Pastels at the Peninsula School of Art

“Cana Island”, a favorite painting completed on the last day of the pastel workshop. I finally made it to the Peninsula school in Door County, Wisconsin. I attended a pastel workshop with Colette Odya-Smith last week. It lasted four days and I am still absorbing so much of what I learned. I wrote an article…

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New Mexico Landscape Inspiration

I was in Albuquerque, Santa Fe, Cerrillos, Taos, and Placitas last week. I had only been to New Mexico once before but knew I was already in love with the landscape, the mountains, and the light. Watching the sunset each night was hypnotizing. Seeing the sky colors change from blue and white to warm shades…

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A Quiet Place

I am still recovering from Covid 19, it’s been three weeks. Initially it was not so terrible, after two days of a low fever I thought the worst was behind me. About a week after testing positive one of my ears became clogged, and I was experiencing some hearing loss. My primary care physician reassured…

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Flowers in the Air…

… and Art Festival Season is only a few months away! The light at the end of the COVID tunnel, winter’s end and brighter days have inspired me to paint warmer landscapes. I have spent most of the year better learning soft pastels and it finally feels like my paintings are maturing. I continue to…

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Sunrise & Sunset

I have always been drawn toward the colors in the sky, the glow just as the sun is rising or about to set. The yellow- orange- pink- purple- blue- combinations are breathtaking and limitless. I try to re-create a feeling in my paintings rather than what I actually see. There is room for individual interpretation…

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Finding A Way

A world-wide virus that just doesn’t want to go away, making a resurgence right now, has changed the world forever. I have trouble watching the news, although there are no surprises, it’s just hard to hear about the never ending death and sadness. One of my coping mechanisms is to have a creative outlet and…

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Knowing Place

I have been working with soft pastels lately, and revisiting a favorite subject… wildflowers in nature. This new series of paintings is inspired by summer visits to Baroda, Michigan. I first created a small mixed media painting using photo transfer techniques, encaustic medium, and oil pastels. I focused on dimension and textures plus I became…

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Still Life & Pastel

I love when I learn about working with art mediums in new ways! Although I had a formal art history education, my exposure to making studio art was minimal.  As an adult, I have been able to seek out and attend classes and workshops hosted by various respected professionals. I am currently attending weekly pastel…

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Downtime and the New Year

2019 is coming to an end and I can not believe how quickly the time is passing! I survived my first participation in the One of a Kind Holiday Show and with much success will look forward to returning next December. The attendance was incredible, I loved that the show was four days long, and…

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Survival…

Survival of the fittest! It is always a physical and mental challenge when I participate in summer outdoor festivals, from the packing and loading of work to exhibit, the loading of tent and panels required in order to hang and display work, to the unpacking and setup at the actual festival, and then the re-packing…

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