Workshop Photos on my iPad

I know that ALL of you blog readers have taken many workshops (me too) and that many of you have GIVEN workshops (me too).

But once in a while there just seems to be one that initiates that amazing kind of electricity in anticipation that you can't quite define.

So it is that I anticipate a week long workshop with John Lovett (Australian watercolorist) beginning a week from today.

If you are a reader of International Artist Magazine, he writes columns in that magazine regularly, has made many DVDs and leads international workshops all over the world. Now he is coming to Lac du Flambeau, WI????? I know. I am amazed too. 15 minutes away from my tiny little cabin practically hidden in the woods. If you google Dillman's Resort you will find out more about where this magical spot is. And if you click on workshops you can find John's class description. (You will also find a plethora of very fine artists teaching there!)

I am sorry that I have only really a week to enjoy the anticipation and get ready. As you can tell from previous blogs, part of the week is taken up with just finding where my supplies have gone to and dusting off the studio and finding the supply list...yadda yadda yadda.

Thus the first photo of the initial supplies... finding just the right watercolors, gouache, gesso, pens, inks, pastel pencils, watercolor pencils, rice papers, and acrylics along with just the right brushes (almost all flats). I tore 3 sheets of Arches 140 cold press into quarter sheets this morning. I found that for the most part...I had everything I needed. He uses some very small flats for details but I dug some up.

One problem...I couldn't find any charcoal pencils in any of my catalogs. I am sure they are somewhere, but it seemed only in sets and I am asked to bring only black and brown. Sigh. Hopefully, he'll have some for sale? If anyone knows where you can buy these separately let me know. It'll be too late for the workshop...but maybe later.

I have decided to bring my photo references to the workshop on my iPad.

I sorted those I wanted to bring on my desk top into an album.

Then I synced the two devices and downloaded the album to the iPad. Voila.

You can see what the album looks like opened up with small photos. And I enlarged one to full screen to give you the idea. It'll be much nicer than trying to print it off on my inkjet and also much easier on the pocket book in terms of printer ink. The color on the iPad is splendid.

The battery is good for 10 hours so I should be good to go.

I'll let you know how that works out!!

I may do a few sketches from the iPad this week as our weather forecast is totally gloomy for the entire week!!!

Making the Studio Ready for the summer

I don't know about you...but when I want to "work" the space needs to be somewhat organized and inviting. My studio is a 1/4 chunk of a nice garage here in northern Wisconsin. Last year I even got a real door that I can shut. My hubby put in a nice picture window for me a few years back so that I have some good natural light facing toward our lake.

The studio has been getting a little grungier the last few years and it surely does need more finish work, but I need to get going now...have a class with John Lovett coming up June 6 and my en plein air group starts up this Thursday. So today was unpack, clean, vacuum and organize day. It's not done..but I made a real dent.

I just got here from FL last Thursday and I do bring my paints back and forth because the cabin is unheated here (not good for paints) and because I want my brushes, palettes and some collage materials like some stencils and stamps and papers. Any paintings you see, however, were left here. I don't have room to carry paintings back and forth. I decided to hang more of them this year as it seems that otherwise they get knocked around and it's not good for the frames or the paintings to be "stacked". Our cabin itself has very little wall space for hanging paintings...so the studio has to make do for this purpose.

Weather has "moderated" somewhat here in the northern part of WI so that we are now averaging 65 most days. We might get into the 70s tomorrow although it looks like rain again! It would be fun to see where you all paint too.

Transparent Watercolor Society of America

One delightful interlude on my trip from FL to WI this spring was a stop in Kenosha, WI to see this exhibit. It was amazing! The boat watercolor painting was at least a full sheet...maybe slightly larger. It was by Steve Rogers of FL and is called "Naoussa Light".

The second is by Catherine Hearing of Minnesota. Slightly smaller. It is called "New Vintage".

It was a large exhibit and I'll show a few more later. The joy of the transparency is, of course, the GLOW. These two demonstrate this dramatically.

Some paintings from past exhibits are online...just google TWSA.

Remember me?

We are finally back to our cabin in the north woods of WI...following an extended trip of sight seeing and visiting friends and family. Bet you thought I'd disappeared in a tornado. But that is not funny, is it. We drove through Alabama about 10 days after their tornados went through and we were absolutely stunned with sadness. And now Joplin, MO too.

Photos in this blog entry are from Callaway Gardens, GA on May 9 and 10. We enjoyed two days there. This little log cabin caught my eye one day...it was a steamy 97 degrees that day and I was so glad I'd brought a folding chair! I haven't gotten back to put in the printing on the cabin yet. And I need to throw a few shadows into the foreground. I took a TON of photos for later.

I'll try to get more of the travel sketches online soon.

I am trying to adjust to dial up again in the boon docks up here.

It is almost painful!

What a whiner!

One Quick Sketch Before We GO

In the sunshine today it was 100 degrees in central FL. But the humidity was not too high and we had a lovely breeze. I think in the shade it might have been 90. It was just beautiful actually.

You'll see Greg and I enjoying one last swing in our back yard and I took out my sketch book and did a little sketch of our neighbor's porch/yard next door. They have already left for Michigan! I left a little vignette room off to the right so I can write some things about our last day.

I feel like we are the last snow birds to leave Hawthorne Park! But we probably are not. The really awful midwest weather has not enticed us to leave sooner.

We are about ready to pack the car now (BIG DEAL) and then we may go down and have one more swim in the pool and cool off. Hope to be back on the blog by Memorial Day Weekend. Hope everyone had a good Mother's Day!

Blogging on the run?

With the arrival of my new iPad2 I began yet another learning curve! Yikes. I read my first book on it (Kindle App) and that was quite fun. I am not giving up on books, but I can see how easy it is, especially when in transit to have your books on this device!!! I am downloading a rental movie to watch as we go along.

Another thing I thought might be fun would be to be able to blog along as I travel. How hard could that be? Hmmm. Turns out it is not quite the cinch I thought. You have to have a blogging app!

I've been reviewing the blog apps and so far "Blogsy" seems to be the best choice. Although at this point in time, adding photos to the blog through this app is not a breeze.

Are there any other "Bloggers" out there that are using an iPad? It might be fun to hear about which app you are using. I think I can write on my blog without using an app but I cannot put any graphics or photos on without an app to do that.

We are leaving on Monday. We'll stop for a few days at Calloway Gardens, GA before heading toward WI. I missed the azaleas unfortunately. But hopefully I'll find other things in bloom.

Then we'll head toward the Natchez Trace and head up toward Nashville. Then to Paducah, KY and then s.e. WI for a 10 days to visit the kids and old friends.

A Picture of me....

Sometimes it is better to be humbled by the vision someone else has of you. That is sort of the way I felt when I got this portrait done of me (by my 4 year old grandson, Mike).

His mother explains that those are my "fingers" hanging off my arms. I think having that many would be a huge help in art, don't you?

The round circle I interpret as a belly button.

And the choice of hair color really does not have much to do with me (I hope). At least it's not gray!

Having taught early childhood education for over 30 years...I am delighted to see this "very developmentally appropriate" rendition of granny. Arms always come right out of the head first. The next bench mark will probably the body and then the arms coming from the body.

The the fingers ARE fascinating, aren't they?

I am preparing now to leave Florida in a few days. These "transition" periods are very strange for me when I am not really in one place or in the other yet. A science fiction sort of thing...time warp.