MUNICH: IRMA is kind of obsessed with representing the girl in town. It is Jasmin Khezri’s main task to tell a story about the girl or girls she draws and writes about onIRMASWORLD.COM. They have to have a story behind them, it is not just an illustration but more a tool to express the life, ideas and thoughts of a girl’s best life. That was never the initial idea behind IRMA when JK started illustrating over and over again a girl who always looked kind of similar. Whether IRMA was travelling, exploring the countryside or walking around town, meeting her friends to enjoy a great time, IRMA became a life guide character.
Tomorrow night I will be happy to share this with you at the ARTHOUSE in Munich. It is part of the Kinderkunsthaus which was established by Alexandra Helmig and Sebastian Zembol in 2011. It is the great idea of offering a place for parents and their children to spend time together while creating art. The Kinderkunsthaus has many interesting workshops and a continuously changing program.
Because of its success they started ARTHOUSE which is based on the same idea but for adults. So take your friends and enjoy a glas of Chablis while creating your own IRMA charachter, printing your personalized shopper or redesigning the Codello scarf which JK has colaborated with UNESCO. Find out why being creative can make you really happy.
I talked with Alexandra Helmig about her vision and ideas.
What is the idea behind ARTHOUSE?
ARTHOUSE is our adults program at the KINDERKUNSTHAUS. We want to create a relaxed atmosphere where you can drop in and be creative. Experts will assist you, but it is less about making the perfect piece of art, rather than having fun in the process.
How do you take the fear and worries of being creative away from an adult?
The older we get, the more afraid we are of failing, which prevents us from expressing ourselves creatively. All participants have different abilities and there will always be experts helping you with your project.
What kind of workshops will you offer in the future?
For young adults we offer: “3 D Print” (8.11.), “Coding for kids” (15.11.) and “Video tricks” (6.12).
Our next expert workshop “Artists & kids” is held by the architects Julia Schneider and Kirsten Scholz (24.01.2015) and will give the opportunity to look into the creative process of how an architect works.
In your opinion, can creativity be learned or taught?
There is no guideline for how to be creative. For me it’s a life philosophy, that starts in your head, in your way of thinking.
Why is it good for an adult to work and spend time creatively?
There is an innate creativity in everyone. We would like adults to experience art like children do, without expectations and inhibitions. Simply as an expression of themselves. I always get back to my favourite quote by Maya Angelou: “You can’t use up creativity, the more you use, the more you have.” So start doing it!