On My Easel

I'm going large. This piece is 24"x 48" and it was inspired by so many people that I felt the need to stop and show my appreciation for the journey I have taken this past year. Suzi Blu for starting me on the path of taking on-line courses, to Carla Sonheim for my first art class I took in Seattle. To Tracy and Teesha Moore for organizing Artfest where I met Sunny Carvalho, Mindy Lacefield, Lisa Bebi, Andrea Matus and so many others last year. To Claudine Hellmuth, Pam Carriker, Sharon Tomlinson, Gritty Jane, and Katie Kendrick whose classes I also took on line. And to the effervescent Jane Davenport and to the ultimate gift giver Flora Bowley who really gave me the courage and skills to draw this big.  To all of you I want to say thank you. When I told my husband, Bob, that I wanted him to make my canvas this big, his eyes kind of flickered and said, "really?"  Yes, I want to paint big, it's freeing and I feel most comfortable with large canvases. You were right, Flora, when you said that we would want to go bigger than the 30"x30" canvases we painted in your class.

This was sitting in my studio waiting for me to get started and then I began Misty Mawn's Open Studio class. In the first week we learned how to draw faces and bodies with charcoal, pastels, and paint. Wait, that's not all, sculpting and journaling assignments rounded out the first week. Thankfully I have taken a few classes (yes, you can laugh here), so I am not as overwhelmed had I taken this class last year in the beginning of my journey. I think I am going to have to take a few months to absorb all of this and just play. Well, until April anyway when I go back to the final Artfest to take classes with Andrea, Mindy and Misty!

And here is a unabashed endorsement of my husband's new hobby--making artists panels. He's so funny now when we go into a gallery. He inspects the panels for the quality of the workmanship, and it makes me happy. Happy that he'll go with me and happy that he supports my passion. You can see his website here. I highly recommend his product.