Sharing some Open Studio highlights

Some of the sold paintings 
from the Open Studio

 What a delightful weekend! It was great to see new and old friends at my Open Studio event, and even though attendance was a little shy compared to some other years (we had SUCH beautiful weather, and I am guessing most people were outside enjoying it!) it was a success, and a huge encouragement. Thank you to those who attended - and if you missed it you can contact me about an appointment for a visit, while I still have a fairly clean house and studio! 

I have started working on a painting based on my reading in Isaiah, and I am loving getting back into trying to communicate huge, intangible concepts with abstract paintings, using color and composition as a language. It is a very challenging pursuit, but of course, I love it! My first color layer was already on the canvas during my Open Studio - a deep anthraquinone blue - and I have just started working with some new colors. I am excited to see the interplay happen as I work. 

One of the other things I have worked on recently in the studio is a 'touch-up' of a plein air painting that I did last October. As I have mentioned, I am a novice at plein air painting (painting outdoors), but am preparing to go to a huge convention that focuses on this form of painting that was popularized by the Impressionists in the late 1800s. I am excited for this learning experience, and also maybe just a bit intimidated! I certainly have a lot to learn! 

I am not sure whether it is considered good practice to touch up the painting after you return to the studio (probably not!) but I had fun working with all different media on this very experimental painting. I used different kinds of pastels, pencils and other mark making tools, and then experimented with methods of fixing the work so that it is stable and won't run or fade. It sure was fun! Of course, the photograph does no justice to the changes in the painting. Oh well! 

Painted with the finest quality heavy-body acrylic paint on acid-free, heavy weight Fabriano watercolor paper

Ready to frame

Comment or contact me if you would like to purchase this work, or see it in person. 

And lastly for this week's newsletter, here is a short slideshow of a few highlights from the Open Studio event. 

Thanks for reading, and I will talk to you next week with a more 'normal' newsletter!