Drawing as a Means of Self Discovery Masterclass with Chuck Ceraso

Join
us for a two hour workshop on the process of seeing and drawing and how
it can open us to a deeper experience of self as well as of the object
that is being drawn. Artists throughout history have described the
experience of losing the sense of a boundary between themselves and the
object of their gaze. They have described an experience of joy, well
being and even love that rose up within themselves as they drew or
painted their subject.

In this workshop you will learn how to go
beyond ideas of right and wrong, good and bad in the act of making lines
on paper and in the process of observation. You will learn how to have a
deeper sense of awareness in the moment and how to stay with that
awareness and not slip into mind and concepts. You will learn how to
sense the presence of something as simple as a mug as you explore its
shape and form.

The point is not about making a picture of a mug,
but rather about entering a different state of consciousness and
discovering modes of perception beyond our five senses. Its about a kind
of communing with the experience of “mug” and allowing that communing
to make marks on paper.

Whether you’ve been drawing all your life
or have never even tried, this workshop may prove valuable to you.
Drawing can be so much more than just making a picture. It can open you
to experiences you never imagined were possible. If the thought of
drawing scares you, this workshop is for you!

Chuck Ceraso:

Chuck
Ceraso studied art at the University of Notre Dame and painting with
Henry Hensche, at the Cape School in ProvinceTown, MA.

Chuck has
been a sought after instructor at the Denver Art Museum, the Art
Students League of Denver and the Arvada Center for the Arts and
Humanities for many years. He also holds ongoing classes in his gallery
and studio in Lafayette, CO. His work can be found in public and private
collections throughout the U.S. and Europe.

“I learned that
visual perception is much more complex than I had ever imagined. I
learned that what we think we see and what’s actually in front of us can
be quite divergent. We’re taught from childhood that our job with
seeing is to know the names of things, cat, house, ball, tree, etc. and
with that we actually lose our visual curiosity. We see a tree and
because we “know” what a tree is we don’t see the rhythmical patterns in
the limbs and leaves, we don’t see the patterns of light and shadow, we
don’t see the colors that the light produces. This conceptual focus
actually teaches us to not see.

Hensche would encourage us to
discover more of what the world really looks like by letting go of what
we think we know about it. I learned to look at the world as if I had
never seen it before and have been mesmerized and inspired by the color
and beauty that surrounds us.

I’ve also been discovering the more
kinesthetic aspect of taking in the world. In letting go of my concepts
I’m discovering that there is a way I can be permeated by the world.
That the beauty of a tree exists inside me, as well as the tree itself.
This has been the biggest surprise of looking outwardly, that it all
exists within my field of awareness. There is no real distinction
between me and the things I see.

All of this I attempt to capture
in my painting. It seems to be most successful when I paint
spontaneously and quickly, without letting my mind get into the
process.”

From a student, “Chuck has such an expansive, curious
and loving nature that it changes the way I view my world. This nature
comes through in his painting as well as his teaching.”

Check out his website HERE- https://www.cerasogallery.com/