May Studio News

Autoire. This surely must be Rapunzel’s tower.

The Adventure Part

As I’ve written before, I spent some glorious time in France at the beginning of the month. A short day in Paris (next time I’ll take maybe 3) and then off to the southwest to the Perigord/Dordogne region for an art retreat with 10 other artists.

After breakfasting each day on fresh bread and croissants, and homemade yogurt, we went on excursions every morning to gorgeously kept medieval towns that made me feel like I had stepped back in time. Each had a different personality and color story, from pale cream to yellow ochre to deep red sandstone. Eye candy around every corner. (Don’t forget to look up, R.M.!) We perused local markets, ate gourmet picnic lunches each day, and marveled at the cliffs, valleys, rivers and bright fields of the countryside.

St. Cirq Lapopile

Frankly, I didn’t do much art making. Remember those travel art kits I put together so I’d be totally prepared to do some quick work on-site? Hah! I made one plein air sketch. One! After the fourth day, I stopped trying to convince myself I really would paint if I carried them around and decided to use my camera to make a record of the sights and paint when I got home. There was just too much to see to spend even 30 minutes sitting to paint.

And then there was the trip to the caves at Gourdon. I could not take photos of the ancient paintings , which still give me goosebumps to think about, but I was able to capture another cave with stalagtites, stalagmites, and glittering crystals. This was truly a spiritual experience for me. An absolute wonder. Only half of our group opted to see these spectacular sights and I am so glad I went. If I ever get a chance to see more, I will jump at it.

We had studio time in the afternoons, but I am used to working alone and quietly, so it was really tough for me to get into any kind of creative flow with ten other people in the room, laughing, recounting the morning’s trip, or just carrying on regular conversation. I put my AirPods in and did some experimenting and play, but certainly did not come home with any finished paintings.

A road to possibility in Autoire

I did, however, come home with lots of fodder for future work, but since I don’t do landscape work, it’s mostly the colors and shapes that are still bubbling about in my head three weeks later. Also, arches, doorways, doors, and paths leading to …where? So much to process. What’s the visual equivalent of drinking from a fire hose? Staring into the sun? I can’t think of a good analogy, but that’s what I feel like.

Collonges la Rouge

The Part That Felt Lousy

I entered my first juried show shortly after I started painting five years ago and much to my surprise, I was accepted. (My sweetheart says I always underestimate myself, but I still don’t much believe him, although I believe nearly everything else he tells me.) Since then, I’ve entered several local shows and have consistently been accepted, for which I am very grateful. This past winter, I decided it was time to dip my toe in a bigger pond and was very happy to have been accepted for a two month show at an art’s center in a larger city a couple hours away. Encouraged by that, I submitted work for a juried show in that area and received a very kind “not this time, but thanks for entering”.

Owwwch!

That doesn’t feel good! I consoled myself with that fact that only 12% of applicants were accepted, but it was still disappointing. I don’t see a lot of artists talking about the times they don’t succeed: social media wants us all to curate and share the things that make us look great, but rejection is a real part of the path, so here I am telling you about it. You gotta swing at the pitch or you’ll never get a hit, right? So I’ll come back swinging. What I won’t do is let it affect my feelings of self-worth or self-doubt or however you want to look at it. Honestly, I was surprised and pleased that I only did let it affect me for about five minutes.

The Part That Feels Good

Fast forward to a local show I have not participated in before this year. Two of my submissions were accepted. They are both from the Loving Kindness series I made last year, and I was happy to have another place to share them.

May You Be Loved

May You Live Your Best Life

That show opens this weekend and wraps May up in a colorful ribbon for me.

Update: May You Be Loved was awarded 2nd place in the show and I am absolutely thrilled to have been recognized!

Thanks so much for reading, subscribing, and coming along with me on this creative journey. You are much appreciated.