August 2024

 

Otis and Julius turned 12 years old this month. Time sure does fly, and it is not on our side. They won’t live forever and I cannot bear the thought of life without these two precious boys. JuJu is so different from Otis. He is sneaky and coy and will hide behind a corner and as Otis approaches, he jumps out and scares him. We crack up every time. JuJu *loves* sheet changing day. He can be sound asleep and as soon as he hears me changing sheets, he scurries upstairs to play. Otis will watch but he has no interest in playing in the sheets. They might be from the same litter, but they are as different as night and day. 

Otis is more holdable and cuddly. He gives me little nibbles on my cheeks in the morning. And he loves rubbing his teeth on me and other people he likes: Scott and Michelle. JuJu loves flopping down in the middle of the room and showing his belly. Otis rarely does that. But O-doggie is our wooby delivery service. Up and down the stairs, he brings Spidey, pickle, platypus and yellow poofy. JuJu has never walked around with a woob in his mouth. I love their differences. I love them period. 

OK, let’s talk art and the month of August. 

The big news for August is that I scored an artist studio space in Decatur! OMGGGGGEEEEE! Back in early July I read an article in Sketchbook about these spaces becoming available. Truly, I thought I had no chance. I wasn’t even going to apply but I finally decided to just to look at the application to see what kind of information they wanted. Well, one of the questions asked about our current painting set up. And if you know me, you know I paint in our kitchen. Why the kitchen? Well, there’s plenty of counter space, great light and I don’t have to hear my neighbors screaming at each other constantly. They fight and argue 24x7 and nothing will crush your creative spirit like listening to people scream at each other. I grew up in a house like that. So, yeah, I definitely need a peaceful, calm, creative space to work. 

I tried not to get my hopes up because there is so much competition for so few resources in this city, so when I got the call on Monday I was stunned and thrilled. Like most art studios, the space is old and crumbly and outdated. You know how it goes - artists always get the shitty old run down spaces, turn them into works of art, the rent goes up, big money takes over, renovates, upgrades it and artists can no long afford it, so they move to the next run down space. And so on and so on. 

My hope is that because this is affiliated with the City of Decatur and art is such a huge part of the community that we will be able to stay and grow for years. We’ll see. I haven’t met any of my studio mates, but I understand that the organizers have been very careful about their artist selections. A mix of ages, interests, etc. I’m hopeful, excited, grateful and ready to get to work. 

TEACHING

The highlight of my week is teaching. And my teaching business is growing like crazy. Acworth is full. Small Group Saturdays at our home is full. I’ll be taking a break in September and October due to travel and plein air obligations, but I already have a nice list of people who are ready to dive back in. It is so exciting to see their growth, passion and persistence. I’ve seen each person progress. It’s also making me work harder on my own drawing skills. Full circle.

My docent buddy, Jane, is one of my students. She taught school for dozens of years, so I was a little nervous to teach a teacher. But she’s extremely complimentary of my teaching. She’s one of my favorite people. I love her so much. She’s funny and self deprecating and often tears up when she makes a break through. There are 3-4 Acworth students who amaze me every week. They work their tails off and their drawings have gotten so good. I’ll be back at Acworth in 2025. And hopefully I can teach a small group at my new studio in Decatur.

Speaking of classes, I was in a 4 week perspective drawing class at Spruill. Boy did I need it and I was super impressed with the instructor and information. It starts a little slow because there is so much to explain and it can get pretty technical and mathematical. Our instructor also teaches 3-D printing and he created this cool little set up above to demonstrate stairs in perspective. The last two sessions were solid drawing sessions and helped tremendously. I need to keep practicing.

And I wrapped up my last pottery class for the year :((( I love handbuilding. And I love my instructor and classmates. And I’m getting better, slowly, one crappy wonky coffee mug at a time. 

SELF PORTRAIT MONTH

I decided to try to a self portrait every day in August. I missed a few days but overall, things went well. Dramatic lighting helps me find shapes, so that was a key takeaway. 

PAINTING

I’ve been in a little bit of a weird phase in terms of painting. It feels like growing pains. I’m past a lot of the beginner mistakes but I have such a long way to go. And people who are more experienced than I am tell me that you’re never truly happy with your art (isn’t that sad??) because there is a never ending pursuit to get better. Thinking about re-reading Mastery for a boost.

PERSONAL

We spent Labor Day at Old Edwards in Highlands. Bring on those cooler fall temps! Lunch at the pool! Cocktails and Cy at the Hummingbird Lounge! Bust Your Butt Falls and Dry Falls! 

SEPTEMBER is gonna be fun. That’s all I’m gonna say for now. 

MORE KITTIES!!!

Mostly JuJu because Otis really does not like having his picture taken.