Weekly Watercolor on Wednesdays will be starting this week at Sunnyside Community Club in Harris County. June 3rd will be the first class. My plan is to include some drawing instruction in all nine of the watercolor classes. I have always made a point of telling students how important drawing is to their development as artists. Drawing teaches us how to create optical illusions, like the optical illusion of deep space on a flat piece of paper. That is the magic for me. Drawing increases our observation skills and helps us access our natural ability to process visual information. Drawing is a relaxing activity, meditative for some people, like me. No matter what medium a student ultimately chooses; watercolor, oil, pastel or clay, drawing comes first.

In my attic, I discovered a stack of pristine, archival mats that once held my husband’s Brownie Hawkeye photographs. The empty 4″ x 4″ windows challenged me. Could I fill those windows with small paintings? I took one of the mats to my studio and cut small pieces of leftover watercolor paper into 4″ x 4″ squares. I taped one to my support board and sat down to paint. Normally, I do a careful sketch and have a well thought out plan, but on this occasion I only wanted to continue my improvisational state of mind. Three palettes sat on my drawing table with left over paint in the wells. It is unlike me to start a painting without a clean palette and I usually do a lot of mixing before deciding on a color scheme. Into my unplanned sky, I floated Cerulean Blue in a clear wash, leaving soft, white-of-my-paper clouds. Along the bottom of the wet sky I charged in a variety of browns and greens and grays to mingle into a distant tree line. Lower in the picture plane, I dropped Cerulean Blue into a clear puddle that soon became a lake, reflecting the sky. As I worked down the little page, warm, foreground grasses went in and then I was done. I was done and I hadn’t planned a thing. I found this experiment to be meditative and refreshing. I felt so relaxed, I did a few more. What a good day.

Brenda’s Second Annual Adult Art Camp at Sunnyside Community Club starts in three weeks. Class size is limited to ensure students receive plenty of individual attention, reserve your place, 706-888-1110, All supplies furnished for drawing and watercolor.                                                  Wednesdays, 12:30-3:30.

Sunnyside School in Midway Historic District

This class is designed with your busy summer schedule in mind. Attend as many or as few classes as you wish.                             Develop your drawing skills, learn simple, basic watercolor painting techniques, or discover ways to improve your compositions.                                                                                                                                   All skill levels are welcome; we’ll start where you are.

One Class…45.      Two to Five Classes…40. each       Six to Nine Classes….30. Each                    Take all nine classes for the biggest savings – 27 hours for $270.

This is the time of year when the hummingbirds begin to arrive. On Saturday, from 12:30-4:30 we will paint Hummingbird. This is a Watercolor Crash Course! so you won’t need any previous drawing or painting experience.      I will walk you through the entire painting process and in just four hours you will have this small painting to take home. Reserve a place in class by calling me 706-888-1110. $65. includes all supplies. Join us at the historic Sunnyside Schoolhouse in Harris County, on Hopewell Church Road, two minutes from I 185, Exit 30. An easy 30 minute drive from Columbus.

The azaleas at Callaway Garden’s Azalea Bowl will soon be in full bloom again. I did this painting outdoors, on two consecutive days, several years ago. The weather was great and the visitors were friendly.

Azalea Bowl

Watercolor Crash Course! on Saturday, March 14, 12:30-4:30, at Columbus State. Reservations: 706-507-8070. http://www.columbusstate.edu/ce

This is the watercolor painting I donated to Time for Art, an annual event sponsored by the Young Professionals to raise volunteer hours for local agencies. Participants bid hours instead of dollars in a silent art auction. Some of the agencies are Girls Inc., Columbus Hospice, Ronald McDonald House, Open Door and Habitat for Humanity. My painting, Cat Brier, Hadden Woods, “sold” for 100 volunteer hours. Whoever made that bid has a year to work it off, at the agency of their choosing, and then can collect their art. This is an amazingly simple, yet brilliant idea. 

Redbud

“Redbud” is a recent painting, inspired by the heart shaped leaves of the Redbud tree in my yard. I’ve been painting leaves every fall for the last twelve years. I’ve spent years experimenting with color and technique and more complex arrangements, but I started this journey by painting one, isolated leaf on a white background. Now, I enjoy the challenge of painting branches of leaves and more three dimensional compositions.                                                     I will give a class November 22, 10:00am – 3:30pm, at Sunnyside Community Club in Harris County. You will find details on the “Schedule” page.