I've always heard about the gorgeous light in Paris, but I never imagined that all of France (well, the parts I visited anyway) would have that same light! At times, it seemed pearlescent or iridescent...and so very clear.

It was a delight to walk around medieval towns and villages to sketch and paint (and take photos) because of that light. But I would be remiss if I didn't also mention the subject matter of said sketches and photos...delight visits to so many small towns, parks, rivers, castles, gardens, and cities made this trip worthy of being made into an ImaginaryTrips.com' online class!

I hope you'll join me for the Imaginary Trip To Southwest France and Le Vieux Couvent! We'll explore the lovely convent and its gardens, where we stayed as well as some of the most intriguing small villages (Saint Cirq Lapopie and Beynec), larger cities (Sarlat) and some off the beaten path destinations (Castelfranc).

There is something for everyone! I will be sharing my sketchbook and the pages I created while in France and I'll also show how I create a more finished look once I'm home.

Class starts on April 18th and will feature four assignments. There is an interactive class as well as self-study class option available.

To join in and get registered today, please click here for more information!


I am going back to LVC in September this year and would love to have you join me for the 10-day travel and art workshop! It's not to be missed! The convent was originally built in the 1600's and has been lovingly refurbished into an art retreat complete with secret gardens, a koi pond and lovely courtyard. The classroom and art library are both huge and available 24/7.

This is a true immersion experience as we will get out to explore, sketch and paint the Dordogne and Lot Regions each day! We'll make use of the classroom to finish our pages in the evenings and during any inclement days.

And I have to say, the people of LVC make this place truly magical! From the wonderful meals they create from local sources to the care they show in everything they do, this is one of those rare workshop opportunities that transcends the words, "travel art workshop!"

I hope you can join me for this awesome experience!

To learn more and get registered, please click here!

I hope to see you in France!

If you happen to have missed the news, I am going to be doing an Art Workshop in Paris next October with Blue Walk Tours, and I've been talking about it a lot...

Okay, more like non-stop because I am so, so excited for the opportunity and because, well, it's Paris!

I have been thrilled by the enthusiastic and excited response the trip has received. It seems like Paris is on everyone's bucket list even if they've already been there!

Talking about the going to the City of Light to sketch and to explore the city through a sketchbook has brought out a number of hesitant questions from some of the artists interested in going and I thought it might be helpful to address a few of them here in case these same questions are in your mind.

How good of a sketcher do I have to be? Because I'm really not all that good and I don't know if I'm ready. 

Being "good enough" is a minefield of doubt and insecurity and while we've all been there at some point, there's no need to worry. Rather than worrying about being good enough, I like to focus on the incredible learning opportunities that always happen when you're surrounded by like-minded people, a teacher (me!) and immersed in a location with art and sketching on your mind! There will inspiration around every corner, literally!

I'll be with you throughout each day providing on-the-spot demos based on our views as well as to help you whenever you need me. There will also be a workbook full of ideas with tips and techniques to help you with this trip. (I'll also let you in on a secret...another cool thing about this trip is that it will begin long before we ever step foot in France! We'll have time to get started on filling the pages of our sketchbooks well before we leave for the actual trip.)

Part of the success of keeping a sketchbook while traveling is setting realistic expectations. We each know what our skill level is and everybody (yes, everybody!) wants to be able to come home with a sketchbook full of art that's worthy of a spot in the Louvre. Whether this happens or not, isn't really the point of sketching on the location. At least, it never has been for me though occasionally, I have to remind myself of that fact. It's really about capturing more of the experience than I can with just a camera and I assure can you, I cherish those pages no matter what my skill level was at the time!

You will remember so much more than you ever thought possible when you include pieces of art on your pages. Pages that don't live up to your expectations—at the time—become invaluable because they still serve as a portal back to those memories! Even simple doodles can go a long ways towards capturing the memories you will make during your visit.

As for being ready...I suppose it's like most things: even if you're not, you'll find a way because you are a most capable, flexible, intelligent artist and nothing will stop you!

I don't really know how to draw. I do a lot of tracing. Is that a problem?

Because we're going to be out and about and exploring Paris rather than sitting in a classroom setting, it's going to be difficult to do any tracing. That said, the beauty of announcing the trip a year in advance is so that it possible to start learning how to draw NOW long before the trip rolls around next year! There are a number of classes available online that teach you the basics. There are books at the library and you might even check with some of your local groups for opportunities to meet up and sketch in your town.

