Paintings In Shows



Evening Cypress - Pastel, 12"x9"

 Some wonderful news has come my way! I received an e-mail notifying me of a painting accepted into the International Association of Pastel Societies (IAPS) Web Show. There was a panel of three jurors: Lorenzo Chavez, Margaret Evans, and Bill Hosner. I was also told there had been over 850 images for them to choose from -- and only 72 paintings were chosen. So . . . it is a great honor to have been chosen to be in the on-line show. The IAPS organization is a fantastic one and helps so many of our local or regional pastel societies with ideas, material, and a wonderful convention once every two years.

The painting is pastel, of course, and it is named "Evening Cypress." I painted in the studio from a photo I took at Lake Seminole at the Florida / Georgia border. The light was magnificent as it was going down that evening. Everything was tinged with the most fantastic oranges and pinks.

. . . And, my husband just sent me an e-mail a couple of days ago -- since I am still in Sedona AZ on a trip. He said they called from the Pastel Society of North Florida to notify me a painting I had accepted into their show had won an "Exceptional Merit Award!" The painting is "St. George Windswept" and it is a painting from the Florida island of St. George.



St. George Windswept - Pastel, 9"x12"

 This painting -- I think is a 9x12 but could be 11x14. I have not looked back at my information to be sure -- but I don't think I even have this one on my web site to look at. My inventory book is back home and I am in Sedona! I have a friend that has already spoken to buy this painting if it does not sell at the show in Florida.

Good things are happening! And, I will be in the January/February issue of the Pastel Journal in an article about regional painters! So, be sure to pick up a copy and read it. There will be two of my paintings of "creeks" in the article.

Okay, now I need to finish the next post about my trip I am on right now. Later!

More From Ann Templeton and Ghost Ranch Workshop

We had such a wonderful time at Ann Templeton’s workshop at Ghost Ranch in New Mexico. Here are a few more of my paintings from the workshop. Now, be sure to remember I am posting them with no editing to the paintings. These are exactly as I did them in the workshop --- the bad ones, the okay ones, and even one or two that I really like.



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Day Two - Third Painting, Oil
At the Casitas




Day Three - Chama River, Oil





Day Three - Chama River, Oil



 The Chama River day of painting, I produced three paintings, but I am only showing you two of them. The first one is kind of light and would not show up very well in the blog. It is a similar scene to the one above, but a little "tighter" in the style that is more of what I would have done before the Templeton workshop. Again, the Chama River is something that Georgia O'Keefe painted in many ways -- of course, very abstract most of the time.

 

Day Four - Painting No. One, Pastel
At Log Cabin on Ghost Ranch


These two paintings are from day four, and at the "Log Cabin" which is on the road as you are driving into Ghost Ranch. I decided to do pastel paintings on this day. I was far away from Ann and when I finished the first one, I trapsed over to the cabin where she was in the shade to get her review of it. She looked up at me and smiled and said "This is beautiful. I would not change a thing."

I also found out at that moment, Irby Brown had just stopped by and spoken to Ann. He was not introduced to anyone since he and a friend were in a hurry. I was devastated because he is one of my all-time favorite painters. We had just looked at his work in Santa Fe at a gallery, and if I had the money, I would have come out of that gallery with one of his paintings! Oh well, Ann said she would try to introduce me to him sometime in the future. Sounded good to me.

Day Four - Painting No. Two, Pastel
At Log Cabin on Ghost Ranch

 


Day Five - Last Day, Painting No. One, Oil

The next painting was done on the last day and at a place they call "High Ropes". This is a suspended playground area of ropes you can climb, swing from one to another, etc. The view was beautiful in any direction we looked. By the time we set up, it was getting later in the morning, and I was not able to finish this one before we were called to lunch. We had a critique session after lunch. By then another class had invaded the "High Ropes" and we could not return there. So, unfinished it stays.

I painted two 5"x7" paintings from the front of our room in the "Tumbleweed" group of rooms. The intent was to stay simple, and I think I did manage to do so somewhat.

