Sea after Eardley
Don’t you just want to eat this painting?
Thursday Class
If you’re looking for a painting class with solid techniques balanced with 1:1 direction to help you develop your own personal style, take Thursdays. No one paints the same way in Thursday class. We’ve got 2 Thursday shorties for spring, and a coupon. Join us!
PAINTING FROM LIFE OR IMAGINATION
10:00-2:00 or 6:00-10:00pm, 4 Thursdays
Starting April 4
ABSTRACTING FROM AN IMAGE
10:00-2:00 or 6:00-10:00pm, 4 Thursdays
Starting May 9
Special Offer: Use the coupon code SWEET at checkout to get 20% off your second Tuesday or Thursday Shortie (4 week) class. Expires March 31, 2019.
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