New Gallery Space Idea in Chattanooga

A new idea in creating gallery space has opened in Chattanooga. Charline West, wife of artist Terry A. West, has partnered with Eastgate Town Center to show and sell artwork within the corporate space. Eastgate was the original mall of the area and now houses several large companies and medical offices. Charline met one of the owners and director, Hoss Baghay, who expressed interest in placing art within the space after he commissioned paintings from Terry for his home. Charline, the business mind of the partnership, saw the opportunity to showcase professional work. She has invited artists of varying styles and mediums to be part of the new Spence Gallery.

Artists include Sandy Bose, oils; Judith Briton, pastels; Helen Burton, watercolors; Durinda Cheek, oils; Jere Chumley, acrylics; Valerie Fleming, photography; Carolyn Kaufman, mixed-media; Will Rhodarmer, acrylics; Sandy Washburn, acrylics; and Terry Wes, watercolors and acrylics. I am honored to be a part of this fine group of artists from all around the region!

The best part is the artwork is available to the public seven days a week, plenty of free parking, good lighting, and plenty of space to view the work. Every tag shows the contact person on site available for sales. Charline has thoughts of placing a million dollars worth of original art! For those who don't want to go into a "gallery" setting, for those who want to see a variety of work under one roof, and for those who work the same time that other galleries are open, this space will be ideal for shopping for art! Isn't it wonderful when the corporate world wants to support the arts!

Back to painting!
Durinda

Floral Painting Workshop Coming July 31 & Aug 1!

I will be leading a two-day workshop in painting flowers at the Happy Painters Studio on Lookout Mountain. This is a class that I have been thinking about since teaching the Sketching Callaway workshop in April. I envision lots of flowers on a center table with artists circled around it. We will begin with sketching individual flowers to explore the structures. Next, we will work with composition, different techniques, and color with setups. Each artist will complete a larger painting in the medium of his/her choice.

The workshop will be 10 am - 2 pm on Thursday, July 31 and Friday, August 1. Artists will need to bring their painting supplies, supports (paper or canvas), and a sketchbook with sketching pencils. Cost is $100. The class will be limited to six. You can bring a lunch or order from the Mountain Cafe. Email me to register: Durinda@Durinda.com.

Let's Paint!

Durinda

Lucky Cat is Ready for Art-a-ma-jig Auction!

This is my painting, "Lucky Cat" for the Arts and Education Council of Chattanooga's fundraiser. Lucky is based on my cat from Hawaii that Bill and I brought back from Maui. We had been in several shops there they had a cat like this. Finally, I asked what the cat meant. According to ancient legend, this cat stood in the doorway of the Gotoku-ji temple and raised her paw in the traditional Japanese beckoning gesture to a feudal lord who was passing by. The feudal lord followed the cat into the temple and instantly, a lightning bolt struck the place where the lord had been standing. Thus, the cat saved his life.
In business the cat is said to bring success. Her raised paw beckons in customers and welcomes personal happiness and harmony. I like her too, because she looks like a calico cat.

The oil painting is 10 x 8 with a gold edged floating frame. I did the reflection of the cat on the table by looking at a piece of plexiglass on the tabletop.

The theme for this year's Art-a-ma-jig is Fortune. Some of the artists that are invited to submit don't follow the themes, but I think it is fun to challenge yourself.

The auction will be Thursday, July 24, 6:00 - 8:30 pm at the Tanner Hill Gallery on South Broad Street, Chattanooga. For more information, go to www.artsedcouncil.org. Hope to see you there!
Sayonara!
Durinda

New Workshop! Architecture Drawing in the Landscape

I will be teaching a new workshop at Callaway Gardens, Pine Mountain, Georgia, September 20 & 21, 2008. "Architecture Drawing in the Landscape" is designed to teach you techniques for including three-dimensional objects in your drawings or paintings. Topics will include one and two-point perspective for drawing buildings, barns, houses, fences, etc and atmospheric perspective for creating depth. We will be drawing on-site using the structures in the Gardens. I will offer demonstrations as well as worksheets on the different techniques. No experience in drawing or painting is necessary.
Fee is $150 for the two days which includes admission into the Gardens and a discount at their resorts. I will offer all the supplies you need (yours to keep) for $25.00. If you would like to bring your watercolor or acrylic supplies, let me know. The class size is limited so everyone will get individual attention.
Registration: education@callawaygardens.org or call 706-663-5153.
If you have questions, contact me: Durinda@Durinda.com
Let's get outside and draw!
Durinda

Paintings from France

Here a few of the paintings from the Fountaine-Fourches workshop in France.