Day Five - Oil, 5"x7"
Last Day, Painting No. Two

Day Five - Oil, 7"x5"
Last Day, Painting No. Three

Ann was so good with all the students. She seemed to recognize exactly what each student needed. She was very complementary to me, which put me on the “hot seat” with the other students. Her words were on the first evening when we met, “Marsha is a wonderful and talented artist.” Okay, now, how was she going to help me be even a better artist? Her most encouraging words were something similar to, “learn to simplify, it is easy! When you finally can do that it will feel easy.” So, I am still struggling a little with the simplification. And . . . this is also what I tell my students! So, how am I not able to do it myself? Any ideas?

Here are a few digital photos from Ghost Ranch. Hope you enjoy the view of what we were seeing while staying there.



One of our views at Ghost Ranch



Ann Templeton and her first demo





View of some of the buildings
of Ghost Ranch



Can you believe this view?

The Trip Beginning to Ghost Ranch

We are in Sedona, having a very good time! I have told several and I have posted that I would be doing a little 5”x7” painting each day and posting it here on the blog. It has been difficult to do that. We get up and start talking about art, breakfast gets going, dressing and discussion about whether we will paint, visit galleries, buy groceries, etc.  Here is a shot on our drive to the home we rented! Absolutely beautiful!

The first day here we were so tired, so Wanda Crane, Denise Champion and I decided we would use that day as a rest day and gathering day – groceries and stuff for the house. We also had to visit the rental agency for a couple more keys. Candy Day would arrive that afternoon about 3:30 and we would pick her up in town. But, before going to town, we took a wonderful walk, just up from our house. We followed one of the trails that takes you to a fantastic view of Cathedral Rock – I think it might be called the “Landing Pad” but I am not positive. It is quite a massive rock, mostly flat on top and overlooks Crescent Moon Park. Candy arrived, and by then we were telling her about our adventures at Ghost Ranch and Canyon de Chelly.

I started looking for the cable hook-up and finally found it upstairs in the loft, but it is in one of the artist’s bedroom! But there was no cord to hook to the laptop. We were told to just buy one and they would reimburse me. By then it was too late to get going. And, we have to take turns plugging in and being on the internet.



View from our room at Ghost Ranch!




Canyon de Chelly



I have been uploading my photographs – many, many photographs – from the camera and that takes some time. No telling how many photos of our places visited I will end up with. And, I have just started talking photographs of the paintings I did at the Ann Templeton workshop, the day we painted at Canyon de Chelly, and now one day of painting here in Sedona.

I will show you a few of the workshop paintings – now remember when an artist takes a workshop, we do some of our worst work. If you don’t, then you are not stepping outside your comfort zone and trying new ideas. Ann’s idea is (as many good teachers) to simplify the landscape into larger masses and then start refining. I have usually done this, but when in this new landscape – red rocks, cliffs, sage, chamisa (and not sure if I spelled this correctly either) and such – it becomes a little more difficult. I wanted to put many of the new things I was seeing into my paintings. I made them quite busy and many times I was tricked into thinking the darks were so much darker than reality. There were many new things to ponder while trying to battle the sun, the dryness, and the winds. So, I will post the first few in the order they were done.



First Morning Painting in Ann's Workshop

 This painting is an oil and I think it is 16"x20" -- early morning and the light was just beginning to come over the top of the butte.

The painting below is one I did on the first day also, but after lunch and looking out the other direction, but my easel was in the same spot. The mountain in the distance is the one Georgia O'Keefe painted many times -- "Pedernal."

 

Oil Painting number 2 - afternoon light at Ghost Ranch



Day Two - First Painting in the morning - Oil, 11"x14"



Day Two, Afternoon Painting - Oil, 9"x12"


These two paintings are the second day and were just up a canyon at what they called the "Casitas" and I loved the arroyo. Ann Templeton loved that I wanted to paint this, and said "You have given me a new inspiration to want to paint the arroyo." I thought the comment was exceptionally nice.

Okay, until next post! I'll try to get on in the mornings, since it seems we have discussions here at evening time and then we are tired and retire to bed early. Later!

