May 9 - Greeting the New Boot Camp Recruits

As I sit and await the arrival of the seven newest Color Boot Camp recruits in gorgeous North Georgia, I'll share with you one of the two six by eight inch canvases I did during the other workshop.

Although there is glare on the upper right, you can see the Color System working in the gentler light of the Florida evening. Note the repetition with variety in the trio of duplicate shapes--clouds, palms and shrubs. One might think that it is a no-no to repeat in twos, but in this case it works, as the dark cloud on the left middle balances the weight of the duos on the right. And each of the dual objects is similar but not equal. Design is such a strong aspect of painting; one I'm always considering!

Georgia is cool and lovely this time of year, and holding a sumptuous spring feel, and no better place to enjoy it than Fay's farm. Her generosity in allowing us to descend upon her for a five days is not to be taken lightly, and I'm honored to be considered her friend. Here's an image of the barn apartment upstairs with the balcony where the workshop will be held, across from the main house.

After this workshop, the only one remaining will be in Maine. I do hope to meet some more East Coast artist friends there! Color Boot Camp is special. Here's Maggie's most recent post.

You can see earlier posts from my blog HERE.
My workshop schedule for 2010 is HERE.
Color System information can be found HERE.
If you need to email me directly, please click here.

May 6 - Silver River, Alligators and Evening Light

OK, gang. After the workshop today, I finally got to do something I've wanted to do for ages... kayaking on a river, and wow, did I get my wish! Here I am on the Silver River in Florida outside Ocala, kayaking into the evening and heading for the headwaters of this massive aquifer. Clear, clear water! I'm with Jackie Shindahette, my hostess, on her second kayak, and our intent was to go for a few hours. We left at 4:30, and didn't get back to the launch until 9 p.m., well after dark--not smart, but who knew? The springs that spew out 0ver 550 million gallons of fresh water per day to create this river are three miles upstream, and we thought that would be a nice trip. (Remember, UP stream.) But try three miles of kayak paddling without being in condition to paddle. And we had to paddle back, because we lost the daylight about two miles out from our launch location. Tomorrow I'm going to be seriously immobile, methinks....

Here's one of the alligators who greeted us. When Jackie was distracted, I poked one with my paddle and was rewarded with a spray of "slough" junk, all over me, over the the kayak and Sparky as the 'gator took off, flipping his tail. Sure stunk. He was formidable, but I just had to go "poke". (I've done the same in my past with a skunk. Some people never learn.)
Today I painted two 6 x 8 skies, one sunset and one backlit for the Floridian workshop new recruits. I'll share them with you tomorrow, (if I can lift my arms).

What a great day, which just goes to show you that any life of excitement is just a few short decisions away! Now off to a much-deserved glass of wine and sleep.

You can see my entire blog HERE.
My workshop schedule for 2010 is HERE.
Color System information can be found HERE.
If you need to email me directly, please click here.

Mar 24 - Jury Duty and the Next Stage

Covering the canvas as I always do, this 12 x 9 painting progresses into the misty light of the overcast day quite easily. I stay completely in the Cool Box, using trios of colors to keep the mixes harmonious. Most of the distant areas behind the bridge are done with mixes that have white in them. White, being the coldest color on our palettes, is used in distance to give the ethereal feeling of misty light. White is also used, to a lesser degree, in the nearby areas. My contrast of values decreases as distance increases, and in misty light, the values get closer together more quickly!

Where does the time go? I've been doing much Spring cleaning of my studio, offing old work and work that doesn't represent my legacy, and "relocating" books from my art library to new owners through Amazon.com. I'm also just enjoying this gorgeous spring weather here in California with gardens needing planting.

The workshop in Florida has been moved right into Ocala, so if you are in that area and want to attend this Color Boot Camp, please contact Kathie Camara ASAP (Link takes you to an email message)! The new location puts us in an urban area, and boot campers can come in daily instead of staying at the Carriage Park. It makes the workshop more affordable, as well.

Georgia is almost full, and it is going to be FANTASTIC as well!

I'm sitting in jury duty today....at least they have wifi!

You can see my entire blog HERE.
My workshop schedule for 2010 is HERE.
Color System information can be found HERE.
If you need to email me directly, please click here.

May 17 - Home and Off to Paint Again

The Florida and Georgia workshops are history now, and I'm full of memories and have many images to share with you! I don't have images of my own work to share, since those paintings are either out of my hands or on their way home in shipping boxes. But I'm honored to share the work of one of the students, Jackie, who has said that knowing the Color System was the last key she needed to make her work reach that higher level. This is her 12 x 16 oil for her misty painting, and isn't it lovely? She already has a foundation of drawing, composition and a great "feel" for depicting the Florida landscape, so adding the time of day to her work is like the flowers on the icing on the decorated cake!

And here's the entire workshop on the front porch of one of our lodgings, on our last day, sharing the final images we were working on--backlit, and sunset skies. Represented are oils, acrylics and watercolors. Nobody had to say "cheese" to this group, and they all survived Color Boot Camp! I will miss them, and the fun we had. Some new terms they added to the CBCs are "Friggin' Green" and "Wine O'Clock". They want me to come back next year.This afternoon I'm painting on location at the UCR Botanic Gardens for their "Primavera in the Gardens" event. I hope to post the newest images later this week.

You can see my entire blog HERE.
My workshop schedule for 2009 is HERE--spaces ONLY in the Maine CBC.
Color System information can be found HERE.
If you need to email me directly, please click here.