Artist Spotlight: Jacqueline Markevitch Paulsen

 

Jacqueline Markevitch Paulsen

Jacque took a little time out of her busy schedule to talk with me about her passion for movement with dancing  Nia, teaching dance, and balancing life in relationship with her family as a mother, wife, and friend.

Jacque has been dancing and moving her whole life.  Moving in her body has been a calling; and seems to take new shape and form as she dances through life.  Dancing in studios and in troupes has been part of her history from being a backup dancer for a hip hop group out of Detroit called Slice to dancing with a dance company out of Rockford, Illinois called Midwest Movement.  As a young dancer, she was asked to dance in ways that stressed and injured her strong body. At one point she suffered a shoulder injury that did not allow her to raise her arm.

When she began dancing the Nia Technique, the joy of movement was a new concept for her.  The Nia Technique encouraged people to listen to their bodies and to move in ways for pleasure instead of pain.  An appreciation and a love for her body began to grow.

“Nia is a sensory-based movement lifestyle that leads to health, wellness and fitness. It empowers people of all shapes and sizes by connecting the body, mind, emotions and spirit. Classes are taken barefoot to soul-stirring music in more than 45 countries worldwide. Trainings are designed for those seeking personal enrichment and professional development. Every experience can be adapted to individual needs and abilities.”

 

 

Though the students are following Jacque’s lead in the class, each is following their body’s way.  And some of the movement can create some laughter.

The Nia Technique is a combination of dance arts, martial arts and healing arts.  Nine movement forms make up Nia. 

Dance Arts:

Modern

Jazz

Isadora Duncan

Martial Arts:

T’ai Chi

Tae Kwon Do

Aikido

Healing Arts:

The Alexander Technique

The Teachings of Moshe Feldenkraise

Yoga

If a person wants to go deeper in the practice of the Nia Technique, the trainings build like a martial art belt system.  The first belt is the White Belt.  Jacque took the White Belt intensive training in 2010 with Winalee Zeeb at Heartdance Studio, in Lansing, Michigan.  In the White Belt, there are 13 fundamental principles of Nia.  This training was very embryonic for Jacque.  It was life changing; a portal back into her body.  She found truth about her body.

In the 2011, Jacque took the Green Belt training at Studio Nia in Portland, Oregon with Britta von Tagen.  This training was challenging.  It cleaned up her technique of Nia.  She enjoyed taking the training at the Nia Headquarters and home studio of Debbie Rosas, co-founder of the Nia Technique.

Jacque’s life is full to overflowing as a Nia and Modern dance teacher for adults and children.  She is pursuing a master’s degree at Winona State University.  In her home life, she is married and has two young boys.  How does Jacque balance all the complex parts of her life?  She schedules it.  She consciously holds space for each role.  Whether it is dancing with a friend to practice the craft, or taking a hot tub, Jacque builds these things into her schedule.  She sets clear boundaries to make her life work.  Her life with her family must come first.  Her work with Nia in the Winona Community and her vision for health and movement are high on her list, following family.

In Nia, Principle Five of the White Belt is called Life as Art.  For Jacque that means living in each moment.  Sometimes it seems that life is too busy to integrate that into consciousness.  Her little son, Zephyr, reminds her to stop each time they come to a flower to have a sniff.

One of her favorite parts about dancing Nia is that no matter what she feels like before coming into a class, afterward she feels great.  Dancing gives her a sense of submission to her body’s way.  There is nothing else going on for one hour except to dance.

 

One of Jacque’s favorite movement forms is Feldenkraise.   Sensing how the body moves is powerful work.  The Feldenkrais Method® of Somatic Education says

 “Learning to move with less effort makes daily life easier. Because the Feldenkrais Method focuses on the relationship between movement and thought, increased mental awareness and creativity accompany physical improvements. Everyone, from athletes and artists to administrators and attorneys, can benefit from the Feldenkrais Method.”

Duncan dance was one of Jacque’s least favorite movement forms due to what she perceived as a lack of structure.  As she realized that it had everything to do with sensation, she has grown to appreciate it.  Duncan dance is an “in-road” for some people into Nia.  The freedom makes it more accessible.  Lori Belilove writes about Isadora Duncan:  “Virtually single-handedly, Isadora restored dance to a high place among the arts. Breaking with convention, Isadora traced the art of dance back to its roots as a sacred art. She developed within this idea, free and natural movements inspired by the classical Greek arts, folk dances, social dances, nature and natural forces as well as an approach to the new American athleticism which included skipping, running, jumping, leaping and tossing.”

Photographs were taken in a Nia class with Jacque at Winona State University in the Integrated Wellness Center in spring 2012. 