The Trip West 2010 Beginning

Hello from Santa Fe! . . . we are about four days into our trip out West! Yahoo!!! And, I am sorry I have not posted anything, but I have not painted yet. It has been three days of driving, looking for accomodations, eating dinner and then resting for the next day of driving.

Wanda Crane is my partner in this first part of the adventure (and for the most of the rest of it)! After the four days of travel, we will hook up for the first week with Denise Champion from Bellingham, Washington. When we do arrive at our final destination of Sedona, AZ, Candy Day and Ginny Dauth will fly in to join us for a month of painting in Sedona! The Sedona Plein Air Festival will happen while we are there, so we will enjoy watching some of the best artists in the country paint the local scenery in and around Sedona. 

Our first stop along the way was for a night in Little Rock, Arkansas. We had decided to make what we thought would be the longest drive that first day. Each of the other days, the plan was to have about a 5 ½ hour drive so we could stop anywhere we pleased along the way.



Little Rock, Arkansas -- River Market Area



We did stop along I-40 at Checotah, OK on the second day of driving because we saw billboards on the side of the highway advertising it as the home of Carrie Underwood and then one about an antique mall. So, being lunch time-ish, we decided to take a break. It was a cute little western country town and we enjoyed shopping at a couple of little antique stores, eating a hamburger and fries at a diner and talking to the locals about Carrie! Wanda and I both love her music and songs, so it was a treat. I did take a picture of the downtown, though it is not really a good shot, but will post it here.



Oklahoma City, Oklahoma - River Walk



We drove on to Oklahoma City and spent the night. We walked along their river walk and had a snack at one of the local eateries before calling it a night for the drive the next morning to Tucumcari, NM. Well . . . as we were approaching the town, we decided it was only another 2 ½ hours to Santa Fe, which was our next stop. My plan had been the 5 ½ hour drive to Tucumcari and spend the night with a short drive the next morning to Santa Fe. That would give us most of the day to visit Santa Fe – Wanda has never been there! We stopped, had lunch in Tucumcari and then drove on and arrived Friday night in Santa Fe and hooked up with one of my best friends and our fellow artist, Denise.

We walked around Santa Fe, looking in gallery windows, cute little shops, and then had a very nice dinner and called it a night. On Saturday morning the plan is to go to the Palace of the Governors to see if there is any Indian jewelry or trinket we wish to purchase from one of our Native Americans! I have done this twice before on trips and am always very pleased with my purchase. They have to be a “native” to be able to sell here under the awning of the Palace. They have a lottery for the spots under the awning and you won’t always find the same people there.



Palace of the Governors

After that we will go into several galleries to fill up our minds with some fabulous paintings and then on to an Indian swap meet. Denise will travel on to Ghost Ranch this afternoon, while Wanda and I will have one more night and morning here in Santa Fe before we continue our trip up to Ghost Ranch. So, Wanda and I decided to visit the Georgia O'Keefe Museum! Here I am in front of the banner at the Museum.



Georgia O'Keefe Banner and Me



We will be there for the next week taking a workshop from Ann Templeton – a plein air workshop – and we will not have internet access. Ghost Ranch is where Georgia O’Keefe painted quite often – a very stark landscape – so we shall see what Marsha Savage can come away with in this very different landscape. I will have to post those paintings the following week because of no internet access while there.



When we leave Ghost Ranch, we will travel to Canyon de Chelly for two nights and the opportunity to take a guided trip into the Canyon to paint. This is an Indian reservation and an must see for any artist! Hopefully the morning we leave the weather will permit us to paint from the rim of the Canyon also. Then on to Sedona for the next month!

So, with no internet at Ghost Ranch, the posts will not come again until about Monday or Tuesday of the following week.





Demo at High Country on Saturday 4th September

Be sure to join us on Labor Day Weekend, on Saturday, Sept. 4th, for me to demonstrate my painting techniques and talk to you about art!

