Coralie, from apprehension to calm
She preferred to keep her first name to herself, so here I will call her Coralie. She is a wonderful senior, and she had not held a brush since secondary school.
Yet she had carried an image inside her since she was 18: a drawing, a painting she had in mind and never had the chance to make. At the studio, she seized the chance. But there was a real stake: to find on paper an image kept safe and warm for several decades. So she fought to stay as close as possible to her memory.
During that first session, she did not really manage to let go. But she had to go through it: it was the birth of that image. It was at the next session that she finally let the brush and the colours flow, with no precise goal.
These two sessions gave birth to two sheets: a landscape with a black cloud, red drops and very green grass, and a big spiral sun in orange and yellow.
At the end, I handed her my little questionnaire, with one single rule: say nothing just to please me, only what she truly felt. Here are her answers (translated from French). When she speaks of “the first one” and “the second one”, she means these two sheets.
Before starting
Was it the first time?
“It was the first time! (since secondary school, lol)”
What made you want to come?
“The way you described the studio to me. Your enthusiasm. The way you made me feel confident, without judgement.”
How did you feel when you arrived?
“Curious.”
The breathing moment before starting?
“A good way to recentre.”
The colours
Was choosing the colours easy?
“Obvious.”
What guided your choices?
“Instinct for the second one (playfulness!). A need for the first one.”
The first gesture
The first stroke on the paper?
“Apprehension. Fear of getting it completely wrong.”
A moment of feeling stuck, or free?
“On the first one, feeling stuck because of the precision of the gesture. On the second one, free.”
In the end
Looking at your finished paintings?
“The first one: happy to have done it. The second one: pleased with the colours.”
Happy? Proud?
“Yes.”
And now, how do you feel?
“Calm.”
What do you take home, besides your paintings?
“A really beautiful moment.”
The studio and the guidance
The atmosphere of the studio?
“Beautiful light, an open room where you can breathe. An atmosphere of calm and wellbeing. Amazing materials I didn't even know existed!”
My guidance?
“I felt confident. Just the right words of encouragement.”
And next?
Will you paint again?
“In a workshop. Maybe on my own, if I get the chance.”
Another MARY experience?
“Mandalas, clay.”
Would you recommend it?
“Of course. To friends, just for the pleasure of it.”
A few words from me
Coralie arrived with an image that had been waiting for her since she was 18, and the fear of “getting it completely wrong”. She left with two paintings and one word: calm.
Her first sheet, she wanted it faithful to her memory, and she fought for it. The second one, she let it come, playing, and she felt free. Both matter: that image had to be born first, so that she could then let go.
Thank you, Coralie, for your trust, your honesty and this beautiful moment together.
Take good care of yourself,
With all my tenderness,
Lenon
MARY, Make Art Reconnect Yourself, Ericeira
