Recap of the Fabulous Sedona Trip!

Last year a friend and I discussed entering the Sedona Plein Air Festival which is held the end of October. Then we decided it would be great to spend a month in Sedona ... rent a house for the month .... and do loads of painting. We were already planning to be at Ghost Ranch in Abiquiu, New Mexico for a week long plein air workshop with Ann Templeton at the first of October. So .... no brainer, right?

Ghost Ranch Canyon -- Plein Air Oil, 11" x 14"
at Windrush Gallery, Sedona AZ

I started thinking about what artist friends would be most interested in this type of immersion in the Western landscape .... extreme painting even! To plan a trip of this kind, thinking of the personalities involved, and the hope that all would be compatible .... well .... five women for a whole month in one house and agreeing on what to do next? Was I crazy? .... No Way! I believe that as artists, we are the most accommodating and sharing people on the planet. Fantastic .... no worries!

This past fall, Camille Day, Wanda Crane, Denise Champion, and Virginia Dauth joined me on this adventure ... making the trek to Sedona, Arizona for a month of painting and inspiration in the land of the red rocks. Although we hoped to be inspired artistically, we all experienced far more spiritually than ever expected.

Morning Arroyo
Plein Air Pastel - 12" x 9"

Our unique experiences included friendships formed with artists from the Southwest and the invited artists to the Sedona Arts Festival, encounters with local wildlife, excursions to the Grand Canyon and Jerome, painting a nocturn painting (night-time), the search for vortexes, and many days of "extreme painting" to round out the adventure!  “If you asked each of the artists who took this trip, all would say it was an "art-changing" if not a life-changing experience,” says Camille aka "Candy" Day.

Also, one of our group was able to secure a venue for showing the plein air paintings, and the studio ones done after our return. The ‘Sedona Five,’ as we started to call ourselves, shared paintings, journals, memorabilia, and recollections in a special show at the GAHA Gallery in Ellijay, GA, May 13 through 31. The name of the show was ... Sedona: A Journey of Art and Spirit.

de Chelly Bluff -- Oil Studio 16" x 20"

Canyon Blues (Studio Painting)
Pastel .. 9" x 12"

To make things even better, I approached a wonderful gallery in Sedona and was accepted. They have already sold three of the paintings I left with them! Their web site is www.windrushgallery.com. Be sure to visit the site, or the gallery itself if you are in Sedona. Tell John I sent you .... he is the owner!

I will be posting many of the plein air and studio paintings to my personal website as soon as I can. Be sure to take a look: www.marshasavage.com .