I have so much fun when I demo at the gallery -- High Country Art and Antique Gallery -- in Blue Ridge, GA. They are located on East Main Stree in downtown and are the best gallery in town! Many different styles of artwork and great stuff to buy. Prices can fit any budget too! Cheryl and Mark Engledow are wonderful to work with and like making friends and new customers.

Here is one photo of a wall with my paintings on it. Sorry for the glare on the oil painting! Remember that when taking photos inside, the lighting will have an effect on how the photos of paintings look. This was a nighttime event held at the gallery and loads of fun was had that night also. When you visit the gallery, be sure to sign their guest book with an e-mail so they can let you know about important events at the gallery ---- like me demonstrating!!! But, seriously, do it so you can be informed about gallery walks, shows, etc.

Last time I demonstrated -- only about two weeks ago -- I sold two paintings while I was there, and talked to many people and demonstrated my pastel painting techniques. I even had a visit from a schoolmate that I had not seen in many, many years! So . . . come visit Blue Ridge and High Country Art Gallery on Saturday, Sept. 4! And, let us know you saw it here on my blog.

New style of classes coming soon!

Here is the plan in its enfancy!

This is a shot from one of my Smyrna Classes last year or so.

I decided last fall that December of 2009 would be the end of my weekly classes in pastel -- even though I had backed them down to every other week. I needed a break and wanted to think about my own art for more time than I was getting! I did plan some mini-workshops here in Woodstock -- on a Saturday so more people could have an opportunity to come. We studied composition, value and temperature. I have missed my teaching and have been thinking of something I want to do a little different than I have in the past.

Now . . . we are moving back to Smyrna -- this is where my husband and I grew up -- and where parents, siblings, children and grandchildren are living and it will be so much easier to see them.

I did enjoy the mentoring mini-workshops. Many students told me they were learning more than they had in other classes. That my way of teaching these was exactly what they had been looking for! So . . . here is a little of what I am thinking and planning. It is not set in stone yet -- just ideas that are still in the formative stages.

I plan to put out a calendar by e-mail to my previous students, and potential students that have asked to be on my mailing list. It will cover several weeks and most likely a couple of months. You must e-mail me or call and let me know you are interested in these sessions. That is the only way you will receive my address. This is more of a security type of thing for me. If you don't know me, then you need to establish some type of contact with me so I can get to know something about you and where you are in your art.



The calendar will tell you what days I plan to be in the studio and that I will have it open to students wishing to come paint with me! There will be a small charge for the amount of time you are there. I am thinking maybe 10:00 AM to 1:00 PM and most weeks, I will be available on two different days of each week. I am calling this an "open mentoring session class". At this time I am thinking the charge will be $20. And, you can paint in the medium of your choice. My thinking is this is not a session for beginners. You must have some experience in your medium, as this is more about advancing to the next level of your art.

You don't have to give me a plan as to what days you are coming. You can call me, e-mail, or just show up. Of course, letting me know would be good, but I will be there and if you can come at the last minute, you can do so. If I must change for some reason, there will be a posting on my blog. Students can check the blog before leaving to come and will know something has happened for me to cancel that day. I don't foresee that happening, but there must be a way to notify those students that haven't called or e-mailed. You just never know when there is an emergency that I can't foresee!

The sessions might be just painting on something of your choice, or on something specific. It might be divided between discussions on some aspect of painting that is needed, like the mini-workshops I had earlier this year. It could be critique of work, or looking at past artists and discussion about their life, inspirations, etc. Weather permitting we might plein air! You can let me know what you need!

So, if you are interested, please e-mail me or call and let me know your thoughts. Again, it won't happen until at least after I return from my six-week trip out West (November 15 I'll be home), and most likely not until after Jan. 1, 2011.

Here is a shot from a workshop I gave in Blue Ridge, GA.

And one more from my Smyrna classes.

Hope to hear from you!

The Great Chattahoochee Paint Out

This will be a long blog post. There is so much to show you and also to tell!

