Are you an artist, creative, or maker?
Do you want to find and deepen your creative voice?
Are you ready to take your work to a whole new level?
Hi, I’m Chris Zielski.
I’ve been an artist and educator for over 30 years. In 2007 I founded my business Copper Leaf Studios with the dream of making a living selling my creative work. Since then I’ve sold my artwork in over 20 countries and have large-scale pieces in numerous law firms, hospitals, government agencies, and nonprofits.
I created this program to help you build a body of work you're deeply proud of.
Let me tell you about it.
First, what is a body of work, anyway?
A body of work is a collection of creative pieces that visually and conceptually relate.
It has a consistent theme, approach, or idea that holds it all together.
It’s presented in a professional manner using story, writing, and photography.
Think of your artwork like a family.
Families can have a variety of members, each one is distinct, but there’s a relationship between them.
It makes them recognizable as being connected.
Why might you want a body of work?
Maybe you want to start selling your work.
Or, find your creative voice.
Or, get into a gallery or consignment shop.
Or, deepen your creative practice.
Or, develop your portfolio.
In short, there are lots of personal and professional reasons you may want to build a body of work.
My favorite is this:
You get to dance with an idea.
Deeply exploring a creative idea is one of the best reasons to build a body of work. Not only do you give your vision the time and care it deserves…
You create work that is truly and deeply yours.
What this program is like:
Building A Body of Work is a 10-month virtual small group mentoring program.
We meet virtually once a month for 90 minutes.
During our time together, you’ll learn creative concepts, share your work, receive personalized feedback, and interact with creative like minds.
At the end of each class, you’ll be given an assignment to work on throughout the month as you deepen your creative practice.
By the end of our time together, you’ll have a body of work you’re deeply proud of.
Who this program is for:
This program is for you if:
– you are an artist or creative looking to deepen your skills and vision;
– you have basic technical skills in a medium but need help channeling your creative energy;
– you want to learn how to better speak about, write about, and photograph your creative products;
– you have the time and capacity to dive in and do the work.
“Do I have to be an artist?”
Short answer: no!
Not everyone relates to the term artist, and if you don’t, that’s okay.
You do have to work in a creative medium, whether that’s artwork, jewelry, photography, quilting, pottery, or many more.
You’ll get the most out of this program if:
– your work is creative
– your work is visual
– and your work is tangible.
In short, if your creative work involves your head, your hands, and your heart, this program is for you.
Over the course of our time together, we'll explore:
Where Ideas Come From
Our first session together will focus on ideas: where do they come from, how to focus when you have too many, and how to come up with one when your creative well is dry. You’ll learn three major sources of inspiration and choose one to focus on for your body of work. You’ll also learn how to quiet outside stimuli so you can hear your own inner voice much more clearly.
Making Creative Decisions
Creative work is essentially one giant pile of decisions. You decide which media to work in! You decide on a subject! You decide on a style! You follow it up with a million micro decisions about each mark, color, or brush stroke you make. It’s no wonder creativity can feel so paralyzing.
In this session, I’ll teach you a variety of methods of working small and fast to help you make decisions quickly. You’ll learn to overcome fear of the blank page, avoid being paralyzed by indecision, and work through the quicksand of perfectionism.
Setting Direction and Diving Deeper
Month three is all about diving deeper. You’ll take one or two of your pieces from last month and explore it further. I’ll teach you a powerful concept from modern dance to help you write your creative rules, elevating your work beyond merely being a collection of separate pieces.
Making The Rules (And Knowing When To Break Them)
As you dive into your creative practice, you may find some things (finally) getting easier! But there’s a fine line between easier and being in a creative rut. In our last session, you learned to write your creative rules – in this session, you’ll learn how and when to break them.
Making Your Masterpiece
The hallmark of a master is the ability to work large. When you scale your ideas and processes, you overcome the technical limitations of your media. And, you are confronted with the phenomenon of magnification – things that work visually on a small scale may not work so well when they’re big! This session is all about overcoming the physical and aesthetic challenges you face when working large.
The Sum of its Parts
By now you technically have a body of work! But, it most likely feels like a giant mess. It’s time to pull it all together. In this session, you’ll learn to see your artwork as a collective whole. You’ll step back, gain perspective, and fill in any gaps to create a whole that is truly greater than the sum of its parts.
Presentation and Polish
Telling Your Story
Story is a powerful part of the creative process. While your work communicates your idea visually, this session is all about putting your idea into words – both verbal and written. You’ll learn how to find and describe your unifying concept, write an artist statement, and tell your creative story.
Continuing Your Journey
Being an artist or creative doesn’t start and end in a single course – it’s the journey of a lifetime. In this session we’ll dive into cultivating a creative practice, evaluating your own work, and growing as an artist.
Share and Celebration
During our final session together, we’ll share our work with one another. Bring a beverage and celebrate your creative success with your classmates!
Where and when we meet:
We’ll meet the 1st Tuesday
of each month from 6:00-7:30pm EST
starting in Oct
Sessions are virtual, so you can join from anywhere!
Pricing and payment options:
Hear what participants have said about similar classes:
Want to make sure Building A Body of Work is right for you?
Contact me. I’d love to hear from you.