Hammonasset Paint Out _October 30, 2014

What an incredibly beautiful day to be at Hammonasset!

Eight painters (Jay, Hans, Bob, Tina, Betsy, Keiko, Judy (left early), Jane Brazelton, and Pat Anderson) were spread out at various locations in the Meig's Point area.

Cheryl and Sally showed up at 11 to visit but did not paint.  

Joan, you were missed!

Photos by Hans and Jay.  

Art Show Opening at Mercy Center

Greetings,

My friend, Judy Perry, has been hard at work preparing for her exhibit at Mercy Center. Judy's pastel paintings reflect the innumerable moods of the sea and coastal waters and meadows. And the upcoming opening on November 16 at 4 PM brings together a trio of artists celebrating the healing power of art, with a melding of paintings by Judy; poetry by Patrica O'Brien; and music by Jerry Silbert. It's a celebration of the rugged determination of our artist colleagues. It's an opening with a pretty unique twist in a nice gallery by the sea -- not a bad outing for a fall afternoon.

If you need directions, consult the directions page on the blog.

/j

Upcoming Exhibit in the Mary C. Daly Art Gallery

November 3rd - December 18th

  

moon glow  

   Getting it Together

Sunday, November 16th

4:00 - 5:00

followed by the gallery opening of

Healing Waters

Join us to experience the unique healing combination of the artistic talents of:

Judy Perry, award winning visual artist

Patricia O'Brien, award-winning poet

Jerry Silbert, musician and meditation instructor

When faced with life threatening events, Judy, Patricia and Jerry each used their creative abilities to navigate their healing journey. "Getting It Together" brings together their unique talents to demonstrate the healing properties diverse art forms possess.

Winter Studio Option

Greetings to All,

Rosemary and Patty have been looking into extending our Autumn Tuesday morning studio session at Dudley Farm into a winter studio, but the Dudley barn is not available during the winter months.

We have an opportunity to rent space on Tuesday mornings at the Guilford Community Center from mid Jan. through the end of March. The upstairs craft/painting room has large tables, bright big windows and a sink. The rental for what I believe is a 10 or 11-week period is $900. If we have ten artists sharing the space, this would be a cost per-person of $90 for the winter, but the room can accommodate more than 10 artists, so the per person cost could be even less.

If you could use some studio time and a regular commitment to keep you honest about actually painting during the winter months, then this is a nice, affordable opportunity. And, of course, any time you're motivated to leave the comfort of the studio and paint on the Guilford Green during our studio time and then come back in for the wrap-up, that is an easy option.

The Community Center is working on their winter schedule now, and they need to know our intent.  So far we have commitments from five people -- Patty, Rosemary, Veronica, Bob VanM, and me.  If you are interested, please get in touch with Patty as soon as possible at:  pgmcguire@comcast.net.

/j

Weather

Thursday's forecast is not looking good again. Unless things turn around significantly, we're looking at another rain-out. If things look brighter, I'll put up a last minute posting, but you will need to check the blog if you think you see weather that is fair enough on Thursday.

/j

Thursday Rain Out and Saturday Opening

Looks like this Thursday is going to be another rain-out. A bit more studio time... I'm not going to try to fight it. That's just what we have during these mid-seasons, and there's only so much you can do with wet and rainy.  

On Saturday, 18 October, from 7 to 9 PM, the Scenes from Riverside Park Exhibit opens at Union Station in New London. Last year's reception for this show was quite elegant. Musical entertainment this time will be by Golden Ratio, which looks like a string trio from New London. Twenty-six artists will be represented, including four from CTSA -- Elena, Jeannette, Keiko, and me. The show runs through November 15.

/j

Meig's Point -- October 2014

When I arrived today around 9:15, I considered myself late. But I found just two painters on the eastern beach at Meig's Point -- Joan McP and Judy. When I finished shooting my beach pics, Betsey had appeared at the edge of the trail, and while we were talking, Keiko turned up. Over the next half hour or so, we also had Jane, Gayle, and Bob. Julia finally found us just before 11. She had given up on us when she didn't see us out in plain sight and had been just enjoying a hike around. But she still had time to get a sketch down before we quit. So that's nine for a beautiful morning outing, punctuated by many, many visitors, from school children to elders.

Then there were the oddballs -- one man with a pony tail doing exercises on the beach -- another man in a satin dress leading a group of school children on a tour... (Most of us did not happen to see this one)...

All but four of us had to leave before or at Noon, so we did not get a group photo for the day. And Joan did not want to share either of her two paintings of the day.

On my way in, I went by the campground and picked up a map for that area. The campground closes to campers as of next week, so we can go in to paint. I just need to learn whether we will have to leave our cars in the parking area and walk in.

Let's watch the weather and decide later where to paint next week.

Meig's Point

Call to Paint -- Thursday, 9 October 2014 -- 9 AM

I had hoped to paint in the campground at Hammonasset, where there is a nice view of a snaking inlet --  or at the little brook and pond on the west end (does that area have a name?). But given the forecast for three days of southwest winds, I think at least some of us might want to paint the heaving sea and surf at Meig's Point. Looks like a rising tide through the morning, with high around Noon. So probably not a good idea to try to paint from behind the rocks on Larry's Beach (by the Meig's Point parking lot), as it might be a bit spritzy by late morning. But who knows. We're still a couple of days out.

Let's meet in the Meig's Point parking lot. Looks like low 60's and sunny, but with a brisk breeze. Maybe we can put some cars together to create a wind-break for a byo lunch.

I'll hope to see you there.

/j

Larry's Beach  2010

One More Sketch -- Branford Point

I love Jane's rainy-day sketch. No mistaking this for a studio painting!  This is real atmosphere...

/j

Branford Point and Parker Memorial Park 2014

Well, my weather forecaster got it sort of wrong. But the rain didn't begin until about 10:15, and we had a few plucky souls out there. Jay B-t picked a park bench and went right to work in his sketchbook. Jane, who arrived fairly late, tucked in behind the rocky mound and got her color sketch well under way before the rain. And Hans went into the park to paint in his car in front of Annie R's cottage. Pam arrived early and did not stay, because she did not find any of us out yet, I still have not heard from Jay B-a. I spent so much time poking around and shooting photos that I ran out of time. Just as I got set up and started to get my sketch down, the rain came. Not much rain, but enough so that it was not going to be possible to erase my errant pencil marks, and enough to leave little rain blossoms all over the paper.

So, I think there would have been six of us, and it could have been a perfectly OK paint-out, except that the parking area near the pier was blocked off and a repair under way on the boards of the pier. If we could have positioned our cars in that area, we could have tailgated. And if Pam had not encountered the blocked parking, she probably would have stayed and waited to see if anyone else showed up.

Nevertheless, we have a couple of offerings from the day, so it wasn't a total washout.

Next week, we will shoot for Hammonasset. If it rains on Wednesday, maybe the MAS painters will join us on Thursday. If the rain moves to Thursday, perhaps at least some of the CTSA painters will paint on Wednesday.

Branford Point and Parker Memorial Park