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Elizabeth Gaye MacDonald, Plein Air Artist

~ Extreme Outdoor Painter

Elizabeth Gaye MacDonald, Plein Air Artist

Tag Archives: journal

ACWR Sketch Nights

30 Tuesday Oct 2012

Posted by Elizabeth Gaye MacDonald in Art, Event, Sketch, Workshops

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Tags

Art, brush pen, journal, pen and ink, Pencil sketch, Sketch

Brush pen sketch of a tree at Birch Run. by photographerpainterprintmaker
Brush pen sketch of a tree at Birch Run., a photo by photographerpainterprintmaker on Flickr.

I am pleased to announce that I will be one of the hosts for the Arts Council Sketch nights. My night will be Monday December 10th from 6 until 9. Location and theme of my sketch night will be announced soon. Each night is hosted by a different artist or art group. We are really excited about what will be taking place during these evenings.
Here is the post from the Arts Council site followed by a link.

The Arts Council Windsor & Region is facilitating bi-monthly Sketch Nights in partnership with local artists, businesses and organizations.

How do you become involved?

–Become an ACWR member 
-Fill out the form below

We want you to make this event/workshop/semi-collaborative sketching time your own! Have any suggestions on how to make this open sketching group awesome? Potential partners or themes? We want to hear them! Come out on Monday, November 12, meet the group of sketchers and share your ideas.

There are 3 sessions to lead Sketch Nights into the new year (all sessions are at 6pm unless otherwise noted):

 Monday, November 12 – Exquisite Corpse style drawing session lead by Sketch Night member Dave Kant @ ACWR (1942 Wyandotte St E)

Monday, November 26 – Live nude model session lead by Sketch Night partner SHO Art, Spirit and Performance  @ SHO (628 Monmouth Rd)

Monday, December 10 – TBA Sketch activity with Plein Air artist Elizabeth Gaye MacDonald

Please Note: Our goal is to make sketch night accessible and affordable for everyone. However, due to material costs there may be reasonable supplementary fees for certain Sketch Night activities.

Questions? Please email info@acwr.net or call us at 519 252 2787.

Arts Council Sketch nights

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Join Me Plein Air Painting In Tuscany in May 2013

19 Tuesday Jun 2012

Posted by Elizabeth Gaye MacDonald in Art, Event, Moleskine, Plein Air, Sketch, Watercolour, Workshops

≈ 2 Comments

Tags

Art, botanical, Botony, flower, Flowers, Italy, journal, Landscape, Plein Air, Plein Air Painting, Watercolor, Watercolour, Workshop

Hosted by Toscana Americana Workshops

Watercolor en Plein Air in Tuscany with Artist/instructor Elizabeth G MacDonald May 8-15, 2013 Cortona, Italy

I am very excited to offer a workshop in Tuscany next spring 2013.

In this workshop I will be focusing on sketching and watercolour en Plein Air.  The day will begin with a short discussion, demo and question period.  Throughout the day, each student will receive individual instruction.  We will Alternate between quick sketches in a journal, and larger paintings. As an urban and a landscape painter I am at home painting in any environment.  The focus will be on capturing the rapidly changing light and contrasting values as the day progresses.  You will also learn how to interpret colour using a limited palette. I will teach you how to edit what you see en Plein Air to create your cherished memory of Tuscany.  As an added bonus I will show you how to use photography as a tool to plan your composition,photograph your work for the web or to make art cards from your paintings.  These keepsakes can be shared with friends and family. You will learn how to work Plein Air painting into your daily life.  I will be only demonstrating watercolour, but if you are an experienced painter who wishes to do your own thing you are more than welcome to participate at the same cost.  You may bring any mediums you like with you.  However, if you bring oils do not bring thinners, as they are prohibited from flights.  You may purchase thinners at the local art store.

This workshop is suitable for the beginner or the experienced painter.  Click these links for frequently asked questions, workshop information and registration rates.

