August 2022

August … my least favorite month. I swore I wasn’t going to do any plein air painting this month because the humidity is just insane, but once again, peer pressure got the best of me and I did it anyway. Probably the right call considering I have my next plein air competition in less than two weeks. But first, let’s get into some highlights from this month.

“Lakeshore” 24 x 24 acrylic on canvas

I am THRILLED to announce that my painting, “Lakeshore,” received the 2nd place award at the South Cobb Arts Alliance exhibition, “Art at the Avenue.” The director called me tonight with the news and I had to ask her to repeat it because it felt so surreal. Abstracts don’t usually get a whole lot of love from judges, and it’s even rarer for abstracts to get awards. It’s such an honor and very reassuring for my abstract painting process. I can remember hearing artists talk about their process and I didn’t fully understand what that meant, but now I have a much better grasp. My process is to start with chaos, all kinds of crazy mark making, then reduce it to simpler forms and shapes. Whittle it down, subtract and refine until I have clean lines, while still showing the work underneath. I focus on warm versus cool colors, contrast, organic shapes, negative shapes. If you look at “Lakeshore” you’ll find subtle spots of red/orange mixed in with the blues, but you can also see them under the lighter whites. I scrape, dab, spray, drip, smudge, wipe, whip, fling, rotate the canvas, and repeat until it finally falls into place. 

Last week I started working on three more abstracts because I’d like to enter those into an upcoming show or two. I also submitted a proposal to teach a two-day abstract painting workshop in early 2023, so hopefully that will work out. 

Speaking of teaching … I helped a friend with some painting tips and I led a small group of new artists through a painting exercise on a Sunday afternoon. I was amazed by how well the students did! They’d never painted before and look at how well their paintings turned out:

 

We started by drawing the composition upside down, then we painted with just white and black. They nailed it! I promise you this - if you ever want to improve your drawing skills, draw upside down. It’s a game changer!

PLEIN AIR

As I mentioned earlier, I painted en plein air more than I anticipated. I’ve been trying to teach myself how to use gouache and it’s a lot of fun.

 

If you remember, my word for 2022 is “experiment” and my recent experiment was painting with oil on paper. This was really fun. I took a large sheet of watercolor paper, divided it into fourths and I’m using it as a space to play with composition.

But of course, I’m also still painting in oils on site:

Tanyard Creek in Buckhead

My friend Terry and I painted at Chateau Meichtry last week. Despite the rain and fog, we still had so much fun. On Saturday I volunteered at The Booth Museum’s Member Appreciation Day where we helped guide visitors through watercolor plein air painting. Of course, I had to sneak in my own little creation.

EXHIBITIONS

In addition to The Art at the Avenue, I delivered two paintings to the Acworth Arts Alliance and one painting to the Douglasville Arts Council. I also submitted two paintings for consideration for the Booth Museum’s Downtown Gallery fall/winter exhibition. Last time I submitted to the Downtown Gallery my work was not selected, so I have no idea what to expect. To be completely honest, I’ll be surprised if anything gets in. But hey, at least I’m trying.

STUDIO WORK

Here are my latest studio pieces. I’m really pleased with the surfer painting, which is on its way to its forever home in Topsail Beach, North Carolina.

I have a few others that are in their early phases that I’ll post next month.

OTIS AND JULIUS

My babies turned 10 this month. I can’t believe they’re 10 years old. I had the best time going back to look at their baby pictures. They were holy terrors but so darn cute! It’s also amazing to see how dark they’ve gotten over the years.

Otis

 

JuJu

Here are a few photos from this month:

Otis snuggles with me in the morning while I drink coffee and play Wordle 

Otis does not like having his picture taken … a rare moment of submission to the camera

Sheet changing day … you already know how much JuJu loves new clean sheets

COMING SOON …

September is going to be a wild one! A little travel, a plein air competition, a week of plein air painting with friends, a workshop and lots more! Please come back and visit me again in a few weeks for another update!