The first is a door on the barn/studio. I painted it one late afternoon when the sun was out. Then later I was able to "kick up" some values on the sunlit parts. It is oil on multi-media board that had been gessoed.

The center painting is part of the climbing rose over the pergola on the house. The window with the geraniums in the boxes is actually the room where I stayed. This was a morning painting. It is oil on Sourcetek panel.

The last painting is of a cottage in a village called Gravon. We set up to paint across the street from it. Ann, Sarah, and L.J. worked in watercolor while Anne painted in oil. Faye did a beautiful sketch of a door on another cottage and Kippy worked on the street scene in pastel. The lady of the house came out several times to see our progress. She was so nice. Kippy invited her to our final night reception and she came! I am very honored to say that all three were purchased that night. I will post a few others later to give you some idea of the picturesque landscape and architecture of the region.

One of the nicest things about staying in one place is the opportunity to work more on something when the conditions are right. Monet always worked on more than one painting at a time and would go back to work on them when the light and atmospheric conditions were the same. If the light and shadows change while you are working, stop! Sometimes you can "nail" the shadows first and get away with painting after the sun goes behind a cloud, but it is hard to remember all the colors you saw while it was shining. It is better to go back at the same time another day and finish it.

Another thing about staying in an area is you can locate the best time of day to paint. I like cast shadows when painting architecture, so I want the sun on it and behind me. One of our stops was the lovely town of Moret-sur-Loring, where Alfred Sisley painted. Our view of the river and mill was in shadow that afternoon. I had to move up the bank and to the left to see the light hitting the facade of a building across the bank and see the sunlight dancing on the water. (That will be another post!)

Hope you have a great National Holiday week and enjoy being with family and friends. I will celebrate my birthday with fireworks and a cookout. Sometimes, it pays to have a July 4 birthday!

Back to painting!

Durinda

Au Revoir, La Bonne Etoile!

Our workshop ended on Friday night with a "Vernisage" in the studio. Kippy explained that it was the night that the artists who were juried into the Salon in Paris would put the final coat of varnish on their works before the show opened to the public. It was the preview night for the patrons with a reception. Ours was lovely! The studio had tables decorated with flowers and of course, cheese, wine and champagne!

Each artist had a panel of their paintings and sketches from the workshop on display. Our watercolorists also had their sketchbooks out. Kippy and Jerome invited several guests including our chef Marc; the sculptor John-Paul; Chantal the art restoration expert; the house manager Madame DeLahye and her husband; neighbors; French friends Monique and Raymond from Gravon; artist Nicole and her husband from Villuis; and even ladies from Marnay-sur-Seine where we painted.

I was very proud of the work that each of the participants had completed from their first en plein air experience! I hope that they will all look back on this with many happy memories as I will: Living the life of an artist in France!

Check out my Picasa web photos for more workshop scenes!
Durinda

Here we are in Paris!

L to R: Durinda, Sarah Fowler, L.J. Huffaker, Anne Platt, Ann Currey, Faye Woolfolk

This is the group of Happy Painters in front of the Musee D'Orsay in Paris. Yes- it is June 12, it is summer, and it is COLD here in France, to us. We keep hearing about the 90 degree weather in Chattanooga, but it is in the 60s with wind and a lot of rain showers here. Neverless, when the sun does shine, we have been trooping out to farm fields and village gardens to paint. Nothing like seeing a large poppy and pea field close up. We toured a large chateau with beautiful furnishings very close to where we are staying. Our train trip to Paris included a guided tour of the Impressionists paintings, followed by lunch in the museum restaurant (tres chic!) and then a visit to L'Orangerie where Monet's large waterlily paintings are displayed.

Saturday found us in the medieval walled city of Provins where a medieval festival was being held. It was a lot like the Renaissance festivals we have, but this was in the REAL thing with the tents set up in the mote around the outside of the city. What was so cool were all the people who came to the festival ALSO dressed in costumes: mothers, dads, children and even babies! It was hard to tell the performers from the visitors!

The group has been working on still life paintings in the studio with a copper pot, wine glass, and fresh produce when we can't get outside to paint. There is always a way!

A busy week ahead for the painters! Let's hope the weather cooperates and we get lots of outdoor painting time!

Au Revoir for now!

Durinda