For the next ten weeks I’ll be sharing excerpts from my illustrated memoir, “Double Take,” published in 2022. Enjoy!

June 17, 2014 – sketchbook journal entry

I only pretend to like Art Instruction. What I really crave is Art Community.

Every art class I have taken in the last thirty years has landed me right in the middle of a delightful bunch of quirky, shy, occasionally self-deprecating people who, like me, feel lucky to be hanging out with fellow sketchers, painters, and doodlers.

Today I was a guest at a workshop led by Becky Darling, a talented watercolorist who is also a brilliant teacher. All the attendees have been studying with Becky for years, enjoying her instruction and the camaraderie that naturally forms in a group of older women who are all trying to befriend this beast called watercolor.

The classroom space was set-up with six conference tables arranged in a large rectangle. After each of us claimed our bit of turf, we began laying out our own art tools: pencils, brushes, watercolor palettes, water pots, as well as impressive blocks of watercolor paper.

The class members were all using “quarter-sheets” (11×15 inches) of watercolor paper as well as a landscape reference photo provided by the instructor. Neither of those felt right for me today. Since I was merely visiting and not an official class member, I gave myself permission to take a step back to consider my options.

I know from experience that when I still feel fidgety before I begin to paint, there’s a good chance that:

1. I haven’t found a subject matter I love yet, or
2. My art tool set-up is way too complicated.

Today in this class, my problem was both the subject matter and too large a format. Within a couple minutes, I set aside my lovely 9”x12” watercolor block in favor of a more intimate purse-sized Moleskine sketchbook (3.5 by 5.5 inches) that I carry with me everywhere I go. The light and shadow on the south windowsill had caught my attention, so that became my subject. I quietly moved my chair closer to the window, arranged my small plein air kit on my lap, and happily began.

Toward the end of Becky’s class, despite all the cries of “Please, just another minute!” we each finished up our work and prepared for Show-and-Tell.

Attentive smiles and laughter filled the room as one-by-one we presented our work from the morning’s session to the entire class. Each of us talked about our approach and where we had struggled. For many students, at the end of their presentation, Becky kindly added, “…and the one thing you really like about your work today is…?”

Laura was a fairly skilled beginner but, like so many, she saw the flaws in her work much more clearly than she saw the good parts. When it was her turn to present, she cleared her throat, took a deep breath, and exhaled in a slow New Hampshire drawl, “Ay-uhhh…” She held up her work, which was quite good, and Becky proclaimed it a successful effort. Laura, uncomfortable with compliments, stood there as we smiled at her encouragingly.

Finally, she cocked her head to one side, and declared, “Well, one thing I cahn say, it’s good from afaah, and faah from good.” We all laughed at her classic Yankee humor, which is one of the many reasons why this gang of ladies have become such affectionate watercolor friends. I felt honored to be their guest for the day.

(to be continued…)

~~~

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 As always, thanks for spending some time with me “aloft.” Happy sketching!