If not, I have recommended for years to sketch FROM LIFE for 15 minutes a day. It's not so much what you sketch, but that you sketch everyday. Start with a cup or a box. Sketch it each day for 15 minutes. Once you feel you've mastered the view, change it, add an item or sketch a different object. Once this becomes comfortable, trying adding the environment around the object. Rather than just drawing a mug, draw the table it's sitting on. Next time, draw the mug, table and the window behind it.

By sketching daily or near daily, you increase your visual vocabulary and you'll find that the skills you learned drawing the mug transfer to drawing a column or a vase of flowers. The box can easily become a building and so on.

Work in pen rather than pencil to learn faster (if we know we can erase and correct, we tend to not look as carefully or closely). Sketch what interests you to keep going and make it fun. Tempt yourself with images of Paris. If you start on a sketch that you really like, keep going past the 15 minutes and see where it takes you!

I've never sketched everyday for a week before. Don't you get overwhelmed or tired?

It is entirely possible to get overwhelmed when sketching on location but it's not likely to happen on this trip! The wonderful folks at the Blue Walk have set up a variety of activities for us that will include learning about the various neighborhoods in Paris, some fabulous sightseeing along with liberal indulging in coffees, pastries and shopping.

There will also be plenty of chances to look over each other's kits and sketchbooks, learn about one another's favorite tools and to sit together and work on our pages. With this said, if you still feel overwhelmed, there's flexibility built into our trip to allow you some downtime to do with whatever you'd like so you can come back to the page fresh and ready!

How physical is this trip?

There will be walking. A lot of walking, actually, as that's really the best way to see and learn about a new place. When we're driving a vehicle, we must watch the traffic. When we're a passenger, we have limited views and limited time in which to see. When we're riding a bike, we still have to pay attention to our surroundings and where we are going so as not to drive into anyone or anything.

By walking, you're view is mostly unlimited. By walking, you can pause to really see. By walking, you engage all of your senses rather than just your eyes. You can hear the voices and languages spoken by other passersby, you can feel the breeze or sun upon your skin, and you can smell the delectable aromas coming from the restaurant up ahead.

While there will be a lot of walking, the trip is at a leisurely pace with the intent that you enjoy yourself! Our days will be liberally sprinkled with plenty of visits to cafés and stops along the way to sketch the views. Again, due to the flexibility built into our days, there will be opportunities to catch your breath before we venture forth again.

I'm a little nervous to go on a trip with a group of people I don't know. What can I do to overcome this?

It never fails to fascinate me how fast folks bond over mutual interests like art, sketching and a fantastic place like Paris! It doesn't take any time at all before the group becomes a whole with plenty of laughter and cutting up. There will be moments of sheer hilarity that no one else will get (because they weren't there) as well as bonding over similar experiences from our pasts and our visit to Paris. Chances are outstanding for you'll come home with brand new friends that you'll have long past our visit.

In more practical terms, you will also have the opportunity to become acquainted with the other travelers in our group before we meet up in the hotel for the first time. Remember the secret I mentioned above? That's how will start to get to know each other before we go.

What questions do you have?

Do you have questions about going to Paris for a week? You can learn all about the trip here. If so, please feel free to ask in the comments below or drop me an email. You can also contact me via the contact form here. If not, it won't be long until it's time to...

Bonfire Sketch, Stillman & Birn Zeta Softcover, 3.5 x 5.5 inches, watercolor and ink Click To Enlarge

This past Saturday night, we had a bonfire at my sister-in-law's house. She had a huge oak to fall recently and it took down the old playhouse. Between the stump and the wood from the playhouse, there was plenty of wood to burn.

It happens to be spring in Florida and the trees and grasses are blooming themselves silly. Since I am an "professional level" allergy sufferer, I had taken plenty of allergy medicine before we left to go over, but I knew the smoke would be an aggravating factor in keeping my allergies under control.

After we roasted hot dogs over the open flame, I opted to retreat back from the fire and sit on the lanai. This gave me the view you see in the spread above. I was about thirty to forty yards away and I could not help but notice the way the Spanish moss dangling from the trees seem to pick up the light from the flames and sparkle.

This prompted me to pull out my sketchbook and begin drawing.  My husband's aunt and uncle showed up with a bottle of Disaronno (yum!) and it seemed appropriate to add it to the page. Those pesky people were added because they kept wandering on and off the "stage."

