Gravina Rita

3 Things Parents Must Tell Their Children When They Begin a Musical Instrument

“You are allowed to fail, and you will become better because of your failures.” There are no red pen marks for missed notes in music the way there are on tests — there is nothing to feel bad about when you play something “wrong” in music. To become skilled at a musical instrument — and to become great at anything — one needs to struggle a little. In your child’s case, they need to sound bad before they sound good; they need to…

Jimmy Page Tricked You: Why You're Playing "Stairway to Heaven" Wrong—and How to Fix It

I know what you’re thinking: “I can already play that perfectly well, thank you very much!” And, of course, you can. You’ve got the intro and verse rhythm

How Incarcerated Youth Are Making Their Voices Heard Through Art

At Artistic Noise, young people in the justice system explore their creative potential and inherent power.

Drought, Wildfire, and Lush Garden Imagery: An Interview with Laura Reece Hogan — Dappled Things

Featured in the “More Organic Than It May Appear:” A Symposium on Creativity and Motherhood, Mary, Queen of Angels 2021 issue of Dappled Things. Author, poet, mother, lawyer, and lay Carmelite, Laura Reece Hogan inhabits not a cloistered ivory tower in some faraway sheltered place but the real ye

How to Raise an Emotionally Resilient Child

Emotional resilience is the ability to bounce back from stressful or difficult moments. Learn how you can help your child develop this important skill by setting aside ten minutes each day.

5 Reasons to Learn a Musical Instrument

Benefits of music education and reasons why you should learn to play a musical instrument.

Stop Forcing Your Kids to Learn a Musical Instrument

Our daughter Rebekah, who is in second grade, takes three after-school classes every week. On Monday there is violin; on Wednesday, Hebrew; and on Thursday, ballet. One of these classes connects her to a religious tradition going back three thousand years. Two of them are pretty well pointless.I don’t mean that as a bad thing. Pointlessness rules, as far as I am concerned. Lots of great activities...

Should I Go to Art School?

Considering art school? The Arts Shrink makes a case for why you should go.

Do Art Schools Ultimately Fail Their Students?

I admit I loved being asked to speak at art schools throughout my career. It said that I was a professional with something worth saying. My comedic, entertaining style of speaking about the industry and how to prepare to enter the business put me in great demand and as many of my peers taught at […]

42 Examples of Fine Art Photography

In this guide, we’ll be discussing fine art photography and providing beautiful examples of fine art photography. Let's dive in.

Is This the Future of the Art School?

How Middlesbrough Institute of Modern Art’s newly launched School of Art is seeking to promote a more socially engaged educational model

How Much Does it Cost to Move Fine Art?

Moving fine art isn't the same as moving a couch or another large item. It's fragile, may be very valuable and needs to be moved properly. Since this type of item is rather unique, it cannot be lumped into the moving estimate with all the other items. Fine art, such as paintings, sculptures, collec

When Your Estate Plan Includes Fine Art

Collectors of fine art are advised not to think of their collections as investments, but collectors cannot ignore the value of their art portfolio, nor should they fail to consider what will happen to the artwork when they are not around to appreciate it. And as the art portfolio grows...

How to Find the Fine Art Collectibles That Are Worth Collecting

Fine art collectibles can be a great entry point into building a collection by blue-chip artists at a fraction of the cost.

Fine Art Brush Tips: Shedding

Fine art blog on paint brushes, brush history, brush making and artist interviews.

Updated Safety Guidelines for The Art School

Want Your Children to Survive The Future? Send Them to Art School

Why creativity may be the only skill of value in a post-work world

Fine Art Brush Tips: Natural Brush Hairs

Fine art blog on paint brushes, brush history, brush making and artist interviews.

Did you study a fine art in college?

Finding Serenity in Nautical Photography with a Fine Art Photographer

Producing quality fine art prints is about finding serenity with nautical photography that both myself and my clients can connect which is very important