Abstract Oil Painting: What a Thrill!

I'm home from four days of bliss. I just took my first formal oil painting class and it was the perfect class for me. It was with Allen Cox at the Sitka Center for Art and Ecology on the Oregon coast. It was perfect because Allen is so easy-going, I love his art, and he is an excellent teacher, giving each student one-on-one personal attention. There were only eight of us in the class (an unexpected treat), so lots of opportunities for personal attention. Here I am with the Fantastic Mr. Cox.

Enough chitter chatter. I know you just want to see photos, so here's my week in a semi-organized way.

That was a nice little general look at the class. Now for some progression photos. We were each asked to bring three panels, 16 x 20. Here is substrate No. 1.

My reincarnated several times, atmospheric, unfinished piece.

And then the crosses.

Because I only brought three canvases to work on, I was looking around for more, but being in the woods and without a car, my options were pretty limited. So I raided the wood pile from the cabin where I was staying. I primed the boards, tossed on a little plaster to see how it interacted with the oil and wax concoction, and BOOM! Eight little pieces of art emerged over the course of four days. I call this series FROM THE WOOD PILE

As I left Sitka yesterday, I was blessed to see this doe with her two fawns. An appropriate ending to a great week.

My week's work:

Art Generosity: Little Art Cards

I have the best, most generous friends I ever could have hoped for. During the month of June and into July, we lived on board our boat, Rapture, at the Portland Waterfront. While I was there, I kept a daily journal on oversized, repurposed flash cards (more on this journal at a later date). As I was preparing the cards for art use, I hit upon the idea that it would be fun to prepare a smaller deck so that when my arty friends came to visit and for parties, they could create a card and leave it as a contribution for my art journal. Everyone jumped in with both feet, both hands, and sometimes with verbal exclamations of excitement! I prepared the cards (a deck of Old Bachelor playing cards) by sanding them and applying gesso -- some plain and some with added texture so they would be all ready in advance.

I had so many friends visit during the month, that's it's a bit of a whirlwind. I've sorted my photos and divided the card-making by groups. Sorta. Here's the first event: Portland artists (and one interloper from out of the country).

The next art group to board was the Portland Art Collective. You know they were excited about making art and eating good food!

My Salem Art Group came and played for an entire day! Art cards were just one of our many activities.

A lazy Saturday found Howard and Kim making art cards (while I fixed dinner).

The following Saturday we got together with our long time friends, Dave and Vicki, who enthusiastically created cards.

There may have even been a grandchild or two creating art cards . . . .

And finally, I'm home and had a chance to lay them all out and admire up close. Sigh. I love them all.