Going Back to School

I've written several posts about great free seminars around town - places that offer worthwhile one-night workshops or classes, but for those of you who are looking for a little more (such as homework, grades and even a degree), then read on. SUNY, CUNY or state schools are the way to go for serious learning with out shoveling out serious cash. Being a NY State resident allows you to attend these state schools for about a quarter of the price you would pay at a non-state school.

For the past five years I've taken various design courses through the Fashion Institute of Technology (F.I.T.). While not as fancy a name as Pratt, Parsons, SVA or NYU I've taken similar design courses through F.I.T. at a fraction of the cost. I've taken both semester-long, for-credit courses as well as non-credit, continuing-education courses through F.I.T. Usually one course will cost somewhere between $200 - $300. The semester-long, for-credit courses are your best deal, offering 15 full classes, graded assignments and final projects.

They have an array of class schedules (both for the credit and non-credit classes), enabling you to work a full time job and attend night classes. Conceivably you could slowly earn a degree if you took enough of the credit classes. The non-credit courses can be packaged and combined allowing you to earn various professional certifications.

There are also many other state schools around town, though I have only attended courses at F.I.T. The teachers are great and very knowledgeable and it has always been a good investment of my $250. F.I.T. is located on 7th Ave. between 28th and 26th streets.

The Art of the Book

A peek into the studios at The Center for Book ArtsThe storefront of Printed Matter, Inc.

I love books. And I also love art. And, like peanut butter and chocolate, when books and art cross it makes for something even better! Think illuminated manuscripts, graphic novels, illustrated diaries, sketchbooks. . . there is something very appealing about the the combination of the written word and graphics. As well as I like the succinct presentation of art in a bound codex, allowing the viewer/reader to flip through pages, discovering multiple levels of art within one piece.

In today's post I am happy to introduce two places in Manhattan each centering around book arts. The first is The Center for Book Arts. The Center for Book Arts is a multi-purpose book artist's studio, education center, exhibition space and center for resources on everything related to bookmaking. They have classes in bookbinding, printing, letterpress, paper making, paper marbling, leather tooling, typography, collage making, paper cutting, illumination, and so much more. They also host lectures on book-related topics, hold book-related events or invite guest artists in to share their work.

Artists can rent studio space at the center, giving them access to all the printing and book binding equipment and supplies. There is a small gallery at the Center, with a fascinating rotating exhibit of book art. A visit to the Center offers a glimpse at the current exhibit, a small book shop offering rare and limited edition handmade art and poetry books, and a peek into the bustling studios and workshops where artists and students are busy cutting papers, stitching bindings and manning the letterpresses. Classes can run a bit on the expensive side, but it is worth checking out the schedule of events if you have any interest in learning anything related to bookmaking. The Center for Book Arts is located at 28 West 27th street, between Broadway and 6th Ave.

The other place I recently discovered is Printed Matter, Inc. This is an unusual shop on the far west side that sells rare, limited-edition and handmade books. It describes itself as being "the largest non-profit organization dedicated to publications made by artists." 'Odd' and 'fascinating' are two very appropriate words that come to my mind to describe this shop. Visit this shop to see the variety of ways printed matter can be presented, to inspire you to print and bind your own writing or to just buy an offbeat publication. Printed Matter, Inc. is located at 195 10th Ave. between 21st and 22nd Streets.

Try Tai Chi. Why Not?

Today I tried the free Tai Chi class held at Bryant Park. Every Tuesday and Thursday morning, from 7:30-8:30am, (April - Oct) there is a free and open Tai Chi class given by the Tai Chi Chuan Center. Though early in the morning, it felt refreshing to be awake, stretching and moving in the cool morning air at the Park. At 7:30 the Park is still and fairly quiet, but by the end of the class the Park is flooded with the usual Midtown crowds rushing to work.

The class was fairly basic and is accessible to all skill levels and ages. There were about 25 students this morning. The founder of Tai Chi Chuan Center, Master C.K. Chu leads the class and 2-3 other assistant instructors move around the open air "classroom" correcting postures and positions.

The class is held, rain or shine, at the Fountain Terrace (at the west end of the park).

Meditation at the Tibet House

It is often claimed that with the noise, the tight spaces and the crowds that it is stressful living in Manhattan. It is also claimed that meditation relieves stress. (Personally, NYC enlivens me rather than stresses me, and meditation sometimes can be stressful because of how much time it takes out of my schedule). So while I am not thoroughly convinced by these two claims, for curiosity's sake, I decided to try a meditation session at the Tibet House last night.

Each Tuesday evening from 7:00 - 9:00pm they have an open meditation session led by an experienced Tibetan Buddhist tradition practitioner. The session consists of half lecture and question & answer concerning the art and practice of meditation and the other half is devoted to practicing meditation. There were about 30 people who attended last night. There is a suggested $10 donation ("dana").

