Drawing and Knitting??

The annual Senior League Bazaar will be on Saturday, November 16, 2013, at the Three Rivers Memorial Building, from 9 – 4.

What does this have to do with drawing and knitting, you ask. (Yes, I can hear your thoughts from time to time – keep them sweet!)

Because this year is dedicated to finishing all the drawings for the upcoming book The Cabins of Wilsonia, the only paintings I’m doing are commissions. This means I don’t have any new paintings to sell at the Senior League Bazaar.

However, I have knitting to sell! Yeppers, knitted wooly cuddly cute handmade colorful useful items.

Why do I have time to knit but not time to paint?

Great question – glad you asked. (Remember, all interviewees respond to questions with either or both of those phrases and I don’t want to be left out of the current culture completely so this is my token way of faking as if I am “normal”.)

I can knit in the car, at home in the evenings, when I am in a meeting, if I am waiting somewhere. Bringing an easel and oil paints is somewhat frowned upon in a doctor’s office or at an airport.

That green purse is spoken for – forgive me for taunting you with it this way.

There will also be calendars! And Mineral King tee shirts! And a very cool wooden box which I will show you tomorrow! And some cards, because I have lots of those.

DON’T MISS THIS!

Wow. That sounded bossy. Please excuse me – my intention is excitement, rather than shouting orders.

Wendy Miller is one of the best drawing students I’ve ever had the privilege of helping. I urge you strongly to see this show. And, many of her pieces are for sale. What an opportunity to own high quality pencil art at very reasonable prices. (Hint of urgency: I bought one already!)

Yes, I know it is Friday and Fridays are for Mineral King. However, I’m the boss of this blog, and this is Really Important News.

Move Over Mom, graphite on paper, 11×14, Wendy Miller

You are invited to

SUMMER CLASSICS

An exhibit of original pencil drawings by

Wendy Miller

July 2nd – September 22, 2013

Reception Sunday, July 7, 2-4 p.m.

Courthouse Gallery of the Arts

125 South B Street

Exeter, California

Save The Date

Lean on Me, graphite on paper, Wendy Miller

You are invited to

SUMMER CLASSICS

An exhibit of original pencil drawings by

Wendy Miller

July 2nd – September 22, 2013

Reception Sunday, July 7, 2-4 p.m.

Courthouse Gallery of the Arts

125 South B Street

Exeter, California

A Lavender Painting

Barbara’s French Lavender, 8×10, oil on wrapped canvas, private collection

This is a view of my friend Barbara’s French Lavender in Three Rivers. Livingston Lavender Farms, named after her grandmother who built the home, will be open soon for you to come harvest lavender. June 15? More will be revealed.

Imagine a blank journal with lines inside and this painting on the cover for around $15. Aren’t you just itching to own and use one?

More about lavender

My amazing friend Barbara grows lavender. She opens her lavender gardens (or is it a farm?) to the public each June when the lavender is at its peak. People can harvest bunches of lavender.

English lavender in bloom

The dates of this event are a little squishy, because the bloom is dependent on the weather.

This year, it is possibly Saturday June 15. This happens here in Three Rivers, and you just sort of have to pay attention to the paper and to people who might know.

Barbara and I like to collaborate on art projects. She had me paint lavenders on saltillo tiles for her garden and to sell during the Hidden Gardens Tour. These sold well, so I have painted more for her Lavender Harvest Event.

In addition, I have finished 2 new paintings based on her beautiful lavender. The hope was to have them printed into blank books to be useful as journals. More will be revealed in the fullness of time. . .

Livingston Lavender, oil painting, 8×10″, private collection

I know I said 2 paintings. Guess you’ll have to come back tomorrow.

Hidden Object, Contest, Prizes

Remember this mural?

mural at Sequoia Outdoor Sports in Three Rivers

Now, there will be a hidden object painted in this mural, visible Saturday, May 11, 2013.

No clues. You are on your own to find it.

It does not appear in this photograph. You need to go there in person.

I apologize to those of you who do not live near by. However, you can have a little fun any time you are in Three Rivers, checking the mural to find what is hidden and where it is.

The first three people who find the hidden object and go into Sequoia Outdoor Sports to tell Carolyn what and where it is will receive a prize!