 

The Alexander Technique is about moving from the top.  Joan Arnold says, “The relationship between the head and the spine is of utmost importance. How we manage that relationship has ramifications throughout the rest of the body. As the boss -- good or bad -- sets the tone for an organization, the head / spine relationship -- compressed or free -- determines the quality of the body's overall coordination.  Our neuromuscular system is designed to work in concert with gravity. Delicate poise of the head sparks the body's anti-gravity response: a natural oppositional force in the torso that easily guides us upward and invites the spine to lengthen, rather than compress, as we move. Instead of slouching or holding ourselves in a rigid posture, we can learn to mobilize this support system and use it wherever we go -- in the car, at the computer, in the gym.”

Child’s Pose, pictured above, is an asana, a posture that is held in Yoga.  The pose has a calming and restorative effect on the body.

To find out where Jacque is teaching Nia and learn more about Nia including classes and trainings in the area, go to the Nia website:

www.nianow.com

How do you like to move your body?  What are your favorite movement forms within Nia?  Curious about what rocks your world. Leave a comment or two and let's get a conversation going. 

 

Artist Spotlight: Sarah Johnson

Sarah is an artist who enjoys drawing and painting.  She has a fascination with people and with their basic foundation: the skeleton.  She takes old photographs and makes them new.  A photograph or painting that someone may discard; Sarah sees the beauty and possibility in recreating it or repurposing it. She wonders, who were the people in the photograph?  She imagines their lives and "plays" in a respectful way with re-imaging.   In the photograph of the Head Master with the Children, Sarah painted the headmaster’s skeleton, the foundation of all human beings.  She painted wings and horns on the students. 

She just completed an Artist Residency in the Winona Senior High School. She worked with HS students and the repurposing a photograph was upsetting to them.  They objected, saying that it was someone’s art.  It pushed their edges to embrace the idea of taking a photo or framed picture and painting over it to make it something of theirs.  The students were able to get past their discomfort to create some amazing pieces.  Some of these will be exhibitied in the Winona Art Center’s Senior High School Senior Art Show.  Opening reception is May 9th, 4-6pm.

Sarah works on multiple projects going on at the same time.  She works long hours out of town.  Fridays are a dedicated art day.  She does screen printing on t-shirts and ties.  She collects t-shirts and ties from second hand shops or auctions and then she recreates something unique.  All of her t-shirts and ties are one of a kind due to the variety of materials that she accumulates.  She makes jewelry which is totally for fun.  She calls it a color fix.  And it is different than her other art.  She considers herself a drawer and a painter.  

Each year she paints herself a new calendar. 

 "Now's the Time to go Hog Wild For Moderation"

  

Sarah has collections of rocks, sea glass, shells, feathers, nests.  Watching things change in their natural form is fascinating to Sarah.  One week, she and her father, in separate locations found a tea cup handle.

 A favorite shell with just a little shimmer

This gentleman looks so much happier with a few butterflies near him.  During Sarah's growing up years, her family lived next to a cemetery.  Life and death walk hand in hand.  When she was very young, her brother of 6 years died.  She was only 4 years old.  She's had to look at death.  She's more convinced than ever that "I'm a life liver."

If you would like to see more of Sarah's art work, you'll find her at Handmade Neighborhood.  Watch for signs for their autumn show.  She has work locally at the Bluff Country Co-op and the Minnesota Marine Art Museum.

Are there other artists that you'd be curious to know more about?  What questions would you ask an artist, if you had the opportunity?   

 Are you an artist that would like to be featured on Breeze on My Skin?    

Leave a comment below with a way for me to be in touch, such as your e-mail or phone number.  I'll be in touch soon.

Artist Spotlight: Kim Evenson

 A 2D memory palace, underline, highlight, illustrate, alter texts, juxtapose image with text, find a word, a line, a verse to start the mind on an inner journey.  Wonder at something.  Invite others to wonder with you.

 

Kim Evenson creates mixed media art work from inspiration of poetry.

 She is a scientist by day, an artist by moonlight.

 

I remember making my own books when I was a kid.

 

Her first love is nature.  She likes to take walks in nature; one of her first interests—plants, biology.  As a child the nature books were not beautiful and interesting to her.  Poetry connects science and draws together her interests from childhood and her fascination as an adult with science.  With science she enjoys learning the names of fungus or plants; it opens the landscape for Kim to have more meaning.

 

She has an interest in going to explore the Grand Canyon.   Workshops that she has attended through her work at the University, take her to intriguing places.   One bog in particular had her fascinated.  Cedarburg Bog is near Saukville Wisconsin - North of Milwaukee. It was a surreal environment– especially on that rainy day in May when we walked the boardwalks looking at Mosses & Liverworts. It was located in an area not frequented by humans.  As a result, she said that it felt like she was seeing plants from 1,000,000 years ago.  She saw horsetail, sun dews, and pitcher plants.  She expected to see a dinosaur raise its head at any moment.  

