Browsed by
Category: art journaling

Getting Ready for CREATE, Chicago!

Getting Ready for CREATE, Chicago!

I love collecting artistic tools to put in the goody bags that I give to my students.  I love meeting new artistic friends and catching up with old ones.  I love sharing what I have learned over the years about how to paint beautiful, colorful, glowing paintings and filling art journals with watercolor paintings and mixed media.  I love CREATE!

My little suitcase of supplies
Better clean up my palette
Showing off a colorful background ready for journaling

Dripping with color

Busy creating
Looking forward to catching up with Jenn Mason and Sue Pelletier
Stuffing goody bags

A Windy Day to Paint in Roussillon

A Windy Day to Paint in Roussillon

The famous Mistral winds of Provence has followed us to the east as we explore and paint plein air in the little town of Roussillon.  Roussillon is known for its colorful buildings of reds, ocres, and yellows mined from the nearby rocks.  It is also designated as on of France’s Plus Beaux Village de France!  The Mistral has pushed away all the rain and the clouds so that we have a beautiful, sparkling day to paint, if you can stand the gusty wind.  Several of us walk to the outskirts of town to paint the village while others paint in the cute, colorful streets of the village.

I learn that the bell tower of a lot of the hilltop villages are open to allow the mistral to pass through.

 

Colorful red buildings are found throughout the town.

 

We explore.

 

Great view of the town

 

Barbara and Liz find a sunny spot to paint.

 

JoAnn shows her beautiful painting in progress.

 

Ice cream shops are plentiful!
I buy this little ceramic chicken made from the nearby colorful clay.
I visit my favorite store that sells pure pigment in little jars.

 

More colors of pigment.

Would you like to learn the joys of keeping a watercolor journal?  We are now taking reservations for painting in Umbria, Italy, May 10-17, 2019, Painting in Provence with Frenchescape.com

Cloth, Paper, Scissors Magazine Issues a Special Edition – PAGES

Cloth, Paper, Scissors Magazine Issues a Special Edition – PAGES

I am excited to have my article: Flip, Flaps and Fold-outs, Adding Dimension to your Art Journals, included in the special edition of Cloth Paper Scissors PAGES.  This is created especially for art journalers and book artists looking for new techniques and inspiring ideas. This 148-page first issue features projects and galleries in general bookmaking, book covers, book binding, inside page decoration, and art journaling.   


 PAGES is avalable at our local Barnes & Noble book store.  It can also be ordered online as a digital file or hard copy at the Interweave online store.  

Here is an excerpt from my article in PAGES: 
Artists are very tactile.  Inserting dimensional objects such as flaps, dividers, pockets, ribbons, or tags in our art can add an element of mystery and engage the viewer.  Index-card dividers open up to reveal photos or journaling, adding intrigue and a desire to explore beyond the flat dimension of the page.  I often include favorite lines of poetry, photos of my family, and little treasures of love inside library pockets.  Shipping and marking tags become the holders of meaningful words and little on-the-go sketches.    
Watercolor Journeys for the Traveling Artist, a new DVD

Watercolor Journeys for the Traveling Artist, a new DVD

I haven’t been able to post much lately because my computer was sent away to get a new mother board.  After many weeks it was finally declared a Lemon!  I now have a new computer and find it does work a lot better than my last computer.

Despite my recent computer problems, I have been getting ready for my trip to Loveland, CO to film my new DVD with Interweave Press.  The title will be something like, Watercolor Journeys for the Traveling Artist and I will be demonstrating some great ideas for watercolor painting while traveling.  Here is a painting I did in my watercolor journal this past May while with the group that I took to Provence, France.  We painted on a book page from a French book.

I will let you know when my DVD is available for purchase!
Playing with Color for the CREATE Retreat

Playing with Color for the CREATE Retreat

Rainbow Studies

Flip, Flaps and Fold-Outs

CREATE Mixed Media Retreat is two weeks away and I have been excitedly getting ready for my classes that I am teaching.  Even though the Flip, Flaps and Fold-Outs class is full, there are still a couple of spots left in the Rainbow Studies Class.  This class will focus on using the color wheel to create harmonious little watercolor painting studies.  If you struggle with color, this class will be of great value.  I look forward to meeting all the artists that will be at CREATE!

A Peek Inside My Provence Watercolor Journal, Flower Pots

A Peek Inside My Provence Watercolor Journal, Flower Pots

Flower pots of Provence

Here is a page from my watercolor journal that I just finished.  I had to add more darks and shadows and then finished up with some words in the spaces between my little paintings.  I consider this a study of different terra cotta pots that are found through out Provence.  While traveling and painting in your journals, consider doing a study of one item and painting it in different locations, colors and sizes. 

 What kind of paintings have you done that you would consider a study?