Last Thursday and Friday, I was involved in a paint out sponsored by the City of Roswell, GA and the Chattahoochee National Park Service. We applied about a month or more ago, and were then sent instructions about where we could paint officially. There were five different places in and around Roswell GA along the Chattahoochee River and its feeder creeks, the Chattahoochee National Park and Roswell City Parks.

I drove over to find the headquarters which was in the beautiful Chattahoochee River National Recreation Area at Island Ford. I'm glad I did, because I would have been in trouble trying to find a place to paint if I waited until the morning I was to paint. The gave us three days, Wednesday, Thursday and Friday to paint from 8:00 AM until 8:00 PM each day. On Saturday morning from 9:00  - 10:30 AM we could turn in two of our pieces to be judged for the competition and the reception to be held that evening.

Here are some photos of locations we could paint.

View from Chattahoochee River National
Recreation Area at Island Ford

Vickery Creek Falls at the Roswell Mill

Covered Bridge at Roswell Mill / Vickery Creek

Willeo Park

Now what did I do?

So the first morning I was able to attend was Thursday and I went to the Willeo Road Park. It was 8:00 AM when I arrived and there was only one place left to park -- everyone got there before I did! Darn! But, guess what the place I wanted to paint was in the sun and no one wanted it. Here is a shot of my easel with the first painting of the day and competition. The mist was still there when I started but was leaving fast.

I painted one, then a second painting and then a third one before I decided the water dripping off my face was driving me crazy. I packed it up and headed for the bridge on Riverside Drive underneath I-400. I did not see anything I wanted to paint, so I headed to Island Ford so the sun would be behind me and I would be shaded along the river bank. But, when I got there and trekked down the hill with all my supplies, I decided I did not want to paint there. I carried it all back up, put in car and headed over to the Roswell Mill. Now, I had it in a backpack, and so it was heavy, but not really too bad . . . just dang hot!

Here are the three paintings I did that morning - they are all pastels. The painting I did in the afternoon did not get finished before the long shadows got me and the hot day too! I thought I would return the next day to finish it.

Painting No. 1:  "Willeo Park Misty", 16" x 20"

Painting No. 2:  "River Entrance", 14" x 11"

Painting No. 3:  "River Sentinels", 12" x 9"

I did go back on Friday to Willeo Park and painted the same scene I did the first day, but in oil. It is not as successful, but worth keeping for reference for a larger work!

Day 2:  Vickery Creek Falls, 12" x 9"

Now I did go back to the Roswell Mill Park and hope to finish the painting I started the afternoon of the first day . . . but there had been rain somewhere upstream and Vickery Creek was much higher and muddy. It covered the rock I had been standing on to paint! So . . . I scouted out another location and decided to paint the falls.

Here is the painting from the Vickery Creek Falls. Oh, I forgot to show you I had a visitor and he watched me for about an hour -- a vulture (and then a friend of his also flew in to watch). I was a little nervous, but they kept their distance. Here is a photo:

Now, I submitted two of these paintings to the competition: Willeo Park Misty and River Entrance. I decided these were the two best of the four pastel paintings. I did not consider entering the oil since I really didn't feel like it was a finished painting worthy of framing. You know, they don't all turn out, not even half of them normally. So, I had to have them there on Saturday morning and then we went to the reception that evening at 7:30.

When we arrived, I was greeted by a friend who said "Congratulations"! I was surprised, but thought I had won an award. She immediately pointed in the direction of the painting across the room and you could see it above the heads of people . . . and it had this big bright blue ribbon! I had won Best in Show / First Place! Yahoo!!

The painting is shown here with me standing by it, but there is a reflection from the lights in it. But you can see it above -- Willeo Park Misty! I felt I had done a good job, and also that I left the painting before I did way too much to it. I left some of the scene for the viewer to fill in -- let the viewer's brain have an active part in looking at the painting, filling in some of the detail I left out.

So, though I was dreadfully hot and dripping, I managed to produce four paintings worthy of framing and one of them won Best in Show. And, my birthday was the next day -- what better way to start celebrating that. And there was prize money to boot! What more could I ask for -- beautiful places to paint, friends to paint with, four worthy pieces, and a ribbon!