Art 'n' Olives

What a treat to visit Sandy Oaks Olive Orchard!

 I taught a small class on Journal making, and everyone was an art teacher or an artist of some sort. We had such a good time. One of highlights of the day was lunch - the new chef outdid himself. Dessert included ice cream made with olive oil from Sandy's orchard. It had a fresh green peppery taste - delicious! The second highlinght was being invited back to teach another workshop soon.
Take a look at the talented participants and their journals:

Home and Inspired

Yesterday I created three small "painterly" collages on canvas and took them to Nueva Street Gallery for their feedback. Ugur, one of the gallery owners, liked them, but I was in such a hurry to get them down there, I forgot to take photos. Arg.  Each one had acrylic paint elements inspired by Gwen Fox's workshop. Here's a video of our week with Gwen. Everyone in the group is keeping in touch - the whole experience was challenging, bonding, humbling, rewarding and encouraging.

Dog Day

Today in the painting workshop, Gwen showed us how to rescue a dog - a dog of a painting, that is. Then we had a timed  painting exercise, and I produced my own dog of a painting. Fellow painters suggested that it looked like a bird coming out of an outhouse door with a gun in his hand, firing at an unseen target. So what do YOU see? I'm keeping this one to remind me that everybody has a bad day, particularly when (as I did) you try to copy someone else's style

Here are the ones I started this afternoon. I like them much better - I tried some new techniques but especially liked using the transparent acrylic inks. There are designed to be companion pieces.

Work in Progress

Here is the same painting at the end of the day today - it's different!

Wonder Workshop

Day Two of Gwen Fox's workshop and I am on a steep learning curve and loving it. This morning Gwen demonstrated color mixing with three basic colors only - then we painted. My first attempt at abstract layout (far from finished) is below.
I have no idea what I am doing but it's fun not to know - at the moment, I like Gwen's color chart better than my painting, but we shall see.

Miguel and Loretto

Two lovely chapels are along the walk to the Plaza. The Chapel of San Miguel is the oldest church in Santa Fe. The Loretto Chapel, a few blocks away, is the home of the Miraculous Staircase. Here are some photos I took yesterday afternoon.

Santa Fe Markets

The International Folk Art Market last night and the Farmers Market this morning were great - the folk art was almost too much to take in. With over 150 artists from all over the world and more than 20,000 visitors, the cultural scope and diversity are breathtaking. The people were almost as much fun to watch as the artist at the preview party last night. Even though the tickets were a pricey $125 each, more than 2000 people circulated through massive tents looking at the wares on the tables and walls. And the Framers Market, tiny by comparison, still delighted with the variety and color of local produce and crafts.

The Inn of the Five Graces

Staying here is like living in a Santa Fe dream - imagine a cluster of beautiful old adobe buildings around a courtyard with flowers blooming, fountains bubbling and pinon in the air. I could probably take a picture of something memorable every few feet while walking around the grounds. And the rooms are furnished and finished with tapestries and Oriental rugs. My suite is called Birdsong, and the second photo is the living room. Dang. It's amazing.  Here are a few of the morning's photos.

Hitting the Turquoise Trail

This morning I'm off the Santa Fe and then Taos. My son and grandson are going with me to Santa Fe to see the Folk Art Market and the galleries, then on to Taos with Carol Mylar, my dear friend in art. We'll be painting with Gwen Fox at her Abstracts That Glow workshop. More from the road!

Sandy Oaks Olive Orchard Workshop!

Yesterday it was confirmed that I'll be teaching a workshop at one of my favorite places, Sandy Oaks Olive Orchard on July 28th. It's exciting - and after thinking about it, I decided that a garden journal project would be the perfect thing. Here's the description I wrote along with some bio info, and there are photos at the bottom of the journal I made this morning while figuring out the workshop details.
So sign up! It's only $45, even cheaper than my own workshops here at the studio, and there's a free lunch!

Description:

Handcrafted Journals in the Garden

Make your own beautiful journal for garden notes, poems, thoughts and sketches. You’ll put together a twenty page book based on the traditional "chapbook" model with a three-hole hand-sewn spine. You’ll create an original cover collage with textures and images that is an expression of your own unique creativity. Inside the covers, you may attach pockets for additional notes, and you will enhance your book with ribbons and beads. Once you learn this simple technique, you’ll want to make more of these lovely little journals for special gifts. Absolutely no art or drawing skills required, just a creative spirit and a love of one-of-a-kind handcrafted treasures!

Lyn Belisle is a San Antonio artist and designer whose popular workshops include collage, mixed media and earthenware. Her mixed-media artwork is shown in galleries in San Antonio and Colorado. She was a national finalist for Artisan of the Year 2011 in Cloth, Paper, Scissors magazine. She taught art for 35 years in public school and now teaches graphic design at Trinity University. Lyn loves helping people discover their own amazing creativity. 

Photos:

Meeting Designer Linda Moody

Linda and I "met" through Etsy - she ordered some shard faces and then did wonderful things with them. Check out her shop, NeeNee and CheeChee's Beaded Things (and I found out over a face-to-face lunch where that name came from). She came with her husband to San Antonio for a business trip. He usually flies, but this time they drove just so she and I could meet in person - it was fun.
Linda wore a piece I'd featured on my blog before - it's even more stunning in person:

Here we are at Milano's (she's wearing that necklace) - Linda was the guest and I was the driver, but she did a fine job of picking a lunch spot when I got lost - in my own home town! Thanks, Linda, for a great visit and I look forward to seeing you and Cindy in December.

New Faces

Ann Pearce emailed me and said that she needed more shard faces for her shop. I had just finished a firing for the Art Sale and Open Studio yesterday, and had some nice ones ready to be finished that I hadn't taken to the show. Here they are, finished with some different media (wax and polish and metallic powders) - I'm delighted that so many of Ann's customers likes these and ask for them:

Great Afternoon

Thanks to my fellow artists and all the friends who came to the art show this afternoon - I don't think I've ever been so busy or so pleased with the response. You guys are the best.
Short Video of all our artwork in Jan Longfellow's lovely home

A Day in the Studio

I celebrated the 4th by having a long day in the studio working on things for the upcoming Open Studio sale at Jan Longfellow's house. Mostly, I worked on face shard magnetic pins in frames, and here they are. They are such fun to make. I have a couple of real favorites - will be hard to sell them.

Fall Workshop Calendar

Information on my first three fall workshops is now available on my website. I just finished uploading it and the descriptions are complete (except for the book workshop which will be described in greater detail later.)
Sign up now!

Workshop Schedule for Fall 2012

Hanging out in Graveyards

I took a trip to old San Fernando Cemetery yesterday morning to visit faces from the past. Besides the wonderful sculptures, there are always families, mostly in pickup trucks, driving slowly along the narrow paths in the cemetery, stopping at ancestors' graves and getting out for a few minutes to look, talk and sometimes put fresh (plastic) flowers near the headstones. Here is one of yesterday's favorite faces: