Hi there , A lot has changed in the two and a half weeks since I last sent my TraillNotes. I have so much and so little to say, I've shed lots of tears, meditated a lot, and I've
talked to lots of friends and family. And, I'm increasingly turning to both my art and nature - for solace, purpose, and mindfulness. That's just what I did last Thursday - being in my studio, at home, near the news, was too much. I headed out to the Eno River State Park, to Fews Ford, where I was intending to host my watercolor workshop that got rained out last weekend. I hiked
down into the Ford, noticed the sounds - the birds, the rushing water, the squirrels, the flap of a fish surfacing, and thereby taking in all of the visual delights that are right near my home - the leaves, the trees, the rocks, grasses, various greens and browns in the river, birds flitting. and so much more. It was a breathtaking day and I spent an hour painting. The work I did that day was healing and altering, and got me into a different
headspace. I'm a big fan of Krista Tippett, the host and founder of On Being, a podcast that focuses on moving interviews with spiritual leaders, artists, thinkers and more. I just watched a Ted Talk that she shared in April on 3 Practices for Wisdom and Wholeness. While, I won't go into all of them, what stuck with me was this notion - “that we have it in us to figure out what it would mean to cultivate whole human beings with whole institutions, living in whole
societies. The invitation here is to turn your powerful reality-shifting imagination, your intelligence, your energy, your will towards the possibility of wholeness. How to live into that. And I want to be very clear that becoming whole has nothing to do with aspiring to perfection. It is not about achieving perfection, and becoming whole also does not mean that we become less strange or wild or complicated. Becoming whole would mean that we
orient together away from what is death-dealing and towards what is life-giving.” - Krista Tippett from 3 Practices for Wisdom and Wholeness. Blown away - getting outside and painting in nature is life-giving. That is the key to why my
experience was so moving. I want to ask you, what sorts of life-giving actions are you taking at this time? It is so important. Maybe it's art making, maybe it's playing an instrument, being in nature, or volunteering your time. But, please, balance your dismay, sadness, anger, awareness of the news, with opportunities to fill and rejuvenate yourself. We must. That is radical and changing. I'm happy to share my workshop has been rescheduled to this Sunday, October 22nd at Fews Ford in Durham, from 3 - 5pm. The weather looks beautiful and I
would love the opportunity to help you find comfort in painting in nature, maybe helping you develop the skill to do this more often, giving you another way of finding wholeness.
SUNDAY WORKSHOP Enrolling Now
SUGGESTED DONATION $45 - pay-what-you-can model DEADLINE to ENROLL - 10/20 Supplies listed on Sign Up Page Here are some sketches from my visit to Fews Ford last week, and scrolling down you can watch a short, rudimentry video of me walking down the trail and beginning my painting. I think my future goal might be to invest in a GoPro - I'm working on all this!!!
Abstracted 15-minute sketch from Fews Ford last week
Longer Watercolor Sketch from Fews Ford
New Bonus Membership Opportunities
I saw a lot of interest in this offering in my last newsletter. If something sparked your interest, but you had a question, or you were confused or needed clarification, please email me. This is an opportunity for you to delve deeper and help me continue providing you with the same curious ideas and connection to artmaking as written above. This is the second email of the month, and I will wait to send out another one until November (see a bunch of reminders below as we approach the tail end of the year). Tell me more about what you think of this membership option. Help me make adjustments it if it needs tweaking. Or, sign up for a paid membership! It'll make us both smile, and boy do we need that! 😊
- New note cards are headed to Casa Bella Market next week. I'll be updating my site soon with Chairs and Doggos.
- Speaking of
Dogs, please get your commissions booked by 10/31. I'm a slow, detailed artist - painting all those lovely whiskers.
- Yoga Mats and Pillows make a great gift - please consider purchasing directly through my Society6
shop.
- I'm opening up Art coaching spots for November. Message me for interest.
- Art for All has a selection of work available, and when you purchase, you're supporting an Art Ed non-profit opening up accessibility.
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"If you hear a voice within you say you cannot paint, then by
all means paint, and that voice will be silenced."
-Vincent van Gogh |
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