What Are You Working On?

Join me on Facebook Live on Thursday, August 6 at 1pm EST for a live studio event with the Rehoboth Art League 2020 Virtual Fine Art Show when I'll share with you what I'm working on now and answer your questions about my artwork.

Years ago, I traveled to visit a fellow artist and dear friend in Maryland. She's a friend with whom I have a strong connection. We can go for months without talking to each other, but as soon as we reconnect, it's like there's been no gap in our relationship and we can pick up with the same ease and joy as before.

When I arrived at her home, we immediately climbed the two flights of steps up to her top-floor studio and then spent the first couple of hours of our time together discussing her paintings, both completed and in process, plus recent art industry magazines as well as new favorite books. We've known each other for over 15 years, and it was early in our friendship when she told me how much she enjoys hanging out with other artists and diving into the question, "What are you working on?"

Her comment really stuck with me. Unlike many other professions, artists are sometimes perceived as not having a "real job" or a "real schedule." So the simple acknowledgment of, "What are you working on?" offers not only a bridge of interest, but an implicit nod to the very real work that goes into doing what we do.

This summer has been unlike any other that I've experienced in my time as a professional artist. As someone who usually travels up and down the East Coast to outdoor art shows, I've suddenly found myself in a whole different work routine because of the pandemic. The good news is that I finally have the time to dive into painting ideas that I've held onto for years but to which I could never give adequate time to explore in the midst of my art show schedule. I also have plenty of time to garden without having to rely upon our neighbors' children to keep things watered, a reliance that has sometimes produced uneven results.

In a couple of days, I'll give a live studio tour on Facebook Live with the Rehoboth Art League during their virtual 2020 Fine Art Show. I'll share what I'm working now on as well as answer any questions that you have about my artwork. The live video will be on Thursday, August 6 at 1pm EST and you can join me via my Facebook page or through the Rehoboth Art League Facebook page. See you then!

Home Studio Tour

This Friday, June 5 at noon EST I'll give a tour of my home art studio in Knoxville, Tennessee for the Rittenhouse Square Fine Art Virtual Show. With the pandemic and the civil unrest confronting our nation, the show has gone on, just online this year and I'm excited to share what I've been working on during recent months.

Shown here is a time lapse video of a landscape painting in progress from eastern Tennessee. One positive thing about staying closer to home this summer is that - after two years in Tennessee - my husband and I are finally getting a chance to venture out and explore the beautiful surrounding state parks.

During the home studio tour, I'll explain more about my process and share some of my latest paintings. I'll share a behind-the-scenes look at my painting process, from start to finish, and answer your questions. Sign up for free on the Rittenhouse Square Fine Art Virtual Show web site.

Change is in the Air

The first blank canvas in my new studio space in Knoxville, Tennessee.
I am super excited to be able to paint in this gorgeous space.

 

As I write, the snow is flying sideways on a howling, cold wind outside my window. We're now past mid-April, but Mother Nature does not seem to have received the memo that winter should be finished and spring on its way. I know that central Pennsylvania is not the only place suffering under the burden of January the 131st. Nonetheless, even if spring is not yet in the air, then change is.

A few weeks ago, my husband and I purchased a new home in Knoxville, Tennessee. Or maybe it would be more accurate to call it a new old home. We found a beautiful place that was built in 1927 and whose history includes a change of ownership via auction following the stock market crash of 1929.

Its most recent former owners were also artists. They did a jaw-dropping renovation to the upstairs area, where I will soon set up my art studio. To say that I'm excited about this totally new and different space would be the understatement of the year. I've already started to move some of my materials to our new address. Within the next month, we anticipate moving to Knoxville permanently.

But for now, my studio and my creative mind straddle two very different places and it's been an extremely busy time for me. I never appreciated how difficult it is to "stage" and sell a house until this interstate move (HGTV, I'm looking askance at you!), and I hope not to have to do it again for many, many years. It was very challenging given that my husband and I both work from our home and we have two large dogs. But we're on our way now, and I'm excited.

Stay tuned for a series of new paintings inspired by my new home in Tennessee as we get into summer. Until then, I'm off to pack some more boxes. Uff dah.

Yeoman's Work

Springtime, Reeds Gap 8 x 10 oil on linen panel. I painted this en plein air in central Pennsylvania's Reeds Gap State Park.

My first "real" job after I finished college at the University of Wisconsin-Madison was a full-time gig at a non-profit organization in Madison, Wisconsin. Back then, I did web site development and computer programming. My job with the non-profit was a new one within the organization and it had nothing to do with my recently-earned degree in art, but it paid the bills and it offered a pleasant place to work.

Following my initial 6-month probationary period, I received my first performance review. It was positive. One thing that my supervisor wrote stuck out to me because I didn't understand it: "Sarah is doing yeoman's work."

I had to take my 21-year old self to the nearest dictionary and look up the phrase yeoman's work:

of, pertaining to, composed of, or characteristic of yeomen: the yeoman class....performed or rendered in a loyal, valiant, useful, or workmanlike manner, especially in situations that involve a great deal of effort or labor

I was grateful for the acknowledgment of my effort and the compliment. Fast forward all these years later, and that term still resonates with me. Throughout my career as an artist, I've tried to maintain this demeanor throughout what I do. Traveling to outdoor art shows, gambling on the weather and so many elements outside of my control is hard work, even beyond long hours logged in my studio to create my artwork.

This past week, our family lost a loved one following a valiant battle against cancer. Like so many others afflicted with this dreadful disease, he was far too young. Witnessing his death and supporting my husband through this loss got me thinking again about this phrase yeoman's work.

I don't have kids, just a couple of spoiled dogs. For me, my artwork is my legacy in this world. Indeed, one of the biggest reasons why I jettisoned my bright career in computer programming and web site development was because it all seemed so empty to me. I felt that the very next day, I could be replaced and the next person could come in, re-write the code, re-design my projects and poof, there would be no evidence that I was ever there. I wanted to make use of my intrinsic drawing talent and my creativity.

Losing our loved one last week reinforced and reinvigorated this desire to create and to do it well. For as the definition above indicates, being an artist requires a great deal of effort and labor. In the coming months, I'm looking to renew my dedication to what I do. As I saw all too plainly last week, life is short, life is fast. It's such a cliché, but there is no time to waste. And it takes a lot of work to maximize the time we have.

Shown here is a small plein air landscape that is a kick start to this renewed devotion to my work. "Springtime, Reeds Gap" was begun earlier this season in central Pennsylvania's lovely Reeds Gap State Park. I was really pleased with the start that I got on this motif, but I wanted to polish it up in my studio with the final details. I brought it home and I looked at it for days, then weeks, and then a couple of months.

After returning from a harrowing family trip to support others in a time of need and loss, I found that I was having a hard time getting back into the groove in my studio. I was emotionally drained. Suddenly, I realized that I was finally at the perfect point to finish this painting. I rarely sign my paintings with my full name. But following the loss of our loved one, I wanted to add an exclamation point to the first painting finished after the emotional turmoil of shock and grief.