Culture and Leisure

Courtesy of Artjamming

Jamming with colours

by Hilda Fong

Some people jam music, here people jam art. At Artjamming, people simply walk in and let their imagination take hold of the paint brushes.

No instructions or proper drawing classes are given, no topics are assigned, and no drawing skills are needed. Art jammers at the studio are provided with canvases, acrylic paints and tools to freely express themselves. They let loose their minds and fill the canvases with colours and inspirations. With its spacious environment, soft yellow lighting and relaxing music, the studio in Central offers a space for its customers to unleash their creativity and, most of all, to enjoy the process of drawing.

The concept of “art jam” was originated by Betty Cheung Yee-wan, the founder and director of Artjamming. In 2000, when she was an architect, she tried to pick up drawing again after years of idleness. At that time she wanted to paint, but no inspiration came to her.

Cheung then came up with an idea to help herself out. Rather than drawing alone at home, she called up friends and invited them to draw together. And it worked. The “drawing gatherings” soon became the basis for setting up Artjamming in 2001.

Cheung said the studio had about 200 active members. New faces keep dropping in. “We rely on customers spreading our name to their friends. To us, this is the strongest marketing strategy,” she said.

At Artjamming, when customers finish painting, they just take their drawings and go. They do not have to clean up the place. The studio understands that cleanup work often spoils people's mood to draw. Rachel Ip Wai-shan, a staff in the studio, said some clients did not have enough room at home for them to draw, so they chose to draw at the studio. Even for those who had the drawing equipment at home, most of them were tired of cleaning, and finally they just gave up drawing.

“We provide everything here and do all the tidying, so customers don't have to care about anything,” Ip said.

The studio also supplies its customers with acrylic paints as most people do not have the paints themselves. Ip said it was rather expensive for one to draw at home. “If you know drawing, you will find the paints are actually quite costly. It already costs you about $90 to buy one colour,” she said. In the studio, art jammers can use as many paints as they like. It charges each drawing session between $270 and $500.

Artjamming is introducing not only an experience of the art of drawing, but also a fresh perspective of communication. Tracy Wong Oi-ting, who is responsible for the administrative and financial work in the studio, sees jamming art together with friends as a new form of entertainment, and she wants to promote it as a new trend. “Instead of having a drink in the bar, taking a meal in the restaurant or going for karaoke, we come here to draw,” Wong said. “It's just an alternative.”

Ip agreed: “You don't have to acquire singing skills before going for karaoke. People merely sing for fun. And so for drawing, we can also draw for fun. In fact, there is no need to regard drawing as a profession.”

Groups of friends can also meet and draw together. “We arrange different kinds of parties such as birthday parties, farewell parties, kids' parties, Christmas parties, company night out and so on,” Wong said.

“Sometimes companies even have team-building and facilitation exercises in our studio,” she said.

At Artjamming, everything is flexible so as to meet everyone's need. Customers can bring along anything they like to the studio, including food. Ip said: “We only serve drinks. They can order whatever types of food they like from restaurants nearby. Of course we suggest that it would be more convenient for them to have finger food.”

“People can also bring their own music, as long as they feel comfortable. We do have clients who love to listen to oldies while drawing.”

Many customers are attracted by the atmosphere in Artjamming. John McLean is one of them. McLean was a newcomer to Artjamming.

“It's very relaxing (to draw here),” McLean said. “It's not judgmental. No one laughs at you.” The 46-year-old marketing manager said that he did not know how to draw at all. “My sister is an artist. She has all the talent but I have none.” The last time he drew was already 30 years ago, when he was 16.

Having entered into the space for art and creativity, art jammers can be freed from every errand in daily life. “I think it's a good way to forget about work,” McLean said. Compared to the routine work every day, art jamming is giving people a different experience.

Another customer, Jonathan Cheng, 38, who visits Artjamming once a few months, shares a similar view with McLean : feeling free to draw at the studio. “I feel like going back to my childhood when I would draw in any way I liked, no matter the picture was beautiful or not,” said Cheng, who works in the field of information technology.

He said it was the atmosphere around that attracted him most. “You won't have such kind of atmosphere at home.”

Artjamming also gives him a chance to try something different, especially from what he always does in the office. “Here, perhaps I can utilise both the left and right sides of my brain,” Cheng said.

Through drawing, he said he could feel the power of creativity. “And you'd never know that you can do it unless you try.”