Residency#1: Wednesday, June 16 - Let's play spot the poison ivy!

I've never been around so much poison ivy! So, knock on wood, I have managed to live beside it and no reaction. Dawn dishwashing liquid, original blue formula, and I have a date in a few minutes.

Residency #1: June 14, afternoon

This afternoon, I agreed to work with a group of day camp children for a few hours. First the 3 - 7 year olds. They all wanted to paint! No lesson needed except trying to explain to wash the brush between colors. When you're three, it doesn't always stick in you head, so at intervals I'd tidy up the palette a bit, and help mix colors.

The 8-12 year olds were more image oriented, had great brushwork as well. I helped mix more sophisticated colors, and started them off at their request, with two rough drawings of chickens = 2 triangles.

After all said and done, they had a great time painting two 16x20" paintings in acrylic. I received many handmade thank you's from the little kids, a popsicle from the camp guy, and many thanks from the organizers. Plus, a good feeling in my heart.

P.S.
I felt compelled to ask one parent to back away from the easel and allow the "artist" to paint without being told what to put down, or how to mix. One girl said, "My Mother doesn't let me paint at home." I said, "Really!? My parents always let me paint at home. Sometimes parents can be pesky." I just looked up the definition of pesky, a word I don't remember using for a very long time. Oh my!

Residency #1: June 14, morning

I went out to TES Farm to get a signal and paint something small and quick since I was scheduled to work with day camp kids at Noon.

I pulled into the well hidden drive whose slope I've traveled many times now. When I got only about 10 feet in, there were milkweed plants in full bloom. I'd never seen one in bloom, and these were fantastic! I'd been out there the day before to test some drawing materials in a new sketchbook. I drew milkweed then in Senelier Bistre ink, with a brush, as I couldn't get the reed pen to release the ink onto the paper. Next I added watercolor, which I felt ruined my drawing. Maybe it was the blue color that seems out of place, or just being tired after having survived four thunderstorms while painting at the bottom of the gorge earlier in the day (story yet to be told).

I decided to paint the milkweed in bloom, working in oil on linen panel for 2 hours, and see how much of the painting I could get finished. But first, I'd take some photos. I'd seen a large Daddy Long Legs on the underside of one leaf. And there were fireflies, and later honey bees and bumblebees, working these plants. But I was amazed by the number of DLL arachnids all on one flower.

I got out my field guide last night and discovered what I had seen was not a spider. They are called Harvestmen, in a class with mites and ticks. Harmless, eight legs, which by the way, can drop off away from the body if you grab one!!!!

Residency #1: June 15, of mice and butterflies.

My Facebook friend, Linda Crank, posted last week the need for a butterfly for a painting. While hiking a few days back, I saw a beautiful gold and rust colored one flitting about on the trail before me.

Later that same day, I found a different butterfly dead on the road on my way home. It's Cave Road. You know, the same road where the turtle hangs out sometimes.

Well, I had to collect it, and placed it in a glass in my car for safekeeping. I carried the glass into my bedroom, put it on my little table, and it still sat there as I drifted off to sleep.

I woke at 6:20am, as I do each morning, and when I looked in the glass, I saw that a mouse had eaten the body, and left only the wings and maybe an antenna.

Sigh! Who knew? I was pretty disappointed.

Residency #1: June 13th, Etawah Woods Trail

It's been so hot, and hats make you hotter, so I'm wearing a visor with a kerchief over my hair to protect me from ticks. My deceased sister, Cheryl, gave that shirt to my Dad, so I feel 5he were both on the trail with us yesterday. They'd have loved this.

My sister would have love Mother Nature's "dish garden"!

Residency #1: Sunday, June 14th, Workshop Day

Today was my relief printing and bookmaking workshop. 15 students embraced the process and had a fun time making leaf prints.

One man, Rodney, among 14 women, one of those his wife.

Residency #1: Saturday, June 13, Martin arrived!

Yesterday was an active day. My Sherpa, Martin, came at 7am to share his day with me in the forest. I wanted to walk the Etawah Woods Trail. We took our time going in so I could get photos and look have nature has put her garden together in a haphazardly organized way.

I was glad he was with me because this trail has some steep spots, and my Sherpa has the balance and agility of a mountain goat!

We hiked the trail twice: once to see what was there, once to carry the painting gear in to paint.

We were caught in a thunderstorm at the bottom just as I started to paint. But, we tucked under a dripping rock ledge and watched the rain pissing down all around us. I had time to look at my surroundings, and decided to start a new painting. Of course about 30 minutes into that, the rain stopped, but I wasn't gonna move a second time.

I think we clocked about 7 miles of walking with up and down elevation. Felt good, like being back on the Camino.

Residency #1: June 12, gifts

We received a packet of info at orientation. There was also the gift of CD'S of bird voices and field guides to butterflies, damsels, moths, birds, turtles and other reptiles, amphibians, and plants, and such. I finally opened them to identify a few butterflies.

