Apalachicola, FL with Lori Putnam

"Beach Cottages 1"

9" x 12" oil on linen panel

Whew! October was a month of travel and fun workshops for me! Against the advice of most artists, I signed up for 3 workshops in the same month. I love to paint plein air, and in the South, October is a fabulous month for that because of the milder weather. Plus, all of these workshops were with people that I have always wanted to study with and it was just convenient for me to go the places they were going to be. And also contrary to what most artists say, I am not AT ALL confused or messed up or whatever from the three different teachers and their varied painting styles. Unlike most people, I go to workshops for several reasons. One, is to meet other artists and chat and visit during the week about something we all love - painting and art. Another reason is just to visit different places. And then, of course, to learn. I love learning about things and especially about painting. I don't go to workshops to totally change the way I paint or think about painting. I always come away from a workshop with something I can carry over into my own journey, whether it is a small tip about supplies, brushstrokes, other techniques, colors, or some idea or theory that I have heard explained a thousand times before that finally "makes sense" to me after another instructor says it their way. Anyway, I am not recommending that anyone do what I did, because it was physically exhausting (haha!) but mentally fun and I wouldn't trade anything for my month of October 2011!

Lori's workshop in beautiful Apalachicola, FL, was sponsored by the Apalachicola School of Art, which is a wonderful organization that is just getting started holding workshops in this quaint little town. They are working on a website currently but you can find some information if you Google the name. They have held a plein air event there for the last several years, and we were able to see some of the fabulous artwork from some of these events hanging in the school.

Not only did I meet some fun people here that also took the workshop, but I had a blast painting the shrimp boats, marshes, and the other sites here. It is really a plein air painter's dream here with all the choices in painting subjects, and I hope to return here maybe for the plein air event next May to watch all of the artists that are there painting. I can also recommend taking workshops from this school. They are really welcoming and the whole town is accepting of art and artists, so look them up and see what they have to offer if you are interested in workshops at all. They are just getting started so keep an eye out on the growing schedule. 

As you may remember, I am starting a mentoring program with Lori in 2012, so I am taking any workshop I can with her now so that she will be familiar with my painting and what I need to work on as we begin the mentoring in January. As with the first workshop I did with Lori, she was again a wonderfully patient and giving teacher and I felt so inspired and encouraged by watching her demo and also by her advice at my easel. Below is a photo of her teaching before her demo the first day. 

We painted in several places in the area, including a morning in the studio because of the high winds and light rain on the final day. The painting you see above at the top of this post was on the beach one beautiful and sunny morning. Below is a photo of my set up and the painting after I was finished. Of course, the light had changed by then but you can get an idea of the beautiful place I was standing while painting.

Stay tuned this week for another fabulous workshop review about my next October workshop, Dee Beard Dean. Maybe I should do this for a job? Anyone want to hire me to take workshops and write reviews? Plein Air Magazine maybe? Now THAT would be a dream job!

And, I just couldn't resist a little Photoshop editing of the photo below! You will probably have to click on it and enlarge to see the "hazard" well. We painted one day after lunch on the side of a road with beautiful marshes on either side and really high winds! We shielded ourselves with our cars and our equipment and setup was truly tested. After we painted, Lori also did a demo in that spot. As I sat with my new friends and watched, I kept imaging "critters" climbing out of the water which was just a few feet away from us. Needless to say, this is not a "real" photo but one I am deeming "The Hazards of Plein Air Painting" just for fun! I know all of you plein air painters out there can think of other hazards from your past plein air experiences.

Smoky Mountain Painting Fun

This past weekend, I participated in a painting trip with 5 other artists from the Nashville area. I belong to a group there called The Chestnut Group  (follow link to see some FABULOUS work from the members and read about this wonderful organization) and although this was not an official group trip, all of the artists are also members of this wonderful group of artists. The participants of this trip above are (from left) me (yes I was blinking when the camera took the photo!), Claudia Williams, Cynthia Crook, Roger Dale Brown, Beverly Ford Evans, and Cathleen Windham.

We stayed in a cabin there with this beautiful stream right out the back door! Needless to say, there were many painting opportunities all around us and we took advantage of that and painted for three days. I came home with several studies I plan to enlarge back in the studio this winter. Below is one of my almost finished pieces from the trip. I hadn't gotten to the red truck peeking out of the door to the barn when it was time to move on! We had such a blast loading up in Roger's truck and laughing all the way to the next painting stop. It is truly one of the things I love most about this painting journey I am on - meeting new people who all enjoy and understand the love of art and painting!

I always love seeing other artists post their work in the place they painted it when doing plein air work, so I remembered to take one of my own this time!

I have also posted some other photos from the trip on my Facebook art page Smoky Six Trip Photos, so take a look there for more inspiring photos of the beautiful state of Tennessee!  I am off tomorrow to paint in a workshop with the fabulous Lori Putnam on Florida's Forgotten Coast (Apalachicola) so look for more painting fun next week!

Art Show Recap

The beautiful lobby of the Memphis Botanic Gardens.

