3rd Annual Canyon Road Paint Out

Saturday, October 16, 2010, was our Third Annual Canyon Road Paint Out. This event continues to grow and this year was the best thus far. Throngs of people strolled up and down Canyon Road, Santa Fe's major art district, to view artists executing colorful paintings along the lane. Additionally, there were several galleries with live music. These events coupled with a gorgeous autumn day, made for a lively event.

Since I wasn't working in my gallery this year, I had the opportunity to stroll with my family. Here are some pictures from our walk.

My business partner, Barbara Meikle, enjoying interacting with viewers of her painting.

My daughter and her family, Roger to the left, Farleigh, Melissa (daughter), Zoe and my husband, Corky.

In front of Gallery 822 - Sandy Keller, a Santa Fe artist, with her

husband Jerry. To the right of Sandy is a sculpture by Joshua Tobey.

In front of Waxlander Gallery.


Gorgeous Sunflowers in front of Patricia Carlisle's gallery.

In front of River Trading Post.

The next Paint Out will be October 15, 2011. Plan to attend.

Trying to Do Too Much

Have you felt like you just have so much to do that you end up doing nothing - AND feeling guilty about it? Well, that's how I've felt about my website, blog and newsletter. It dawned on me that there wasn't any reason to do a newsletter and a blog, so I removed the newsletter page from my website. That was a relief!!

Regarding the blog - that's something that I decided to do, so why beat myself up if I only add comments once-in-awhile? Afterall, my main focus is being in my studio and creating art. Writing on my blog is secondary.

Speaking of creating artwork. My opening last August at Pippin Meikle Fine Art went well. I sold seven paintings, which I consider to be wonderful. Here are some of the new pieces that were immediately snatched up:

In the Company of Angels, oil on linen, 42x32 inches

Dance with Me, oil on linen, 30x24 inches

Everyone's Gone to the Moon, oil on linen, 30x24 inches

Creating Art...a series of choices

After moving from Houston, Texas to Santa Fe, New Mexico in 1991, I felt adrift. In Houston, where I owned a business I was busy, busy, busy. Though I still owned that business (started in 1984 - sold in 2008), I was no longer involved in the day-to-day activity and didn't know what to do with myself. The following year "Pasatiempo" ran an article about Roberta Harris, an artist who had moved to Santa Fe from Houston and was teaching painting classes. That class was the beginning of my journey to becoming an artist.

There were many dips and dives along the road. I took classes from various artists in Santa Fe, painting images of people and a few landscapes; though I didn't have any strong motivation toward a particular style. I spent a lot of time in my head, rather than my heart, trying to determine a "voice" for my work. One of my most important mentors, Alex Shundi, helped me move the images toward abstraction.

That was many years ago. When I first started painting, I'd look at accomplished artists' work and think - "I wish I knew how to be so certain of what to do next" - as if those artists had all the answers. I've since learned that doing the art is much like life - a series of choices. I guess I wanted there to be one answer - that appealed to my left brain which is a bit of an organization junky. But my right brain embraced the idea that there are many choices when you're doing your artwork and one isn't necessarily more correct than the other.

My overall goal is to paint something that is vibrant, joyful and full of life. To arrive at that point, my paintings will evolve from the series of choices that I make. Those choices are based on how I feel that day, my perceptions and the knowledge that I have accumulated to that point in time, and on and on.

However, no matter which choice I make, what color I apply, how I choose to apply it, there is always the opportunity to choose differently and still complete the painting. For me, leaving the idea that the accomplished artist always makes the "correct" choice and embracing the idea that the choice I make at that particular moment in time is the "correct" one, moving on to the next choice and the next allows a freedom that spreads across the canvas into a completed painting. In that freedom, I'm able to spend time interacting with the painting, allowing it to become an individual world infused with my love and joy during its creation. When I'm able to paint in that "feeling" mode, I'm much happier and more productive.

New Studio Space...committed

As mentioned in a previous blog, I was looking for larger studio space and found some great warehouse spaces at 2778 Agua Fria (discussed in a previous blog - "New Studio Space...the search is on). Well, I made the commitment for a year's lease and moved during the month of January. This space is wonderfully large - 1300 square feet and I'm thrilled to be able to have this space.

I realize that a painter doesn't need large space to create phenomenal artwork. I've painted in my garage (after backing the cars out), in a small room off the kitchen (once a birdcage for the previous owners' parrots) and outdoors on a deck in the small mountain town of Idyllwild, California. However, I also believe that we should pursue our dreams and mine was moving up to a larger, unencumbered by clutter, studio space.

As I mentioned in my previous blog, I had visions of deKooning's studio. If you've seen pictures of his space (you can find one on my previous blog), you'll see that his space was quite large and the ceilings very high.

I'm looking forward to creating some phenomenal paintings in my new studio space. Right now, I'm settling in and getting used to the space.

Please take a tour of the studio with me...

New Studio Space...the search is on

Stumbling through my present studio, tripping over paint containers and canvases laying about, I made the decision that it is time to take my artwork to the next level - larger studio space. This is a major step as it involves an outlay of money in an economic environment that is challenging. However, the opportunity to have more room to stretch out, to feel my creative juices flowing without the restriction of studio size is enticing. Nancy Reyner, a local artist and the Golden Girl in this area, has a wonderful studio space and is an inspiration for taking this next step in my career. Visions of Willem De Kooning dance through my head as I visit available warehouse space in Santa Fe.

I've located two possibilities - one is 1300 square feet, the other 1000 square feet. Since there is little difference in the rental rate of the two, I'm assessing which will best accommodate my style of working. To that end, I came up with a list of what's important to me.

1. High ceilings
2. Skylights
3. Adequate lighting
4. Bathroom
5. Sink area
6. Adequate storage area
7. Plenty of open space to accommodate large work tables
8. Viewing area
9. Room for stretching canvases
10. Feeling secure with the surrounding area

These are just a few of the items that are important for me. I'm sure there will be more as I move through this process.