The Fields Project, upcoming

In about two weeks I will be driving to Oregon, Illinois to take part in The Fields Project. Oregon along the Rock River has been an artist community for about a century. I had to submit four images of my work and was accepted earlier this Spring. There are several types of artists participating in the week's work. Some are painters, some sculptors and some do those crop circles or field sculptures -- (I went to art school, but I think they are either aliens or perhaps studied with them during one of those abductions aboard a spacecraft -- I will let you know when I get there). I will be taking pictures and hopefully taking some of the paintings I hope to complete. I will be doing some plein air oils, maybe watercolors too. I will be staying with a family that takes care of horses, so that will be just right for me. All of the common lectures seem to take place during the time when the light is best for painting so I expect to be playing hookey from school so I can go paint. Regarding the posts: the pastels are both about 8 X 11" and the watercolor is a 5 X 7". I had a little time left in the class I was taking so I surreptitiously painted one of my fellow students, Michelle. She's a new member of the class and has been bringing casserole dishes full of pasta or a pizza to class. I've got to watch myself -- I don't want to give up the nickname Slim.

Waterworks show and small watercolor

I am currently in a watercolor show called Waterworks at August House Gallery in Chicago. It's a 3 weekend show at the gallery operated by Marya Veeck, the daughter of baseball's Bill Veeck (former owner of the Chicago White Sox). The deal is: you put two framed paintings for the walls and 6 matted works to go in bins. Fortunately I have sold my two framed pieces, so at the moment it's a success. I have the framed piece pictured in the window on the easel. (It's a scene from the moors of Scotland with sheep blocking the road --- I was diving on the Isle of Skye and that's what the sheep do there, they get in your way.) Once you get away from the cities, Scotland is a fantastic place to drive. Next month (June) I am scheduled to participate in The Fields Project in Oregon, Illinois. There has been an art colony there for the last hundred years along the Rock River. Other than staying for a week with a farm family and doing plein air painting on the farm and surrounding area for a week, I don't know what to expect. I will be taking photos and hopefully doing some decent work which I will post.

First of May

The Art Institute of Chicago has the Homer and Hopper show now. Both are really great shows for an artist to see -- why?, you ask: they show their work early on when they were still learning their craft. It was always important for me when I was a student to know that others were working long hours at the craft and still learning. This weekend I help install a watercolor show called "Waterworks" which I did last year. I will be there twice -- it's fun talking to the other artists in the show, to the people and to watch the gallery rats -- the people who come out to all the show openings to drink wine, eat cheese and crackers and never spend a dime. You have to have a sense of humor when you are an artist. Patience too!! The top painting is an oil, 9" X 12", of Chapel Street in Stratford Upon Avon. I don't know what was there in Shakespeare's time, but I bought something in the bakery on the left side of the street. The other two, the portraits, are small watercolors, like 10" X 14" and 8" X 10".