Our water aerobics class ladies came to support us!

 No class tonight!

Some of my small still life paintings grouped together.

Two of my still life paintings in beautiful Randy Higbee floater frames.

One of the four walls of our art!

Floral paintings by me (left) and Judy (right). Just perfect for this venue!

Artist and beloved local disc jockey, Ron Olson, enjoying the show and the food!

Me and my sister (2nd from left) and other friends who came to the show.

Art grouping with a "bird" theme by me and Judy - the two in the middle are Judy's and the two on the sides are mine. We had fun arranging the art on the walls at such a beautiful place!

One of my landscape paintings. 

Another wall of art!

Some of the early guests to the show
and one wing of the gallery space.

Another shot of the lobby before the show opened.

I wanted to post about the art show that opened last week at the Memphis Botanic Gardens. I hope this is not photo overload, but I wanted some of my artist friends across the country to share in our excitement since they could not be here in person! It was a great opening and there were sales (yay!) and most of all, lots of wonderful friends and family who came out to support Judy and me. We had over 100 people at the opening, which was so fun for us! As most of the artists out there know, it is a lot of work to organize and market and hang a show like this, but it is so fun in the end to see your work hanging all nice and framed at a beautiful location like we have here. The show will remain up for the rest of September, so if you are in the area, drop by and see it!

Art Show Opening

Just a quick post to let everyone know about my show with fellow artist Judy Nocifora opening this week at the Memphis Botanic Gardens. Since we are "travel" buddies (to workshops and fun art events!), we entitled the show "Memories and Mementos: Two Painters' Journeys." If you are in the Memphis area this Thursday, September 8, we are having an opening reception from 5:30-7:30 pm. The show will hang until the end of September.

I also have to mention that my heart goes out to all of those in Texas who have recently lost their property (and some lives) to wildfires. One of my past workshop teachers who many in the art world adore (including myself!), Carol Marine, and her family lost their home and her studio in Bastrop, Texas. Thankfully they were able to get out themselves though. It has been hard for me to think of much else since I heard the news. Although I have only spent one week with her, she is one of the most giving and thoughtful teachers I have had so far in this painting journey I am on. I know there are many who are affected by this and continue to be at the time I am writing this post, so please remember them in your thoughts and prayers. There are also many links to provide support for Carol and her family out there, and if you are interested in helping and can't find a link, contact me at droseball@gmail.com and I will point you in the right direction.

Workshop with Lori Putnam

"Solitary Boat"

12" x 16" oil on linen panel

Last weekend, I participated in a workshop with Lori Putnam held in Nashville at LeQuire Gallery. It was a short, intensive, day and a half experience that I truly enjoyed! Lori is not only a fabulous painter, but an excellent instructor and fun person too! We began the workshop on Sunday afternoon and watched Lori demo from a plein air piece she had done on a recent trip to the Adirondacks in New York state. The demo was wonderful and Lori is one of those artists who can demo and talk about what she is doing at the same time, which helps artists like myself who always want to know why someone is doing what they are when painting.

The following day, we each painted from either a plein air piece we brought in or from a photo. The photo I used was given to me by a good friend who visited Jamaica earlier in the year and shared some wonderful photos with me to use for painting. After doing several thumbnail sketches to determine the best use of this photo as far as composition goes, I painted the piece above. I was pleased with my day and from the help and feedback I got from Lori. I also met some very nice artists too, which is always one of my favorite benefits of taking a workshop.

I am also excited about starting a mentoring program with Lori in January of 2012. She will mentor 6 artists and I am happy to be a part of that group! I am ready for some intensive focus and work and I know that Lori is the one that will provide that work for me on a regular basis. I do have a few exciting workshops this fall (two of them with Lori!) but as of January, I will be focused on consistent instruction from her. I always loved school, which is why I like workshops so much, and this will be a little like school for me!

"Cedar Grove Church" 9x12

Cedar Grove Church

9x12 oil on canvas panel

This is a painting I did from my recent workshop with the fabulous painter and teacher, Dawn Whitelaw. I had a wonderful three days with her in Pontotoc, Mississippi, in a workshop where we learned to work from photos. Dawn is primarily a portrait and a plein air painter, and I have previously studied with her in a plein air "bootcamp" kind of workshop. I learned so much and always look forward to studying with her whenever I have the opportunity. She is such an inspirational teacher and knows just what to say to help you understand a concept. 

This church is in a little community in Arkansas that we pass through on the way to our lakehouse. It is one of those places I always wanted to pull over and photograph, and when I was driving past a month or so ago, the light was hitting it just right, so I quickly turned around and grabbed my camera before it changed. I was happy I did, because it gave me an excellent photograph to work with during this workshop! 

I used the limited palette of one red, blue, and yellow and some white on this painting. I am becoming quite fond of the simplicity of using just 4 tubes of paint and seeing what I can mix up!

