It was cold, cloudy, occasionally raining with winds 10-15 mph and the scene was of scum on a pond at the Art in Nature Plein Air Event. In spite of these constantly changing conditions I managed to produce a satisfactory pastel painting and put it on the rack for display and the public vote. Time for lunch. After lunch I found out that it started to rain and my morning painting was ruined. On a humorous note, another artist wondered how I achieved the texture. Here is the disaster.



It is now 12:30 and the judging begins at 2:30. Needless to say, I was frustrated. With an attitude adjustment, I decided to start another one so I moved to a slightly different location. I figured that I had about 1 1/2 hours to produce something that would at least not be embarrassing. As it turned out, I had an hour because it started to rain again. Here is the result.

Some of the people in the crowd found it entertaining to watch this go from the under painting stage to this in an hour. After the judging and awards, the weather changed to a pretty, sunny and pleasant afternoon. With that weather change, chocolate cake and some positive feedback on this painting, I left on a positive note. Now to get to the studio to see if I can fix the first painting. Sue

This week I ended up with Judy at Sag Quarry because we couldn't get into the Saganau Nature Center. The closest alternative in the Cook County Forest Preserves was the quarry around the corner. We almost left but decided to take on the challenge of trying to make this swamp into something attractive on our canvases. I brought oils this time because rain was possible. Oil resists water but pastels do not. It was bug and mosquito heaven but thanks to a thick coat of insect repellant I was annoyed but not bitten. Quite a few bugs met their demise in oil paint. Here are the photos of my set up, inspiration, and final oil painting.



Yes, that's scum on the water. Obviously I exercised my artistic license by removing the tree and enhancing the water and other colors. I painted without my glasses so I couldn't see very well, just shapes and colors. I almost exclusively used a palette knife to keep it loose and to give texture. As it turned out, the sky cleared and it became quite warm. Well, I'm glad we took on the challenge to see if we could make something attractive out of an ugly scene. You can see more of our adventures at www.facebook.com/FlanaganFineArt.

I have have had students who constantly criticized their art and even said very negative things about themselves as people and artists. One of my students was so afraid to make a mark with a pastel that she never finished one painting in spite of her great potential. I tried to emphasize how forgiving the medium is through demonstration. There have been many times when I have brushed off an entire pastel painting or repainted a canvas or board. Sometimes it works and sometimes it doesn't. You can usually reuse the surface and if not, then you are out a couple of dollars. Oh, but you have always gained experience and learned a lesson if you are paying attention.

The risk of failure always goes up when you go out of your comfort zone and try something new. However, experimenting can lead you down a new path in your art. Or, maybe you will just have fun for the moment. Last weekend, I went to two Beth Charles workshops at the Courtyard Studio in Douglas. The first one was using a palette knife with acrylics and the second was loosening up with acrylics. It sounded like fun and perhaps I could learn something that would transfer to my oil painting. Here are the resulting paintings: Douglas Wildflowers and A Cup of Jo and Cherry Pie.

This was freeing and fun. Fortunately the other students were willing to go out of their comfort zone and take a risk. That is how we grow.

So do something creative and take a risk. See pictures of the workshop on my Facebook page.