The Tibet House also offers various lectures and classes about Tibetan culture and Buddhist spirituality. The House has a museum-like gallery displaying various Tibetan antiques, artwork and photography as well as a Buddhist altar and a bookshop full of Tibetan and Buddhist books.

So whether you're just curious about Buddhist meditation or if you are a stressed out New Yorker, stop by the Tibet House on a Tuesday night to try a session. The Tibet House is located at 22 West 15th street, between 5th and 6th Aves., on the second floor.

Open your Mind, Not your Wallet

I wanted to announce another center in town that offers great free classes: The Open Center. I just attended their free introductory seminar of "Healing with Whole Foods and Chinese Herbs" last night. Though I might be a bit skeptical of some aspects, I enjoyed learning the basics of Chinese medicinal theory.

To sum up The Open Center, as described in their welcome statement, they are " dedicated to offering educational programs and cultural events that expand the mind, nurture the body and awaken the spirit. We offer workshops, classes, lectures, conferences and professional trainings, led by teachers of wisdom, passion and skill. Thousands have come through our doors finding fresh intellectual perspectives, paths of healing, deepening of their spiritual lives and new careers that allow them to be of service and express their true calling."

I myself admit that I am dubious of the more far-fetched practices involving "chakras," "life force" or most things with "spirituality" in the title. Still I enjoy learning about everything, and am open to trying new things. They offer a variety of multi-week long classes (that you pay for), but many of these classes start off with a free introductory seminar open to anyone. I should note that many of the multi-week long paid-for classes are in fact not that expensive themselves.

Topics range from Belly Dancing, Aromatherapy, Learning to play the Native American Flute, Prana Yoga Teacher Training, How to Communicate with Difficult People, Myofascial Trigger Point Therapy and hundreds more. From massage to spirituality to eastern medicine to psychology they cover a wide breadth of topics loosely under the holistic health and wellness category. They also have a shop that carries an eclectic selection of books, world music, cards and aromatherapy products.

The Open Center is located in Soho at 83 Spring Street (but next month they are moving uptown to 22 East 30th street). To attended a free introductory seminar pre-register by calling 212.219.2527 x 2.

Take a Bite Out of The Big Apple

At risk of sounding like an Apple computer evangelist, today I am posting about the great FREE classes offered at the Apple stores. With its latest addition of the West 14th street location (fittingly in the tragically hip Meatpacking District), Manhattan now holds a total of three Apple stores. Which means there is a free computer class going on just about every hour of the day. People, take advantage of free learning!

Obviously this post is somewhat limited to those of you with Macs (the rest of you. . . your next computer should be a Mac. . . again, not to proselytize or anything). But for those of you who do use Macs, or want to, the Apple classes are a great opportunity to learn everything about your computer and its programs. They are the missing classes you always wish you had when you wonder how other people seem to know all those little computer secrets.

The classes range from 'Getting Started on a Mac Computer' to Adobe CS4 classes such as using Illustrator and Photoshop. There are classes covering all the Apple programs - iTunes, iPhoto, iMovie, GarageBand, etc. There are various classes covering the operating system (Mac OS X Leopard), teaching you all the new features, tips and tricks. They offer in depth two-hour classes covering programs like Final Cut Pro and digital photography using Aperture. They also have classes on iPhone, iPods, wireless networking and all the peripherals. Besides the extended in-depth sessions and the hands-on sessions most of the classes are an hour long.

The Soho store hold the classes in a comfortable upstairs auditorium (as compared to the Fifth Ave store, which just holds the classes in a more informal setting around a large table). I've always felt comfortable asking questions and the teachers are happy to show you everything. In addition to the classes, keep an eye out for special free events they hold - business networking events, music performances, lectures, etc.

So for whether you just want to get up and running on a new Mac computer or whether you want to learn something about a particular program, take a look at all that's offered and start learning.

A Noble Pursuit

Every once and a while you discover something in the city that is both FREE and truly WORTHWHILE. This is one of those things: Nobledesktop. I've been telling all my designer/photographer friends about it, so naturally I decided I must mention it here.

Nobledesktop is a learning center offering an array of design-oriented multimedia classes and seminars. They have full pay-per multi-day classes, which I am absolutely sure are amazing, though I've only so far attended their free one-night seminars. Check them out at Nobledesktop.com. Their free seminars are always dead on, providing real-life tips and information on how to get started immediately on topics ranging from 'how to build an HTML email campaign' to 'the latest and hottest web technologies' to 'creating photo compositions/collages in Photoshop.' The lecturers who present the seminars are not only knowledgeable and engaging but also surprisingly entertaining. Frequent-seminar lecturer Dan Rodney, in particular, is always spot-on in managing to address a certain issue just before you raise your hand to ask that very question.

So if you are in the design/photography field (and have not already heard of them) definitely check them out and try one of their many free seminars. As for me, as soon as I can scrap together some extra cash I'm going to try one of their full courses, as I am sure it is worth every penny.

Nobledesktop is located right on Broadway in Soho, their address is: 594 Broadway, suite 1202.