I was so happy to learn that my first instructional art book “Nature Painting in Watercolors” (Walter Foster, 2021) was translated into Italian. I’ve been thinking about teaching some workshops abroad and this would be a great element to add to the program. Of course, my Italian is just awful so perhaps I should really make an effort to learn the language.
a little break...
Took a few hours to meet up with a friend yesterday and paint. A beautiful garden, combined with the sounds of birds and scampering chipmunks (oh my god so cute!) and some much needed laughs. I’ve been working so much these past few months between book projects, commissions and teaching remotely. I often work through weekends to catch up so it was a nice little escape. My day got a little longer as a result as I made up the time catching up on emails, but it was soooo nice. :)
Here are some little studies I did. We kept moving about to work on different plants and flowers. It was nice just to paint for fun.
Quarantine works goals
Hope all of you are safe and making the most of the stay at home orders. I’ve never been a fan of being a couch potato, so I have been spending my days in my sunny studio working on everything from new story ideas and sketching to continuing work on my upcoming art instruction book. Don’t get me wrong, I still enjoy taking a walk and taking advantage of the down time, but for me it is best to keep pursuing goals at this time. It keeps my mind occupied and gives me a sense of accomplishment at the end of the day. My teaching gig at the Museum is on hold (well everyone’s!) so I look at this time as an opportunity to really hunker down and focus. And I am still teaching—but just in book form for the time being. I’d really love to write more and with less distraction I hope some of the ideas can materialize on paper. And it seems less scary to keep my routine going versus succumb to 8 hours of CNN. I’ve been self employed for a LONG time. So, each day I wake, I make my little to-do list as I have for years and get cranking! Sharing this floral border I started for the book so that the designer can have a fun area to run some text inside. Keep creating everyone! We need to stay in for all the brave healthcare workers out there. We will get through this.
365 project
Happy New Year everyone! I hope 2020 is a great creative year for all of you. I love to mix it up each year and challenge myself as an artist. I decided to do more quick studies in watercolor so I sharpen my skills. No computer. Just a brush and paint. It’s a lot of fun so far! Busy working on the book so this is a great early am. start to my day. Should be fun to look back on at the end of the year. :)
Plein air afternoon...
Stole a few hours yesterday afternoon to plop myself down at Van Vleck gardens and paint. The place is absolutely gorgeous and abundant with beautiful flowers and grasses. Here’s a peek at what I worked on.
