Reviewing a Month Of Plein Air Workshops part 1

'After the Rain'              5x7             plein air pastel               ©Karen Margulis
sold

It has been quite a Fall! My workshop schedule began in September with wonderful workshops in Charlotte NC and Cumming, GA. I am now home after spending a week teaching and exploring in Northern New Mexico. Each experience enriched me as both artist and teacher. The artists I met were amazing and I now have so many new friends!  I begin the recap by revisiting the plein air workshop I taught with Marsha Savage in Blue Ridge Georgia.

We had all hoped for a gorgeous Autumn weekend in the North Georgia mountains. The hurricane had other plans.  As I watched the weather forecast go from bad to horrible I quickly prepared for plan B.

A weekend of rain didn't spoil the fun!

Marsha and I had reserved a room at the Blue Ridge Arts Association building in downtown Blue Ridge.....just in case. It's a good thing we did! The rain was relentless and heavy so all of the intrepid plein air painters had to set up their gear inside.

Everyone was fantastic about the wrench in the plans. Smiles, laughter, good spirits and wonderful art were the result. Marsha and I were 'tag team' instructors taking turns giving talks and painting demos. We both worked the room helping the artists at their easels. 

In the end we covered so much more material than if we had been outside. All of our teachings and demos were geared toward plein air preparation and how to work from photos as if you were painting en plein air.

Marsh show off the box of Terry Ludwig heart pastels. Thank you Terry!

Terry Ludwig surprised us all by sending a box of special heart pastels. Everyone loved them and they certainly brightened the day!

Marsha demonstrated trees and water. My demos focused on the 6 steps to a painting and field study. I also did a demo on the treatment of foregrounds. 

Intrepid plein air painters!

The third and last day of the workshop provided us with a small window without rain so we took advantage. Everyone set up outside on the grounds of Marsha's cabin on the Toccoa River. We both did a quick demo trying to summarize everything we had talked about all weekend.  The rain held off until lunchtime so at least we had some time outside.

Sharing time!

We finished the workshop with some show and tell and feedback. As everyone took turns and shared their work. It was clear just how much everyone had bonded. It was a wonderful and inspiring session of support for one another. We laughed and we cried. Friendships were made and goals were set. It was an awesome workshop!  Marsha and I enjoyed sharing and had so much fun combining our teaching styles. We can't wait for our next team teaching adventure in the Texas Hill Country in April!

My current workshop schedule is posted on my blog here:http://kemstudios.blogspot.com/p/pastel-classes-and-workshops.html