I love, love, love watercolour. It's unlike any other medium to me, and while I have created many things in many different outlets for creativity, watercolour is the one that satisfies me most. There is a beautiful magic to "collaborating" with fluid colour and water, responding to what is happening on the paper in a back and forth dance between maker and medium. Sometimes I don't know how a painting came to be; there's just a haze of emotion as I fell into the painting.
Read MoreThe watercolor supply that you will find yourself spending the most money on, and buying frequently, is your watercolor paper. In this article I want to share why paper is important, how to choose the right paper, and how to get the best value for your paper budget.
Read MoreWhat does an artist need? MORE PAPER! That's just a given! And yet, somehow, when we have a wealth of paper at our disposal, we hesitate to use it.
Read MoreA key to understanding your intrinsic personal style is found in noticing the aspects of painting that feel the most enjoyable to you; the moments when time slips away and you get lost in the process. Ever since I was a beginner to watercolor painting, I've loved the act of pulling beautiful shapes out of a wet-in-wet wash of color. There is something so peaceful about studying the shapes on the paper and defining them to suggest leaves, flowers, the contours of the natural world.
Read MoreAs artists, we have a superpower in desiring to look at the world in new ways. We don’t like limitations, and when someone tells us there’s one “right way” to do things, often our response is instinctively to rebel and try to find another way. So there’s a side of me that really challenges the notion that entering juried shows and seeking to earn memberships in prestigious art societies is the way to success as an artist.
Read MoreWould an understanding of how watercolor works, what the basic techniques are and a few assignments to help you know where to start? Would a free workshop help?
Read MoreI'm committed to making 2021 a year focused on wholehearted living. The mindful intention that makes my art practice significant and authentic has huge application for my daily life.
Read MoreWhat can an artist achieve in a year? How do we measure this? Growth in skill, number of paintings created, milestones achieved? Or is the life of an artist not really about metrics at all?
Read MoreI found my true artistic self the the day I stopped trying to be perfect and started trying to have more fun, and my paintings reflect that spirit of adventure. I have found my heart and it's in loving watercolor even when my paintings don't look anything like a photo...actually, especially then!
That's why I'm excited to announce that my annual winter mini course is now available and the subject is one I thought I'd never teach; Abstracts in Watercolor!
Read MoreIf an artist wants to start painting in watercolor, they’re going to need supplies. But if you’re getting started painting in watercolor, choosing the right supplies can feel incredibly intimidating. There is so much to choose from, and so many different opinions on what the right supplies are!
Read MoreWhen I tell the story of how I got started teaching watercolour online, I always talk about that first hundred dollars in YouTube ad revenue and the impact it had on me.
Read MoreThis year has gone very differently than we all expected, and the art I created this year has felt unexpected as well. Truthfully, my goal is always to invite surprise into my painting process; there is no creativity if all is predictable. Every painting starts with the question, “How do I paint this?” and the answer is found in the doing.
Read MoreMy studio is a very special place; one I don't take for granted…Every time I enter the space I feel the love and intention that went into each strike of the hammer and I have to believe that it infuses my art; a circle of love that feels like a living thing as I pour my own love and intention into my watercolor paintings and seek to live fully present in each facet of my life as an artist, a mom, a wife, daughter and friend.
Read MoreIt’s felt incredibly difficult to be motivated or inspired to pick up a paintbrush these days. When we live in an environment of stress, anxiety, and uncertainty about the future, how can we feel any motivation to create? So how do you make art when the world is on fire? And should you even try?
Read MoreWhat do you think of when you imagine abundance? Imagine your permission slip to make the art you want to make and be the artist you want to be. What would it read? Now imagine that the setbacks and obstacles that you're struggling with now are the exact conditions you need to become that artist.
Imagine writing your biography in ten years and starting with, "2020 was a turning point for..."
You know it can be.
Read MoreSome of my most spontaneous adventures have started with a mistake. A wrong turn, a forgotten step, knocking on the wrong door. A taxi driver, unloading my wet palette and smearing beautiful paint all over the bag that held it, prompted the paint miser in me to wipe that fresh paint onto a sheet of paper and try to make a painting out of it.
Read MoreHave you ever noticed that when something takes a long time to achieve, it becomes valuable? The things that mean the most to me are the things in which I’ve invested my time, things I’ve sacrificed for, and given myself fully to. It’s interesting because it’s actually changed the way I value my art.
Read MoreHow do you free yourself from becoming a slave to the reference photo? What is the secret that allows some artists to create such dynamic interpretations of the landscape that really look like works of art, while the rest of us struggle along trying to paint something that “looks like the photo?”
Read MoreIn the body of work that I have created over the years, the paintings that stand the passage of time are the ones that felt like a risk to show to others. The art that, for whatever reason, I shared in fear and trembling, not knowing that if what I saw in that painting was something that others would recognize or reject. I have never regretted stepping out of hiding; what I have gained has been far greater than anything I might have lost.
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