What am I DOING!

I'm hearing fireworks -- even out here in the woods. It's supposed to get up to about 100 degrees today, so I didn't go to the parade. Anyway, I have WAY too much to do. I just sat down to do an inventory of my ongoing projects and discovered that I have

• a workshop to develop from the ground up (although I've begun the planning)
• two workshops to give within the next two months
• 23 full page illustrations to design and execute and 125 spot illustrations to rework (from bitmap to halftone) before the end of the year for The Southern Swamp Explorer.

Yikes! That's about one full-page illustration and 5 spot illustrations per week. I have started doing the spot illustrations on my laptop in the evenings while I "watch" TV. Actually there isn't much watching going on, just listening and an occasional glance up to the screen. It helps that most of the stuff is reruns so I can run pre-stored visuals of the storyline through in my head as I listen and illustrate.

Here's one of the big illustrations I finished a couple of weeks ago. I've done two since then, but I don't have them in jpg form so this will have to do. It's a mink in a bog, with pitcher plants and white-topped sedge and sphagnum moss (click to enlarge). I posted it to Flikr.com, where you can upload your stuff to share, then revised its front paw after a viewer suggested it needed improvement. She was right! See for yourself!

So my days are exceedingly busy, with filling orders and illustrating and keeping up with the business matters of running a business (Nature Works Press) (and sometimes blogging, like now), then quitting that at about 5 (when I'm pure stiff from sitting in front of the computer) and going down to Plant Oregon Nursery where I weed, prune, and do trouble-shooting "runabouts" on the golfcart until dark -- about 3-4 hours, then I come home and illustrate in front of the TV. I usually don't make it to bed until around 11. (I'm not whining, honest! I am just floored that I have so much to do!)

Now, tomorrow, I'm hoping to post my Journaling Workshop class plan, and see if anyone wants to poke holes in it or make suggestions. I'm hoping for some real feedback, so if you want to take part, feel free!

Remember last week I took a journaling class to get a feel for what should be in one? Well, Elaine Frenett just sent me a photo of the painting she was doing for that journaling class. She noted that the painting wasn't quite finished but that the text was, and that she hoped to finish it later after her show this Friday and send me the results. Here 'tis. Click on it for a closer view.

Elaine's show will be one of the highlights of Ashland's July "First Friday" tours -- on the first Friday of every month Ashland galleries and other participating entities throw open their doors to the public from 5 to 8pm. People walk from gallery to gallery, and it's a delightful sort of community experience. Elaine's show will be in the Headwaters building at 4th and C Streets.

At any rate, here's the painting, and you can see how the text enfolds it comfortably.

Gotta go.

As I promised, I'll now be working on my Journaling/Sketching Workshop "out loud."

It seemed to me that I should probably take a journaling workshop before I finished preparing to teach one, just to see what other people felt should be included in such a workshop, so I was delighted to find an "Outdoor Sketching and Personal Journaling" class being offered through Ashland Parks for June 22.

Gathering up my journal, pen, pencil, kneaded eraser, watercolor pencils & brush and a new sitting pad (one of those seat & back connected with straps, you sit in it and it supports your back), I paid my $45 at the office in Lithia Park (this is a gorgeous, "organic" park designed by John McLaren, who designed Golden Gate Park in SF), then hiked down the trail along the creek to the Madrone Picnic Area.

It was chilly when I got there, but the instructor, Elaine Frenett, was ready to go, with examples of her journals and the supplies she uses to create them displayed on one of the picnic tables. One of her journals, which she had set upright and fanned out so that many pages were visible (possible with a spiral binding), was stunning. (That's a student in the photo.)

Each page was a work of art, with "illuminated" caps, at least one to a page, and brilliant, loose watercolor paintings. The text was also a graphic design element, flowing and meandering across the pages. They were written in an attractive style, somewhere between calligraphy and, well, I can't describe it -- but it really adds to the beauty of the page. She's a real artist! Here's a sample -- click on it for a larger view.

Iwas immediately welcomed and made to feel at home, and the sun started to warm the park as class commenced with Elaine introducing herself and having us do the same. I hesitantly shared the fact that I was putting together a Sketching/Journaling Workshop and wanted to see how someone else presented their material.

Fortunately, she wasn't taken aback by this. After introductions, she passed out her beautifully designed brochures which included a short discussion of why we might want to keep a journal, a list of basic materials useful for journaling, and a checklist of ideas on how we might want to present ourselves in our journals.

I was pleased to see that they closely paralleled the list I had made during my long drive to Idaho a couple of weeks ago (998 miles round trip providing 21 hours of contemplation and note-making for my journaling workshop). Exhausting but productive (more on this later).

Next came a brief introduction of drawing techniques. Students in this particular class, which is held every second Friday through the summer, already had some experience drawing, so Elaine kept this brief.

Then we voted to continue by watching Elaine demonstrate how she creates a journal page, so we gathered around as she roughed in a scene containing a rough stone bench, the creek, and the cool green foliage and trees in the background.

After awhile, still watching, I got out my journal and made a sketch of Elaine sketching, and colored it with my watercolor pencils. Her style is very free and loose, while mine is fairly tight (although when I use the watercolor pencils I tend to loosen up considerably). While we sketched, she continued to point out techniques she was using and tell us how and why she did it that way.

The class lasted from 9-1, so, shortly before one o'clock, Elaine critiqued our efforts helpfully but gently, and we exchanged emails and said goodbye, leaving with a better grasp of this particular style of journal sketching. That was a very enjoyable class and I am delighted to have made the acquaintance of such an excellent new colleague.

I would highly recommend Elaine's class to anyone who journals -- it would really open up lots of possibilities (if you enroll, tell Elaine I sent you -- she'd probably like to know if blog exposure like this helps bring in new students!).

BTW, I asked Elaine for a scan of the finished drawing, and when she sends it I'll stick in here. Be sure to come back and see how it looked!