"Thank you so much for a wonderful, enlightening weekend!
For over 20 years I have been battling to overcome my ‘Artist’s Block’, and with your gentle inspirational classes, I finally felt safe and ready to let my creative side flourish again.
At your classes there are no expectations, no assessment of ability and no right nor wrong, simply an encouragement to observe and enjoy whatever happens".
Paula Mac Mahon
Participant in the ‘New Eyes for Nature’ weekend workshop in Airfield, Dundrum, Dublin.
"I am very grateful for giving me the opportunity to participate in such a great project and being inspired by you and ‘the real teachers’ (the children).
It has been a great experience and I really appreciate your support, guidance, advice and wisdom. It inspired me to believe more in what I am doing and searching for, both personally and professionally.Thanks a lot for being so inspiring!
Hasta pronto!"
Mercedes Blanco
Assistant in ‘Making hiStories’ an innovative artistic project, which involved a small group of children with a diagnosis of autism. The project, a partnership between The Ark, A Cultural Centre for Children, and Irish Autism Action, in association with Art to Heart, took place in Saplings School, Rathfarnham, Dublin, from January to June 2011.
"Thanks for a truly relaxing week. I really felt the benefit afterwards. It was lovely of course to simply obey and concentrate on whatever exercise you suggested. And it is easy to take in information in such a relaxed environment. The most significant learning for me was to realize what a difficult work pattern I have myself, working in various venues with people who have a variety of special needs. It would perhaps have been beneficial to have had time made available for that type of discussion. Simply in order to air things. Not neccessarily to find solutions. They emerge by themselves gradually.
It was also curious to me how you make a smooth seam between your personal work and your teaching work. But that is another story!
Thanks again and I wish you much continuing pleasure and ease in work and play".
Una Ni Shé
"I just wanted to say a special thank you for facilitating a great course over the last few weeks.
You have a wonderful ability to show, reveal and encourage great ideas.
I appreciate the opportunity to be creative by doing and in turn becoming aware of the process involved".
John Kavanagh
"Jole,
A thousand thank you’s!
For the inspiration, guidance, encouragement, recognition, gifts of knowledge, memories, wonderful food and exposure to the land I’ve grown to love and see in my future!
The whole experience has had a huge impact on my life and what I hope my life will become".
Freda Murphy
The Fertile Rocks
for Jole Bortoli of Art to Heart
She sent us out to the Burren to look
up close - far away, up close - far away
up close at pock-holed rock
far away at the sweep of an ice-weathered mountain
up close at golden lichen.
Back in the studio she gave us clay
and said: make the creature who lives
in the fertile rocks of your imagination.
I made a slow worm with attitude,
a snaky roll of clay with eyes,
furred with threads of yellow and red
like curvy exclamation points.
Then she said:
make this creature's opposite.
I made a druid, very old, very wise,
burdened with leadership.
The druid fell apart
but the slow worm continues,
shimmying along my window sill,
resplendent with attitude.
Monica Corish