At around 1:30pm, I went back out to paint and on my way back in on the Cedar Run Trail, I stopped to watch this damsel - I think - got to check him against the book! He was a great model changing poses several times for me. The wings look black at a certain angle, but at other angles you seem to be looking through a brown veil!

I was the solitary human for about 4 hours, surrounded by huge slump rocks, the creek bed, horsetail, damsels, frogs, and hundreds of unseen creatures and plant life. At one point, a racoon passed by me to hide away in a large cavity at the base of a huge slump rock. There I was, just painting and observing what happens in the forest when one is quiet.

Residency #1: June 12, painting

Residency #1: Friday, June 12 - one hot morning!

An expected high of 91 today. Doreen snapped this photo of myself and Bridgette painting at Nancy's place. The goat was smart, he stayed in the shady barn.

At the end of this painting session, the wind came and white puffy clouds blowing by. The photo of my painting might be too high res, so I just posted it on my Facebook page. Now lunch and fluids!

Residency #1: June 11, bedtime

Here's part of my little room, and my bedtime partner.

Residency #1: Thursday, June 11

Saw a few more sites yesterday, one with a pond, and TES farm, with this great cathedral window. The property is abandoned. You could buy it, sell it back to the Sanctuary and lease it for the rest of your life with the understanding that it becomes part of the Sanctuary when you die.

The turtle is possibly the same one I saw a few days ago. I stopped this time, and he let me snap his photo. Fun.

Residency #1: June 10th, final

After dinner, Betty and John took us to a few more locations. Their place looks down on the river, but when the trees are leafed out . . .

Then we headed out for Nancy place. Nancy is the person that started the Highlands Nature Sanctuary. Her location with a fantastic house, barns, one with an owl we are told, has fields and long views. Here's Nancy with the last of her herd of goats.

Residency Paintout, June 20

Hi folks! M workshop is this Sunday, June 14th. It's full!!!!

Ohio Plein Air Society paintout is Saturday, June 20th. Please RSVP to the OPAS facebook page or through the website if you plan on attending that.

Residency #1: June 10 - our hosts

Photos of Ann and Joe. Ann's just finished her Mom's recipe for new potatoes and green beans sated with olive oil and lots of garlic.

Joe was the grill man, but here he is standing beside on of his Mother's watercolors.

Ann will be taking my printmaking and bookmaking workshop this coming Sunday. And, she's bringing me a start from one of her mint plants.

Residency #1: June 10th continued

I followed my battle of painting the deep woods, with light patterns shifting every
10 minutes, with a 5x7" painting on Gessoboard, a very smooth surface. Felt
so good!

I didn't think of taking a photo, because we had a 6 o'clock dinner
invitation at Ann and Joe's. Fantastic time. With wine in hand, we toured
the gardens, then entered the screened in porch for Betty's asparagus tart!
The main menu was beet burgers, garlic potatoes and green beans, fresh
local produce from their gardens or the Mennonites, fresh Montmorency
cherries took me back to my youth. Dessert, a blueberry cobbler with
vanilla and chocolate ice cream.

This post had 5 photos, but the file size was too large for it to go through. So, not as many photos this time.

Residency #1: June 10 - #2

The start of my battle, and the end.14x11" oil on RayMar panel.
No title as of yet, but it was certainly a challenge.

Residency #1: Wednesday, June 10

Great day! Hot. Lush painting material at Cedar Run Trail, but, the richness of the entire Sanctuary is mind boggling.

Yesterday, I did a 14x11" painting in deep woods, of horsetail and mossy logs. I'm working on one of my most hated surfaces, RayMar original weight cotton panels. I've had these for years, sitting, because for me, this surface has too much drag. But, it's what I brought, and I'll make friends with it or not!

Residency #1: Tuesday, June 9th

We decided to visit a few locations we'd learned about the night before. One has trails down to Rocky Fork Creek without having to do steep steps, the other was to see the cedars trees and fields at Dale and Charlotte's.

Charlotte offered freshly baked oatmeal raisin cookies right out her front door. Then we decided to hike the 2-1/2 mile Kamelands Loop. They came along with us, and along with gaining more knowledge of the plant life in this temperate eastern forest, we happened upon this baby box turtle. Dale held him for scale. Pretty cool!

Residency #1: Monday, June 8th

After a weekend of sun and pleasant temperatures, it started to rain this past Monday. It was roughly a two hour drive to get to the Briarcliff Lodge, my home away from home for the three weeks of my residency.

Charlotte and Dale were waiting in the parking area. Betty was coming with the keys, and Bridgette and then Doreen arrived shortly after.

We unloaded the cars, sat down to a nice orientation, and then we're served a light dinner of salad, fresh tomatoes, fresh snow peas, deviled eggs, three cheeses from the Mennonite Market, bread and peach tea. Conversation was delightful, and mostly about the Sanctuary, plants and animals. Dessert was Betty's homemade ice cream and Charlotte's brownies!

I decided to start off with a photo of poison ivy, for those of you who don't know what it looks like, and for those painters who will be coming down for the paintout later this month. It's in profusion this year, and oh so pretty.