Watercolor Painting In the Small Villages of Provence

Watercolor Painting In the Small Villages of Provence

Even though I have left the sunny, warm days of southern France and making my way home, I am still holding on to the essence of Provence.  I already miss the rich morning coffees, the happy faces of the students in the workshop, the lyrical “Bonjours”, the scent of lavender in the air and the friendly smiles of all we meet.  Our last couple of days of the workshop were spent in some very off-the-beaten tourist paths and quiet painting sites.
 
This morning, instead of my brisk walk to St. Remy de Provence for a fresh baguette, I drove down a six lane highway in search of a good cup of coffee.  I am currently in Poughkeepsie, New York for a very special event.  My oldest daughter is graduating from Vassar College tomorrow and I have joined my family here to celebrate this joyous occasion.  It is always bittersweet to leave France!

Having fun exporing mixed media journaling

Painting in the quite hilltop village of Egalieres

Looking towards Les Alpilles

A friendly guy takes our photo and cleverly gets in it too

The cute Roman chapel, St. Sixte, built in the 12th Century

Very cozy French restaurant, La Pitchoune

Cheese!

Painting in a vineyard with an beautiful backdrop
The Creative Process, A Peak inside my Empty Watercolor Journal

The Creative Process, A Peak inside my Empty Watercolor Journal

Do you enjoy the anticipation of an upcoming vacation or trip?  Do you practice packing your suitcase with your favorite clothes?  To me the journey begins way before walking out the door, suitcase in hand.  I love preparing my art supplies for my travels.  Planning for my upcoming trip, Painting Poppies in Provence, France, I decided to take two watercolor journals.  (Two spots just opened up on this trip to Provence, so let me know if you want to join us!) One is a 14 x 10 Arches Watercolor Book with 140 pound Arches paper.  The other smaller one is a Strathmore 400 Field Watercolor Sketchbook.  For years I have had a love/hate relationship with the Strathmore field book.  Every other piece of (crappy) watercolor page alternates with a piece of drawing paper.  This drawing paper is where my mixed-media imagination soars and I have probably filled at least 10 of these journals with art from my travels.

Pages in my journal prepared for the trip

First page in my new journal with inspiring quote.

Well, this year I decided to quit complaining about the (crappy) watercolor paper and tore my Strathmore Sketchbook apart.  I kept the metal coil and the black hard covers.  I  filled it with Arches 140 paper alternating with Strathmore 400 series drawing paper.  I prepared the drawing papers with colorful backgrounds and finished the first page with an inspiring quote for my upcoming trip: “To Paint…. to travel…. the combine the two is to celebrate life”  (Jack Brouwer). 

The cover of my new “Strathmore” journal now filled with Arches watercolor paper!

Stay tuned for my upcoming article in Cloth, Paper, Scissors magazine’s special edition, PAGES, on how to prepare these your jouranl pages with mixed-media and watercolor.
How do you prepare for your upcoming journeys?  I would love to hear what special techniques and ideas you have!

Painting the Plants of Greece: Monkshood

Painting the Plants of Greece: Monkshood

Monkshood
Part of what I love about watercolor journaling is that it engages all my senses.  In order to paint a flower, like the Monkshood, I use my sight to tell me colors, shapes and value, but I am also experiencing the sounds and feeling the warm breeze along  the hillside. I also love that it takes me to new, as well as familiar, places.  I look for different ways to represent my life journey.  It a wonderful way to slow down and savor the moment.  I look forward to sharing this experience with you in Greece!  There are lots of techniques that I can show you that even a beginner to watercolor painting will return home an artist.  If you would like more information on how to join me on a Watercolor Journaling in Greece, please contact the American College of Healthcare Sciences.  The class is May 27 – June 2, 2011.

Watercolor Journaling Class on the Island of Syros, Greece

Watercolor Journaling Class on the Island of Syros, Greece

I will be teaching Watercolor Journaling in Greece on the island of Syros. This class is offered through the American College of Healthcare Sciences, May 27 – June 2, 2011.

A lot of people enjoy writing in journals, taking field notes, collecting memorabilia and souvenirs of their travels, and drawing little sketches of their journeys. I call this art journaling but I take it a step further and incorporate watercolor with my art journals.

Watercolor journaling is a wonderful way to slow down and savor the moment, recording your journey in a unique and memorable way. With your journal under your arm and a few painting supplies, you will be ready to capture memories of your Greek Island experiences. This dynamic class will motivate artists of all skill levels to record their journeys in a creative and unique way using watercolor and mixed media.  Students will explore ways to make their watercolor travel journal interesting and reflective of their experiences through painting the Greek landscape and the essence of the Greek lifestyle.  Some of the techniques I will be teaching include watercolor painting, drawing, color theory, incorporating mixed media and how to make quick-on the go-watercolor sketches.

This class is still open for registration, so click here to sign up!  As always, I enjoy your comments.  Please let me know if you have any questions.