  1. First finder: day pack with water bottle, hat, mug, beverage coolies, frisbee, map handkerchief and notecards featuring the mural
  2. Second finder: water bottle, hat or visor, mural notecards 
  3. Third finder: water bottle, hat or visor, mural notecards

These are good prizes, so we are making you work a little. You have to get yourself to Three Rivers and LOOK and go into the store. 41891 Sierra Drive, 561-1190, open 9-4:30.

Have fun! 😎

 

A Friend’s First Art Show

One of my drawing students is so good that I asked The Courthouse Gallery in Exeter ( where I teach drawing lessons) to feature her in an upcoming show.

I’m defining “so good” based on several things:

  1. Her work is technically excellent.
  2. She composes her drawings from her own photos (and occasionally from mine), carefully choosing, scooting, cropping, editing, giving great thought to composition (which is the arrangement of the elements in the drawing) as opposed to automatically copying what is in the photo.
  3. She does the work – studies drawing on her own outside of class, draws on her own outside of class, sketches regularly and takes practice very seriously.
  4. She produces one good drawing after another after another – the big word for this is “prolific”.

The Courthouse Gallery selection committee asked her to show there in July through September!

We thought they were booked further ahead, but suddenly, we both felt some time pressure. We realized we would have to work together to get her work titled, framed and priced. We decided a postcard would be a good thing. We decided that scanning her work would be prudent. We realized that this could get expensive. We remembered that I have lots of mats and frames.

We had a lovely 1/2 day together, along with her daughter Jenna, digging through my mats and frames, deciding if any of them complement her drawings. We found several that worked. We scanned, we scrutinized, we did the work.

You will be seeing more about Wendy Miller and her work in this blog as her show approaches. Without giving away too much of her work, here is a teaser. (I want you to come to her show!)

 

“Hey Mom”

11×14, pencil on paper, by Wendy Miller, private collection

An Oil Painting Workshop, Beta Version

Oh Great. Now she is speaking Computer. Isn’t it enough that we have to endure occasional Artspeak without this too?

What is “beta version”? I looked it up and found the best definition on Michael Hyatt’s blog:

” The premise is this: ‘we know it’s not perfect, but it’s far enough along that we need your input to get it right.'”

oil painting workshop

Based on this idea, I gave an oil painting workshop for a handful of my drawing students. They know me and my teaching methods and limitations, I know them and their skills and their kindness and encouragement. I didn’t publicize the thing because I didn’t want to expose my ignorance to strangers who were expecting a highly experienced painter and workshop leader.

We painted from photos. I provided 5 versions of a pomegranate and lots of leeway for interpretation of background, cropping, compositional variation, and whatever made the participant happy and comfortable with the project. It is okay to paint from photos. That’s what studio artists do. (We had real pomegranates available to look at, feel, examine and make us believe we weren’t “cheating”.)

We had a great time! Here is the results of the workshop (minus Nicholas’s work because he had to leave early).

pomegranate oil painting in progress

pomegranate oil painting in progress

pomegranate oil painting in progress

Pomegranate oil painting in progress

 

Tomorrow I will tell why I think it was a success for everyone!

First Saturday December

It only rained a little bit, off and on, no umbrellas required. The rain didn’t deter Linda, Maggie, Beth, Gail, Ron, Judy, Jeannie, Bonnie, Sara, Gary, Vanessa, Tom, Becky, Sonya or Rachelle!

(I was just practicing my memory skills.)

I saw this on my way over to the studio this morning. A grey day really shows off the yellow leaves (and the orange cone in the distance!)

inside Jana Botkin's studio

Art, flowers, cookies, music – people enjoyed visiting my studio (or maybe they were just being polite).

Guest/friend/customer Judy thought the remaining leaves on the flowering pear tree would be a good subject for photography. She was right – thank you, Judy!

flowering pear leaves photo by Jana Botkin

flowering pear leaves photo by Jana Botkin

First Saturday Three Rivers December 1

First Saturday Three Rivers for December is coming quickly – December 1, to be exact. My studio will be open. Go to Anne Lang’s Emporium for a map. Come see me between 11 and 5. It might be raining. I have a roof and a little heater. It will be fine!

Jana Botkin's studios

You can ask me stuff about my art and buy Christmas gifts. I don’t accept credit cards but I do accept cash and (good) checks. There is an ATM in town at the Bank of the Sierra.

Did I forget anything?? Email me or comment if you want to know more!