The gal on the far right was one of the last to arrive and the fire was burning quite hot by the time she attempted to roast her hot dog. Her stance was created from trying to get close enough to the fire to roast her dog without roasting herself!

The whole thing was sketched in low-light conditions and I even started adding paint while sitting there. I finally realized I was having a harder and hard time seeing what I was doing and I was going to need better lighting conditions to finish up. I still needed to add the lettering and fire sparks.

It was until late Sunday evening that I had another chance to work on the spread. I had painted the tree, the stump and the fire the evening before, but after being away from the spread, I could easily see I needed to go darker. Much darker!

My other challenge came in trying to show the heat of the flames against the night. Everything was actually very warm in temperature—the surrounding background, trees, sky and ground.

I opted to make the background much cooler by making it a dark blue with violet and burnt umber added in. I kept the ground around the stump, the tree, moss, fire and light being cast by the flames as warm as I possibly could to building up contrast between the to temperatures. I showed a slight hint of grayed green to indicate the grass.

Last I added in the headline on the right page echoing the same colors as the flames. The added text at the bottom was just the date and reasons for the bonfire in the first place. I have to say I wasn't at all sure of how this would turn out when I began the page, but I am so glad I did as I enjoyed the evening immensely!

There are few things better than good food, good friends, a roaring fire and my sketchbook!

Blue skies, blue water, and green gardens with every possible color under the rainbow! Sound like a great sketching opportunity to you?

Then come and join me at Selby Gardens! Florida has had an extremely mild winter and everything is bloom in wild abandon. There are so many wonderful features at Selby besides just what's blooming—statues, topiaries, special garden areas, green houses, and a Marc Chagall exhibit!

The koi pond, the bay just beyond the gardens, and the lavender garden are not to missed either. It won't take long to fill our sketchbooks in a place like this!

If you're in the area, I hope you will join me for a one-day class on April 21st, Painting Postcards In The Gardens! (They called it Advanced but it's not. It was just a way to differentiate between the first workshop and this class.) We'll be splitting our time between the classroom and the gardens and hopefully, most of it will be outside! To register for this class, please click this link.

If you're not in the area, you can still join me in the gardens! Introducing "An Imaginary Trip To Selby Gardens!" I'm doing an online class with lots of demos that will focus on using color harmonies, suggesting detail and texture by using broken color washes as well as how to focus in on what really matters to you most so you can get it on the page.

There are now three different class formats that offer something for everyone! To learn more about the class and the new formats, please click here.

Have questions? Shoot me a message via the Blogger contact form over in the righthand sidebar.

I hope you can join me and help me to usher in Spring in all her glorious color!

Is it my imagination or has the old-fashioned courtesy of taking your hat off when you're inside gone the way of the unicorn?

We went to dinner with my father-in-law the other night and I was amazed at the number of guys (and a few gals) with hats on. I drew the two gentlemen in the sketch above simply because they were sitting in front of us. It also surprised me to see a guy wearing a purple polo! Go, dude, good for you. 

It started out as sketching practice—and I'm pleased to say I'm improving—before becoming more of an awareness about the hats. You haven't seen the other people sketches because they looked more like aliens. Disfigured aliens. Maybe a few zombie aliens. Definitely not pretty. But highly entertaining.

I started looking around and it seemed over 50% of the male population was wearing hats. I'm sure this is nothing new. It's just one of the many gifts of sketching—it tends to raise your level of awareness about what's going on right in front of you.

Have you had that happen to you? You're sketching a place or a thing and suddenly you're launched down a totally unexpected path of learning because the sketching made you slow down to observe? That's what keeps me sketching. Those unexpected paths that lead me to random, seemingly unrelated learnings...that nearly always comes back into play at a later date.

I especially find travel journaling to be like that. Maybe because my mind is already open to new experiences in a place I've not been before. My left brain becomes a little like a toddler, "Why? Why this? Why that? How come that's green or he's wearing that or she said that?"

The cool thing about my left brain being busy is that it leaves my right brain alone and allows it to do what it does best, draw.

If you're interested in learning more about sketching on location, come and join me for An Imaginary Visit To Sweden, starting on April 7th. We'll be explore the country, its people and history. Click here for more info.

P.S. And by the way, National Hat Day is in January. As far as I know there's no National Ball Cap Day! Happy April!!

