Helen Joy

As a kid, I somehow knew I would do something relating to Balance. I also always wanted to be an Artist.When I had my own kids, I was always volunteering at their school with the art classes. You could always find me washing paintbrushes or handing out paper & paints.One day the teacher was teaching them how to draw a bird. Picture this: A circle for a head, oval body, triangle beak…Now a few years prior to this, I had taught myself to draw from Betty Edwards’ Drawing on the Right Side of the Brain, so I knew that style of teaching was very left-brained.I said that to the teacher & asked if this was leading up to teaching them how to draw that bird out there in the tree?No chance, this was textbook stuff only. She was no artist & had no idea how to teach that, so my thought came out loud, ‘maybe that’s why I’m here.’So for the next couple of months, I became the teacher & what a joy it was.There were a number of kids in this particular class that were labeled ADHD, Asperger’s, or the troublemakers. These were the kids who got what I was teaching long before the other kids & they were good at it.Teachers would stop at the doorway in awe because the room was so quiet. Not only that, but the ‘normal’ kids were in awe of the rowdy kids & would say ‘how did you do that? That’s so good.’This, of course, gave those kids a great sense of believing in themselves & they finally found some peace.So then some of the parents started asking if I could teach them, which got me wondering if I could.It didn’t feel right to be teaching someone else’s work & so I sought permission from Betty Edwards to make a career out of teaching her work.Betty Edwards’ book is the most widely used art tutorial book ever published & has been written in 30 different languages.I couldn’t believe it when I read her reply email ‘Go for it, teach as many people as you can.’ She believes it is every person’s right to be able to express themselves creatively. The only thing she asked from me was to always give her credit. That I do. I am so grateful to Betty Edwards for changing my life & giving me the opportunity to change so many others.So I taught many people to draw for over 20 years in Cairns & then the Sunshine Coast. It was everyone’s amazing, life-changing testimonials that kept me at it for so long.I have now relocated to Brisbane Northside to be closer to my gorgeous grandson & am ready to start teaching again.I have 2 (possibly 3) courses beginning in term 2.