April 3, 2019
For the past 3 years I have been working steadily to increase my student base, both with more adult classes and the addition of a youth program. Knock on wood, but there is now every indication that ngs are moving in this direction. In March there was an excellent volume of classes and I am finding now that more of my students are reserving class time a month or two in advance. I want to thank each of you who have contributed toward this by making recommendations to your friends and families, talking about the classes on face book and of course, by taking classes. I love you all.
Let’s begin this month’s blog with a quick account of the classes held:
The first class of the month appropriately enough was held on March 1st. Ellery Rowlands demonstrated excellent skills as we worked through her first seascape. These are not easy and she did an outstanding job.
On the 2nd of the month Jayden Henkelman continued his training with a painting that may turn out to be his favorite. I think it is the one he will enter in this years Art and Soul competition. I call the painting “Tatonka” as that is what the buffalo was called in one of my favorite movies “Dances with Wolves” Check out what a great job Jayden did with this.
March 4th found Tara Hansen back in the studio. She requested a painting of Aspen trees which I developed earlier. She loves to learn new techniques and this provided that opportunity. Check out the faded trees in the background, rocks in the stream and of course, really nice birch trees.
Four days later (March 8th) I had two young ladies in for their first class. Eliza Lee and her sister Lydia received gift certificates for Christmas and they had a really wonderful time as they painted the same painting. Often when members of the same family paint I will try to make something different in the end result so they are unique to each one. This time I used masking tape to create different designs on the finished canvas. These girls did great.
Hanna Harr also received a couple of gift certificates for Christmas and on the 9th came for her first class. Hanna is 11 and proved to be an excellent student I was so impressed by how well she listened to the instructions and that she was equally adept at applying what she saw to the canvas. She would return later for her second session.
March 14th was the day that Bentley Covington arrived for her first Joy of Painting experience. If I remember correctly, Bentley is 9 and as you will see, she did an outstanding job on her painting.
Elinor Lee, the younger sister of Eliza and Lydia was also the recipient of a Xmas Gift Certificate and she was so excited and ready to prove that she could do just as well as her sisters. She did just that:
As you can see, the volume of my youth students is growing rapidly. Among those who took their first class was Zamara Trobridge. Zamara is six going on 20. Her Mom sat in the observation corner (which I refer to as the “time out corner”) as this young lady showed that she had no fear when it came to taking on a painting challenge, and, with good reason, as she did great.
Ayda Bowman has been a student for well over a year. She began at age 11 and immediately showed an aptitude for this style of painting. Her parents have been so supportive and as of this date, she has had more classes than any of my current student base. In fact she has moved from taking the youth series up to adult classes. They are longer and more involved. She continues to improve. Ayda will have a painting in the Art and Soul competition this year.
March 23rd found Jayden Henkelman back for another class. Here is a young man with a huge passion to paint. He has set up a studio at home and practices on a regular basis. On this day we took on a different medium, black canvas with a liquid clear base. He fell in love with this style and with good reason. Have a look:
On the 26th of the month I met another young lady who arrived to take her first class. Claire Hardesty loved painting and her painting loved her. Well done Claire!
The very next day, I greeted a young married couple who traveled from Washington to enjoy their first Joy of Painting experience. Kelsey Fried and Bryant Alma were my first Airbnb clients. I will talk more about this program in a bit. This couple loves to travel and enjoy new experiences. They have been Bob Ross fans for a very long time and were so excited to take this class.
On the 28th I had two more young sisters on the schedule. Macee and Libby Merrell undertook a pretty involved painting. Truth is, there was more to paint that we could squeeze into the allotted time so left out one section of trees. Still, the paintings turned out excellent.
As you can see, the last week of the month was BUSY.. Spring Break was the contributing factor here. So, we finished up the last days like this:
March 29th was the day that young Luke Carlson (age 11) and his grandmother Barbara Crider joined me for a family day. You will remember that I let parents, grandparents, aunts and uncles paint with their kids at the kid rate. I love to see families make these kinds of memories together so make that exception. What do you think? Pretty nice paintings, I would say.
The 30th found my avid young friend Jayden Henkelman back in the studio. You will see him often as his Mom is trying to get him at least two classes a month. That will certainly provide good strides in painting technique. This is the painting he did this day.
And the last day of March was reserved for returning Hanna Harr. Again, another of my youngsters who are determined to become accomplished “wet on wet” artists. You will see a lot of her in coming months. This girl has no fear!.
STUDENT OF THE MONTH
Every 30 days I pick an individual from one of my two groups (youth and adult) who I think has demonstrated excellent qualities and produced good paintings. The qualities that I look for include enthusiasm, paying close attention to the instructions and then being able to transfer what they saw to the canvas. This is a load and touch process so loading the brush properly is critical to finding good results. Obviously, once the brush is loaded, how it touches the canvas is equally important. There are subtle things in each element that make a huge difference. This month my choice for this recognition is Hanna Harr. Congratulations young lady. I am looking forward to good things from you!
WHAT IS NEW?
I mentioned earlier that a married couple from Washington came to take classes. This came about as a result of my new association with Airbnb. I have been selected as an event provider for this area so when people are making travel plans they can find me on the Airbnb site. There is a calendar that allows them to book up to two classes for one day. I then contact them to determine an exact time for class and send them samples of paintings that they can choose from. It will be interesting to see how this impacts future class schedules. It was exciting to have a booking only two days after being approved. If you are interested in checking out what they offer go to Airbnb.com.
NEW PAINTINGS
When the days are filled with classes, it leaves little left to play with new creations. I did play a little and here are the results:
APRIL HAPPENINGS
This is the month of Art and Soul, which is the Northwest’s largest public-voting contest and community arts appreciation. It begins on April 12th and runs through April 27th. This is competition organized by the Magic Valley Arts Council that brings art work representing many genres into Twin Falls. These pieces are on display in venues throughout the city. Awards are given in each of the categories and there is also a lot of cash to be won. This attracts artisans from many states and there are some really impressive entries. As indicated, you the public vote for the winners. There is a professionally judged competition as well.
This is not just limited to professionals or adults. There will be a ton of entries in the youth divisions and some of my students will be included. I will probably miss some, but as you are out looking you will recognize entries from Holly Attebury, Ayda Bowman, Tyson Bucher, Jayden Henkelman, Leah Francom, Adam Hompland and Ellery Rowlands. All of the youth entries will be on display at the Magic Valley Mall. I encourage you to get out and see them. While you are there, be sure to vote for your favorites.
To vote, one must first register at the Magic Valley Arts Council. There is no cost to become a voter but you must register.
I have an entry in this year. Not one of my paintings, but a Synthetic Ceramic Tile that is a tribute to My Best Work. I hope that you will have a chance to look at it. My entry number is 9-120 and it is now on display at The Center for Physical Rehabilitation located at 754 N College Rd, Suite D. It features a good number of this year’s students. Check to see what they have done. I am a proud teacher!
Once again, I am looking forward to a busy month. If you are thinking about scheduling classes, I do suggest that you call me soon, as the days seem to disappear in a hurry.
Pat Alsup CRI®