I wish to introduce you to the joy of painting in the largest studio in the world, the great outdoors.  When I paint en Plein Air I experience nature and the world in an intimate way not experienced by the casual observer. The experience exhilarates me. I am also a photographer. When I capture nature and life through a camera lens I feel more like a voyeur, stealing a moment in time.  However, when I paint I become immersed in my surroundings with all my senses.  I am alert, and the scene becomes a part of my existence.  My heart yearns to interpret what is before me. By painting en Plein Air I go beyond copying that stolen moment in a photograph in the studio. I live the moment. I live the painting. The experience becomes a memory not soon forgotten.  When people see my work, I’d like them to experience a bit of what it was like to be there.  There is no greater joy for me then when I introduce others to painting en Plein Air.

Ciao!

Recommended supplies, partial list.

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Totally Random Crap

12 Thursday Apr 2012

Posted by Elizabeth Gaye MacDonald in Art, Jorunal, Musings, Watercolour

≈ 2 Comments

Tags

Art, journal, Watercolor, Watercolour

Totally Random Crap by photographerpainterprintmaker
Totally Random Crap, a photo by photographerpainterprintmaker on Flickr.

Yup, I had a shitty day. I was suffering from insomnia, or as I like to call it sleep rebellion. This was a week ago. I threw some watercolour on it tonight. I’m sure everyone has days like this. We can’t all be Pollyanna’s every day.

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Vunerablity

27 Monday Feb 2012

Posted by Elizabeth Gaye MacDonald in Art, Jorunal, Musings, Watercolour

≈ 5 Comments

Tags

Art, journal, Musings, Watercolor, Watercolour

day21DSC_7989 by photographerpainterprintmaker
day21DSC_7989, a photo by photographerpainterprintmaker on Flickr.

In order for me to truly love and respect another, I have to first love and respect myself. That, for me is a very tall order. I’m sure many of you, like me, heard the words “You should be ashamed of yourself.” coming from your parents, maybe even your spouse. This little sentence, I believe can have devastating effects on a child, and the future adult that child will become.

My parents were brought up British old school, with strict discipline. With the “Spare the rod spoil the child.” mentality. Mind you it was not all doom and gloom, but there were some things we didn’t do. One of them was hug, at least I don’t remember a lot of hugging going on.

There was no real physical love, but there was corporal punishment. Oh we were not beaten within an inch of our lives. But, we did feel the smack of a hand firmly on the seat of education at times, and I am alive today to tell about it.

We did know that we were loved. After all my Dad told me as he swatted my butt “This hurts me more than it hurts you.” Right… I had NO idea what he meant by that one. But, I did know I was loved. Even if I don’t remember a lot of hugs.

So… when I went out into the world on my own, I discovered something. People hugged one another! Who knew?! I realized that this was something sadly lacking in my father’s life. So, one day I started to hug him whether he liked it or not. There were no guarantee that he would accept this affection. To my delight, he did accept it. At first he was uncomfortable and wanted to pull away after the “acceptable” time limit.  But, I always held on a few seconds more.  He would never be the one to initiate the hug. But, low and behold he started to change. The first place I saw this change was him hugging his grand children.

So, what is my point? I had no guarantees that Dad would accept my affection. I had to step up to the plate first and become vulnerable. I had to risk rejection in order to gain the reward of his returned affection.

I learned something profound from this. A hug can melt the most hardened and damaged heart. It can even mend your own.

I dearly loved my father. He was a generous man who always wanted the best for us. He was a teacher at heart, and was always teaching us. Although, at the time his lectures were intimidating. He spoke the truth as he knew it. He was himself. He never tried to be anyone else. Because he was honest with us, we respected and loved him.

So, be honest with yourself and others. Live with your whole heart, and choose to be yourself. Stop trying to fix everything that “you should be ashamed of” you are not perfect, none of us are. Love yourself for who you are now, not who you will be tomorrow. Know the you are “enough.”

~ inspired by Donna Mulholland’s 21 days of watercolour journaling, and Brené Brown’s TED Talk on The Power of Vulnerability:
http://www.ted.com/talks/brene_brown_on_vulnerability.html

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Tape as a Resist Study

25 Saturday Feb 2012

Posted by Elizabeth Gaye MacDonald in abstract, Art, Jorunal, Watercolour

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

abstract, Art, journal, Watercolor, Watercolour



Day 19 – Say it with Tape, originally uploaded by photographerpainterprintmaker.

This is an experiment using tape as a resist. Working in layers allowing the washes to dry, and removing replacing tape. It takes patience to wait till the washes are dry before removing the tape. I will probably do more experimenting with this method.

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