P.S.S. I am one spread away from being finished with this no name watercolor sketchbook that has been my purgatory for the last six months or so. Cannot wait to be finished with it so I can get back to my beloved Stillman and Birn sketchbook.

An Imaginary Visit To Norway starts March 3rd!

Examining My Approach

Assignment from An Imaginary Trip To Canada

There are days when I get up and it seems I have completely lost the ability to draw accurately. It doesn't happen often, but when it does, drawing is often an exercise of frustration.

But not futility.

What I've learned is that sometimes it pays to keep going even when all the lines are wonky, proportions are off and well, it looks like a toddler got busy on the page with their crayons.

Because it turns out okay in the end.

If you're on location in some beautiful local and you woke up not knowing which end of the pencil to use, would put your sketchbook away and just take photos while telling yourself you'll draw it all out when you get home (knowing you probably won't)?

There's a quote I recently discovered by Mark Twain:

Final Project from Joanne Sharpe's class

We went to my nephew's last home game of his high school career last Friday night and I decided to attempt sketching the players...

Black gel pen in No Name Watercolor Journal 3.5 x 5.5 inches

Here are my observations (and remember, these are from a non-sports person):

Feet and Books from Winter Interrupted

Wow, what can I say?! What fun we had at the beach!

Eight of us spent five glorious days sketching all up and down St. Pete Beach and into Clearwater at Winter Interrupted: An Artist's Beach Sketching Holiday. We sketched everything from giraffes to old gardens to ocean critters to fish shacks!

We spent the day sketching, eating and shopping at John's Pass

It was fun hearing everyone report the weather conditions "back home" each morning as we gathered for the days outing. There was only one day it was warmer in another location pass the Mason Dixon line than it was where we were at the beach even though some of our day's started out kind of chilly!

Imaginary Trips Made Real is the natural extension of the ImaginaryTrips.com online classes. We  put the skills we've learned online into action at fabulous live locations like the beach. But I gotta tell you, the location is secondary.

An afternoon spent in another beach town sketching, shopping, laughing and talking

It is the camaraderie that comes alive on these trips and weaves itself in and around a group of like-minded artists to creates magic: colors are more colorful; the air is a little brighter; the fun a little funner and makes the moment all the sweeter that is most important.

It is positive-uplifting-battery-charging magic that's even better than therapy! Imagine spending a week with people who understand when you come to a dead stop in your conversation as well as the street to take a photo of some adirondack chairs with parrots painted on the back or when you pull out your sketchbook at lunch instead of eating your meal. No explanations were necessary.

We saw adirondack chairs with parrots, flip-flops and ice-cream cones for the back boards!

We shared about ourselves, our lives, our families, and the challenges that we face in that other life we left at home. We laughed until our cheeks hurt and we talked late into the evening more often than not.

Three of the intrepid sketchers braving the chilly winds come in off the Gulf of Mexico

We ogled each others supplies and kits and made notes on where to get those special pens or fabulous palettes.

Yummy, messy, juicy color!

Art and Imaginary Trips Made Real is not just about the pages we fill or the places we visit or the things we learn. It is about the entire experience and maybe most important, about the connections we make to others and I can hardly wait to do it again!

Wave Demo Page

In fact, I'm already looking into the next adventure—I hope you can join us!!

Where would you like to go on a sketching holiday?

Getting ready for my trip to Acadia National Park and trying to decide what to take is so much fun!

I'm not sure what your approach is, but more often than not, we artists seem to adopt the "more is way better" attitude when it comes to packing up for a trip on which we hope to get some sketching done. In fact, we often try to take the whole studio, never considering how much that's gonna weigh!

After the tickets for my trip were booked, I started setting "maybe" art supplies in a pile at the corner of my desk. This past weekend, I pulled them out and sorted them to see what it was that I thought I wanted to pack and schlepp across two airports. Here's the pile:

Possible art stuff for the trip—the sad thing is that this isn't even all of it! Click to enlarge.