On Making Color Charts

In my quest for learning how to oil paint, I have come to the conclusion I know very little about color theory and usually just go on my "instinct" when painting and choosing colors. I have read some on my own, but knew all along I need to get serious if I am going to meet some of the goals I have set for myself in this painting journey.

One of the most inspiring and encouraging artists that I personally know is Lori Putnam, a Nashville artist whose work I both admire and drool over! See her website here. Her work is fresh, loose, and just absolutely beautiful. She also has a couple of small booklets (which you can purchase at her website) about oil painting, plein air painting, and color theory that I have purchased that I consider some of the best material I have read on these subjects. And believe me, I have a book addiction, and if I showed you a photo of my shelves of books relating to painting and art, you would know I know what I am talking about! Her booklets are full of little gems of information that I might have read or heard somewhere before, but her way of presentation just sticks with me. Sometimes it is like that with learning.

Lori also has a wonderful blog that includes some valuable posts on many subjects relating to painting, but some very good ones on making color charts and using a 3 color plus white palette like she does. Now I know there are probably countless posts and book chapters out there on chart making, and there is no one right way, but I decided to just go with this and do them. I was not convinced that I could possibly get this many colors with just one tube of each primary and white. However, after doing the charts with Lori's detailed instructions, I am convinced. As most artists are, I am a visual learner for the most part and learn best by doing.

The main thing I learned after doing this exercise was this - I don't have to have every color paint that the manufacturers make in my painting supplies to make beautiful paintings. Now, I know that sounds simplistic, but somehow before I did these charts, I thought that the people who painted with a limited palette or even an expanded limited palette were just somehow born with some sort of talent or sense of color that I was not born with and I could never learn it and would have to buy my own yellow ochre for the rest of my painting career. There is nothing wrong with using a ton of paint tubes, but if you aspire to plein air paint much, it makes it rather difficult and cumbersome to use 20 different tubes out in the field.

Will I only paint with these 3 colors from here on out? I'm not sure yet and also know that it doesn't really matter right now. Some of the best advice that every artist that I have studied with has been something along the lines of "this is the way I do it, but you must find your own style and way of doing things." Great advice!

Susan's Tulips

Susan's Tulips

11"x14" oil on canvas

It has been awhile since I last posted. I have had several family obligations this summer and had very little time to paint, but hopefully that will change now! I have tried to keep up with my art friends' blogs, but also have had little time for that too. So excited to be catching up soon!

I painted these tulips back in May after a lovely dinner at a dear friend's home. She and her husband had several couples over one evening and these tulips were the centerpiece on the table. As an artist, I couldn't help but sit there and wonder how I would paint them! I sat and wondered what colors I would mix to get the color of the petals and how I would set it up in my studio. I know some of you know what I am talking about! Anyway, since she is a good friend, I just asked when I left that evening if I could borrow her tulips to paint them! Since she was so kind to let me take them with me, I just decided to give her the painting. 

I set the tulips up on a sheet of glass in my studio to get the reflection you see in the front. Then, when I lit the set up, the reflection just appeared! I love doing this and learned this tip from several other artists.

I hope you all are enjoying your summer and getting in more painting time than I am!

"Summer Pots" 6x6

"Summer Pots"

6x6 oil on canvas panel

This is a fun little painting using some of the colors and brushstrokes I learned in the workshop with the fabulous Dreama Tolle Perry. I had a photo of the bench with the great light on it, but it didn't have anything sitting on it. I decided a couple of terra cotta pots with some colorful flowers in them would be the perfect addition! This is one of the things I am learning to do in my compositions. Not rely on just what I see, but what I can imagine I see too! Tried to stay loose and not over work the paint on this too. 

I am headed to Little Rock, Arkansas next week for a workshop with Guido Frick, a German painter who studied with Sergei Bongart early in his painting career. Really looking forward to painting outside on BIG canvases and loosening up even more on my brushstrokes. Look up his work if you are not familiar with it! Very fresh and exciting style and I know I will have fun with it.

WKNO Art Show Opening

The Artist Group of Memphis

I have been busy preparing for two art shows I am participating in with a group of artists here in the Memphis area known as "The Artist Group." It is a group of friends that was started by Joy Routt and Julie Hooker years ago to show their work around town. It has grown over time to include 17 artists. Not all artists participate in each show, but it is fun to have a group of friends to show your art with! This is a photo of the opening reception last night at WKNO studio here in Memphis. This show runs through the end of May, so if you are in the area, stop by sometime and see and buy some artwork! It is fabulous and such a variety within the group of artists. Some of my work in the show is shown below. 

We have another opening next weekend at St. Mary's Episcopal School for a weekend only show with some of the proceeds going to the Children's Ballet Theater that performs there in the Buckman Theater. 

Also, please keep this area in your thoughts and prayers. We are facing some flooding of historic proportions that have not been seen in this area since the early 1900's. The mighty Mississippi River has run over it's normal banks all along the way to the Gulf and will continue to rise for at least another week. It will be a long while and a lot of damage to many homes and businesses until this water recedes. A slow moving natural disaster for sure.