anne miller-strandoo

The year is quickly coming to a close, and I can’t let it sneak away entirely without one more post! 2014 was a very full and complicated year in my world, bringing huge challenges and life changes to some of my loved ones, and so, second hand, to me. In the midst of all the turmoil, it sometimes seemed like I should not spend time on painting, that more important matters needed my attention. Other times, after attending to those important matters, my energy was drained. Perhaps most daunting was the sadness that set in after months of seeing people I love in distress. It certainly seemed that all that internal and external strife would distract me from painting, at least for a while. Instead, it turned out that art and painting became a way to cope. In the past, I’ve abandoned art when life got in the way, but this time, instead of turning away from it, I grabbed hold. And as much as I love painting, the best thing about it, this year, was that it made the unbearable bearable. So….yay art! Here are some paintings I worked on during the six months:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Another part of my artistic journey of 2014….I got a puppy! Which might not seem part of an artistic journey, but my pets are such a boost to my general attitude, I can’t believe that they don’t contribute in some way to my artistic life. We’d said goodbye to our much-loved dog last winter, and missed having a canine spirit in the house. So, in May, came June:

 

 Of course a puppy is a lot of work, but training her and attending to her gave me a sort of structure to work around.

I also spontaneously signed up for a workshop with Ted Nuttall, which took place in July in Bend, Oregon. Central Oregon is one of my very favorite places on the earth. And I’d recently seen Ted’s painting “At Ease In This Room” in the Northwest Watercolor Society Open Exhibition and found it captivating. So, when I learned that he would be in Bend, I got the last spot in the workshop, and spent a fabulous week absorbed in portrait painting. The format was an ideal mix of lecture, slides, demonstration and painting.

 

 

 

 

 

Here is what I worked on that week:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Ted is a patient and knowledgeable teacher, and I hope I can take another workshop from him someday.  At the end of the week, I was even more inspired to explore figurative work.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

In August, I helped move my parents from their long time home to an assisted living residence. That was a hard month, for everyone concerned. And again, though I feared it would seem selfish, taking a few minutes to sketch, or paint, or look at art, or think about how I would tell a certain story visually, or even organize my art supplies gave me somewhere to “go”, if only mentally, and that space truly helped make a very difficult time more peaceful. Art therapy….there’s something to it!

With life turned sideways, I thought I might as well launch myself into another endeavor I’d long been meaning to try. Every quarter for the past I-don’t-know-how-many years, I pick up the Gage Academy catalog, read it cover to cover, and circle the classes I want to take. There are always A LOT, and I can’t decide, and there the process comes to a halt. This fall I was determined to actually follow through, and I even signed up for a painting class. Then I began to think, or maybe obsess, about where I want to go as an artist, what kind of art I want to make, and I knew I should be looking towards figure drawing. I’d taken a FANTASTIC figure drawing workshop about two years ago from Barbara Fugate. If only she were teaching a weekly class, I whined to myself. One more perusal of the Gage catalog, and there it was! Expressive Figure Drawing, with Barbara Fugate! And offered at the perfect time. I had to do it, and I did, and it was a revelation. Each week, I felt like I’d taken a running leap off a cliff, and fallen a little ways, then found my wings. Even on weeks when I was frustrated with what I produced, the process was incredible. And now I’m hooked. Next quarter, I’m signed up for Expressive Figure Drawing II! Here are some drawings I did this fall:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Now at the end of a tumultuous year, I’m eager for more challenges. I often think of Ted Nuttall’s words on the last day of his workshop, so relevant to me I wrote them in my sketchbook; “I really believe” he said “that when you immerse yourself in the process, the universe goes to work”. I’m certainly willing to give it a shot!