Taking a closer look from the top right:
1. Storage baggies and a piece of brown paper from a brown sack.
2. Masking fluid. Ummm, yeah. Moving on...
3. Assortment of pens, pencils, water brushes, charcoal pencils, watercolor pencils, bamboo pens, white markers and colored ink pens, both permanent and non-waterproof.
4. Wrist band for wiping my brush.
5. Two small plastic boxes containing clips, erasers, kneaded erasers, white and wax crayons and small splatter brushes.
6. Leatherman tool. (This will go in the checked luggage. I don't want to get thrown off the plane before I even get to board.)
7. Sketchbook and palette.
8. Assortment of travel brushes.
9. A fountain pen.
10. White post notes and a see-thru ruler.
11. Stamps, stamp pads, extra decorative paper, and whatnot.
12. (which is not marked in the image) Wet wipes at the top middle of the image. Those will go. They're great for having on hand after I pick up something "icky."
13. And right below the wet wipes is a box with several document clips on top. The clips will go. The box probably won't make the cut.

I have to point out that even with what I've culled from the list above that's still too much stuff to lug around. And believe me when I say that unless you're going on an art trip with likeminded artists or have copious amounts of free time to sketch and paint, it's highly unlikely that the majority of stuff you drag along will ever see daylight. Also, it gets damn heavy. What started out weighing 9 ounces will feel more like 9 pounds by the time you get home!

A Different Approach
Rather than approaching the art supply selection process from the "how much can I take" end, I find I do much better if I pull out what I MUST HAVE—something to draw on, something to draw with, something to add color with and color in some form.

In other words, the basics.

The better I do on choosing the basics, the more "extras" I can take to play with if I get the time.

Let's take another look:

Necessary basics—art stuff I won't leave home without. Click to enlarge.

Again from the center top:
1. Leatherman tool. You never know when you're going to have to operate on some piece of equipment that has suddenly decided to be contrary.
2. Baggies and brown paper. Always be prepared to bring home unexpected (but messy) treasures. Likewise with the brown paper. You just never know when you might need to sketch something on brown paper…or cover up a major oops.
3. Document clips. Yep. That wind is wicked to fight when you're trying to hold everything in your lap.
4. Wrist band. With this item, I don't have to struggle with paper towels fluttering in the wind, dropping on the ground or flopping over onto the wet page.
5. Post-It Notes® in white. I won't take all 1,184 notes. Instead, I'll break off about 50 and fold up the last not to cover the sticky strip. Why notes? When I skip a page I use the notes to write down my thoughts on what will go on that page, weather conditions, etc. Why white? Because I'm using water and have found that if the colored notes get wet they are inclined to leave a colorful imprint on my page. Not cool.
6. Sketchbook with extra pages.
7. See-thru ruler. I seldom use it, but when I need a ruler, I need a ruler.
8. Palette. Self explanatory.
9. Water brushes. These will be tested before I go to make sure I don't have any duds or leakers. I use four brushes (small, medium, large, and flat tips) because the handles are all interchangeable. If I run out of water on one handle, I simply change the handles to the preferred tip and keep going.
10. Fountain pen. I still have to make a decision as to which one (or three) fountain pens I'll be taking plus ink. I say three because one is my workhorse for drawing while the other two are great for lettering. Decisions, decisions!
11. White pens, mechanical pencils, stick eraser and (missing from the image) black waterproof pens. I generally take a couple of white pens (permanent and non-permanent), a loaded mechanical pencil, stick eraser (though this item is not strictly necessary), and the missing black pens. I take the extra black pens to make sure I have backup if I should have an ornery fountain pen or lose a pen. If I draw while I'm flying, it won't be with a fountain pen as they don't like pressure.

What's not showing besides the black pens: scraps of Zeta paper for practice, scraps of tracing paper for testing ideas if necessary, white gouache, wet wipes and possibly one stamp and one stamp pad. Maybe a couple of pieces of decorative paper.

Because I'll be staying in one location most of the time, I am trying to decide if I want to take my travel brushes. I can always use a glass for a water container. It will most likely depend on the weight once it's all in my bag.

All art supplies with the exception of sharp pointy things have to go in the bag. If it doesn't fit, it's not going!

Leaving The Studio Behind
One of the biggest challenges we face when we take it on the road is making the decision to leave the studio at home. For me, getting out and about is learning to use the tools I have as best as I can. That means doing without or making an item do something I didn't intend for it to do.

Sometimes I'm successful. Sometimes not, but I always learn something.

How do you decide what to take on a trip?

View From Hamburger Mary's 5.5 x 8.5 inches Ink and Watercolor Stillman & Birn Zeta

Just as a planned day sometimes takes an unexpected detour that turns out to be far more enjoyable than what was originally planned, so goes a journal page.

The beginning of the page. The red oval highlights the mistake I made right off the bat.

Movie tickets added to the page and a close up of the white "fix."