She is fascinated by the spontaneity of little children in their artwork.   As children grow up, they seem to lose that spontaneity.  Everyone wants to find the joy of their youth.  How do we guide children to grow up and nurture the deep truths within?

Kim may start with an embroidery piece and then place it in a box to continue with it later.   She may work on 5-6 things at the same time, adding color, words, stitching until it clicks.

Details of Heart Bag

 

When she adds words, she may paint over the words to give a ghost like image to the thoughts on the page.  Sometimes she adds a little door to open or a window to look under.

 

This black watercolor was painted during the time of the oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico.

French saying translated to English, “In my reflection of the details, I find myself asking if it was real or in my dreams.” 

Her room has space with a small desk, a weaving loom, some small tables for things that she collects and an enclosed book shelf.

 

The fabric lives in a red box on the floor.  It comes out when Kim wants to begin some stitching.  Files, and pencils and artwork share the space this afternoon.

She really likes her students.  She likes to see how smart they are.  Some are just brilliant.  She is interested in students for who they are and what interests them.  Students show their appreciation for her work with them through sending her articles that they think she may be interested in.  Kim says that her first interest is putting together materials and articles that bring her teaching alive.  When I talked with her, she was in the midst of the beginning of the second semester.  It’s a busy time getting everything set up and going after winter break.  Soon there will be more of an even time and she will take time to work on her art again.  Mornings are her best time.  She gives herself time to work on her art Saturday or Sunday mornings. 

Kim thinks that people need to write or paint to stay fresh in their day to day work.  Her inspiration is poetry.  Poetry fits into a frame of time of a moment of life.

4am to station

Boarding 5:45

Please listen for any changes

And mystical cities I remember

but have lost now to dreams.

When I asked her if she has favorite piece/s, she said that each is a reflection of a moment in time.  Each tells a story about the time that she made them.

 Soon!

Artist Spotlight: Julia Crozier

The Blue Heron Gallery and Studio is home to the artwork of Julia Crozier and a number of artists fine work.  In the front is the gallery showcasing oil paintings, chalk and oil pastels, linoleum prints, ink wash artworks, along with jewelry, cards, silk scarves, and other smaller gift items.  She shared with me some of her thoughts about her art.

Julia likes to paint abstractly because the story of the artwork unfolds as she works.  In viewing the painting some parts may not be as noticeable at first, but as the viewer continues looking more parts of the painting unfold.  She said that is what is so fascinating with abstract art, you see more and more as you look at it.

South Dakota, a primitive part of the Badlands.  As a child, her family traveled to the Western United States.  Those wide open spaces call to Julia.  She has traveled there often with her parents, sister, husband, and daughters.

Julia uses sketching to remember a landscape.  She takes many photographs to remind her of the images of a landscape as well.  Sometimes, Julia does not have art materials with her or the time to devote to a sketch is not available. Instead of relying on sketches or her camera, she is working with her memory to recreate the feeling and the look of a landscape. She takes those essences of the land and paints from her memory.  It is a skill; she practices often.

This painting started as a drawing created on site at Woodlawn Cemetery.  Its tonal quality of black and grey gives it a moonlight feeling.  However, there is no black in the painting.

These two oil paintings were reworked by the artist.  Julia likes the result of these two very much.  "They look like new paintings," she says.

 Two other oil paintings are Tree Roots and the Flicker.  She created drawings of the flicker from a real bird that had been found dead and kept in her freezer until she was ready to create it into a painting.

The painting to the far right on the wall is called Subterranean River.  It is a multi-layered painting using encaustic, oil paints, and fabric to create the look of an underground river.  This painting was the result of reading that she has done on geology, water, and underground rivers.

This pomegranate tree was seen on a trip that they took into the Grand Canyon.  You can learn more about one of her Grand Canyon adventures on Julia’s website, blueheronstudio.net.  Another trip like this is planned for May 2012 with her sister and her parents.  It’ll be a rafting trip that is designed for artists with stops along the way to sketch and photograph the beauty of the canyon.

This is a small ink wash drawing of the Mill Ruins near the Guthrie Theatre and St Anthony Falls in Minneapolis.

  She likes to work large to create what looks like a science chart.

Here’s Julia and Sadie in the gallery.  Sadie is a loving companion and a good gallery dog.

This is an abstract painting on the wall behind Julia and Sadie. The painting gives the viewer a visceral feeling of space and time.

The Blue Heron Gallery and Studio has become Midwest Music Store.  It has wonderful art along with featuring performing artists, 168 E. 3^rd St., Winona, MN 55987. 




 

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