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I injured my toe when I was rearranging furniture for the workshop. Ouch!! I ended up with a nasty infection, but it's healing nicely now, thank goodness! |
Everything went fairly smoothly (except for that trip to Urgent Care on Friday evening!) and by the end of the weekend, we all felt like friends. The students came from all over - some were local, a few drove in from across the state of Pennsylvania, and others came all the way from Maryland, Mississippi, and Kentucky. They all had one thing in common, a desire to try a new approach to being creative.
Or did they only come for the great food? :)
Yes, my mother and I fed them well!
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Mocha Sundae Pie with Oreo Cookie Crust |
Our lunches included Corn and Basil Tart, Wild Rice Artichoke Chicken Salad, and Pizza Pizzazz Salad, plus lots of yummy side dishes like Cantaloupe-Peach Soup with Blueberries...
and desserts that that were to-die-for, like Mocha Sundae Pie, Bourbon-Pecan Tart, and my famous Chocolate Pavlova.
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Bourbon-Pecan Tart |
The ladies worked hard each morning, sketching and learning and trying new things. They deserved to be rewarded at lunchtime!
Most of them were new to sketchbook journaling, so I started them off with an introduction to drawing and watercolor. I think it was a big help to those who were complete beginners.
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Angela doing a contour drawing of her hand |
They learned how to design interesting lettering styles and simple border designs, then they put their new-found skills to use on their first sketches...
Next they did a page using a color block or box to make their subject pop off the page...
Later, they sketched fruits and vegetables from varying angles or in different stages to make an interesting "Multiples" page...
It's always so much fun to see each person's style begin to emerge as they work through the projects.
One afternoon, I had them do a speed-sketching challenge where they drew a gridded page filled with candy in a very limited time. Choosing just six pieces from the candy box may have been the toughest part of this exercise!
The candy bin had lots of cute, colorful penny candy, but we reserved our calories for the good stuff...
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Thanks, Carol, for bringing us these yummy temptations all the way from Maryland! |
A little chocolate makes the sketching so much more fun!
Carol designed some beautiful borders...
and don't you love this sketch? Those complementary colors just sing! And how about that plaid background? She got the idea for the pattern from my laundry room wallpaper. Inspiration is everywhere.
I decided to mix things up a bit on Saturday afternoon, so I gave everyone a break from their watercolors. I had them find a spot somewhere in the house or outside in the yard or on the porch, and try doing a sketch directly in ink without any preliminary pencil drawing first. The twist was that the ink in the pens was water-soluble, so, when they touched the lines with water, they dissolved into soft grays, resulting in nice mid-tone shadows. My sketch at the top of the page is an example, drawn with a Platinum Preppy pen with Platinum ink. And here's Bobbie's sketch of my porch swing...
Charlotte and Lu sketched the view from the classroom...
Carol, Sara and Lory drew in the living room...
The sketches were done in nothing flat, and everyone really enjoyed playing around with the shadow washes.
Another fun project we did was to illustrate one of our favorite quotes. There were some really good ones - here's one by Angela...
It was touching and funny and heartwarming to hear them talk about their work. And the encouragement that flowed back to them from their new-found friends made it even more special.
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Charlotte had us all laughing! |
It's amazing how much they accomplished in just three short days! And seeing their confidence grow over the course of the workshop was a wonderful thing. They're excited about sketching now and are making plans to do a September challenge. They'll learn so much if they stick with it.
All of my preparations - the writing, printing, emailing, meal planning, grocery shopping, house cleaning, cooking, and studio prep - were worth it, to see the happiness on their faces as they said goodbye. This kind of teaching is a lot of work, but the rewards are priceless.
I hope to offer another "Sketch Your Life!" workshop here at Summerhill in 2017, but haven't settled on the dates yet. I still need to firm up some travel commitments first. Stay tuned...