Not Museum: We Foster Love of Drawing in Our Students As a Means of Self-Improvement
''I've always wanted to open an art school and have been on the lookout for a partner. When I was a student, I began working as a drawing instructor, but soon recognized that I needed to replace the phrase "learning to draw" with something else. Instead of "learning to draw," I wanted to completely change the content with "loving to draw,"''-said Tamar Mchedlishvili, co-founder of ''not Museum'' to CBW.
Contemporary art studio offers one core course where drawing, art, and applied arts are taught together. The program is written for a group of children, from 4 to 12 years old, and groups of adults, from 13 years old. From time to time the studio adds different types of courses such as stencil workshops, art history courses. This year, the founders took into account the stressful environment of society and added an interesting course: "Painting, Art and Positive Psychology." They meet various contemporary artists and often go to exhibitions with their students.
We asked Tamar Mchedlishvili what inspired her to open an art school:
If you love the process of drawing, you will learn to enjoy it as well, and you will be able to perfect it on your own. That's when I decided to establish a space where anyone, regardless of age, could enjoy the process of drawing. Then I met Irena Makharadze, who became my partner, and we co-founded "not Museum," a contemporary art studio.
What's the story behind the name "Not Museum"?
"not Museum" is a studio of contemporary art and we came up with a name with a unique concept. I consider the studio project as my art project. Therefore, the name "not Museum" can be considered a conceptual work. "Not Museum", is a space that is as important a cultural center as a museum, but it is not a museum. It is a kind of wordplay.
What is a typical day like at your art school for your students?
The concept of our studio is for our students to first of all love art and feel comfortable while drawing. We don't have standard lessons. In the group of youngest ones, the children rest and have fun for an hour at drawing intervals. They can play with the Shadow Puppet Theater, a miniature house, draw on a whiteboard, and browse children’s books in the corner of the library. Because the lesson lasts only one or two hours, several lessons are held in one day. If the little ones are learning through play, the focus of the older group is on both drawing and art history.
Do you have any upcoming projects?
For the past two years, we've had a store corner in the studio, displaying a variety of items decorated with children's drawings: bags, notebooks, bookmarks, postcards, and more. We decided to release "Gift Drawing Lessons" this year when we had to switch to remote studying due to regulations,
These are easy-to-explain, drawing lessons for kids from our studio that are already on sale. In the future, we want to increase the activity of the store and along with other new products we want to bring pictures of children as contemporary artists to the art market. At the end of September, we also plan an exhibition for studio students.