I had an incredible time in Donna Zagotta’s workshop last month! Kudos to the Northwest Watercolor Society for bringing her to Seattle as juror for their 74^th Annual International Open Exhibition, and as a workshop instructor. I’d admired Donna’s work before, but what convinced me to sign up for the workshop was it’s title – “Adding the You Factor to Paintings” – which perfectly summarizes how I hope to approach my work. I want to do more than paint a rendition, even a lovely rendition, of something – I want the subjects of my paintings, and the WAY I paint, to say something. As it turns out, that’s kind of scary. It means changing certain habits, risking “failure”, stepping outside my comfort zone. Though I know that’s the only way to grow, it’s hard to purposefully take on something that makes you insecure.  Nonetheless, I jumped in, and learned so much during the week!

 

 

 

We began  by focusing on painting composition, working to find the shapes in our reference materials rather than the “things”.  After creating compositions of shapes, we turned our attention to value by doing a series of value sketches. These were drawn in in black, representing middle and dark values, and white, for light values. I found this a mesmerizing exercise, partly because of the realization that I could go beyond what I saw in a photo or scene, and actually create something. And, one photo or reference can produce many paintings, each with a different value pattern – a revelation! Here is the value study for the piece I ended up completing:

After working with shape and value (the “bones” of the painting), we moved on to the elements of color, line and texture, what Donna calls “the decoration”. Here are the results of my efforts, painted on hot press watercolor board using watercolor mixed with white gouache:

 

 

Using new materials (gouache and hot press watercolor board) was exciting, and though it took some getting used to, I felt like the gouache gave “heft” to the painting, and because it is opaque, it can be applied more in the manner of oil paint.

 

 

 

 

 

I was definitely inspired. Here are value sketches and a painting I did at home the week following the workshop:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I’m sure I’ll ponder all I learned in Donna’s workshop for quite a while, as I keep working to find “me” in my paintings!

April seemed to come and go so quickly this year! It was certainly action-packed. The month started off with the opening of the Brig Studio Artists show at the Phinney Neighborhood Gallery. The opening party on April 11, coinciding with the Phinneywood Me and my tulips![/caption] Art Walk, was super fun, and gave me a chance to see welcome familiar faces, as well as many new ones! It was particularly nice to meet friends and family of the other Brig Studio Artists.  Once again, I felt very proud to be part of this wonderfully talented, dynamic group of artisother Brig Studio Artists.  Once again, I felt very proud to be part of this wonderfully talented, dynamic group of artists.

 

 

The following Sunday, my daughter and I were off for a spring break trip, starting in Washington D.C. (Cherry blossoms! Colleges! And, oh yes…Monuments!).

My husband, Rob, joined us in Boston mid-week. We were all first time visitors to that city, which we absolutely LOVED! We had two amazing dinners in North End restaurants, walked the Freedom Trail, took a city tour (okay, it was on a Duck Boat…there, I said it), and drank beer in an ancient tavern filled with Bruins fans on a play-off night (sans daughter, who was doing homework back at the hotel). We also squeezed in a college visit, and drove to Gloucester for a day.

We were extra lucky to have travel tips from former Bostonians Adam R. and Vanessa R., whose informed recommendations and robust enthusiasm for their former home laid the groundwork for our fine experience in Boston. By the way, shouts out to Adam for his most excellent music blog, Visible Voice! Check it out.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

So…an art show, visits to vibrant cities….how much fabulousness can one month hold, you ask? Well, quite a bit, as it turns out. Last week I was absolutely consumed (happily) by a five-day painting workshop with the remarkable Donna Zagotta. It was an incredible experience, deserving of a separate blog post. Stay tuned.

In the spirit of springtime, I am turning over a new leaf! I’m finally tackling my avoidance of social media! You can now connect to my Facebook  page by clicking the link below. I also hope you’ll stop by the Phinney Center Gallery in the Phinney Neighborhood Center (located at 6532 Phinney Ave N in Seattle), where I’m showing some new work, along with 17 painters from the Brig Studio Artists. Our opening party is on Friday, April 11, from 7 to 9 p.m. The Phinney-wood Art Walk is the same night, so it’s a great chance to get out and see some local art!