Baltic Adventure Part 1; Helsinki
End of the month recap in the air!
Checking in from Helsinki today!
We’re spending the next few weeks traveling between Helsinki, St. Petersburg and Tallinn. We’ve been trying to get over here to explore the Baltic region and finally found good airfare.
As is tradition (and necessary to stave off my flight anxiety…) I spent the first part of the flight working on my schedule, planning projects and preparing ideas. I began with the recap worksheet I try to do at the end of every month -downloadable here- and ended with planning works for my upcoming solo show at The Inn at Harbor Shores in St. Joseph Michigan. (With Spiderman into the Spiderverse playing in the background!)
We’ll have a few days here in Helsinki to explore, then we’re off to St. Petersburg by boat.
Travel Supplies!
Our airfare was pretty good - but it also meant no checked baggage, so I had to be very particular about what supplies came along. Pictured above are;
-Watercolor sketchbook
-Watercolor postcards
-Caran D’Ache watersoluble pastels
-Fredrix Canvas squares (cut from a roll).
-Fredrix canvas sheets rolled in my travel tube.
From the Helsinki harbor
Today’s plan is a few art museums, naps to adjust to the new time zone, dinner out by the harbor and some time to paint later on back in the hotel, but we’ll see just how much our internal clocks let us accomplish.
Coming Soon! Solo show 'Thoughts on Water' at the Inn at Harbor Shores
SO excited to share that I’ll be showing work here, at The Inn at Harbor Shores from June through September.
‘Thoughts on Water’ is all about the ways in which we experience the water, by being around it, traveling over it and submerging ourselves in it.
I spent the weekend out here making color studies, contour sketches and brainstorming for the show. I really enjoy making work on the western side of our state, the white sandy beaches and the endlessness of the lake are a constant inspiration.
Wave contour studies
More blind wave contours.
Spending the night in New Buffalo (At the Marina Grand) tweaking color studies in front of the fire <3
I can’t wait to share more progress of the work for the show!
‘Thoughts on Water” will open on June 14th with a little party on the second floor of the gallery - get in touch if you’re coming, I’d love to say hi!
Monthly Recap and Re-focus worksheet for Artists
At the start of every month I fill out a little worksheet. It helps me in tracking my finances, studio time and project allotments, but more importantly it gives me time to check in with myself and my practice and make sure I’m pointed in the right direction.
It started as scribbles in my studio journal, which then morphed into a separate sheet like the Art Planner Page downloadable here (which I use to manage the day-to-day aspects of my life in the studio.) After several iterations to change the layout and flow of the worksheet I think I’ve whittled it into a form that could be helpful for other artists too.
How I Use the Worksheet:
I fill it out in two stages; the first taking place at the beginning of the month as I look toward the future, and the second stage happens at the end as I recap and recenter.
I begin with an opening thought for the month. This is a free space for me to record my thoughts and feelings as I look toward the coming weeks, write down projects I’m excited for, or muse about ideas I want to work with.
After that I try to distill my top 3 goals for that month, art and non-art.
Then I go through the numbers, noting my finance goals, money coming in and out, website visitors, email subscribers, social accounts…etc. I fill these out twice, once at the beginning of the month and then I follow-up at the end of the month as well, noting change and seeing how close I am to meeting my financial goals.
Finally, at the end of the month I enter in a closing thought. This can be something I’m really proud of during the last few weeks, something I want to change for the next month or just a story that sticks with me. This is my time to say goodbye to the previous month and sum it up in a way that might be meaningful for the future.
If anyone is interested in using it for your purposes feel free to download it here! (PDF, will print at 8.5 x 11)
Feel free to manipulate it and change it to suit your practice, I’d love to see if it’s at all helpful for you!
Studio Intentions with the New Ensō Collection from Pilot Pen
(Thank you to Pilot Pen for kindly sponsoring this post! All opinions are honest & completely my own. I never work with a sponsor or product that I don’t love. <3 )
On most days I can be found working to balance multiple painting projects, a commission or two, website updates, art event planning, house remodeling adventures… things can get a little chaotic here relatively quickly. To combat the pull of the messy, paint-y abyss I keep a studio planner and strictly manage my time, but that only covers the physical, actionable parts of the tasks and goals I have set.
One of my goals for 2019 was to work on visualizing the emotional, bigger picture, intangible and abstract responses to the day as well. In the same way I would brainstorm and examine how to tackle a project, brainstorm and examine my hopes and plans for my painting practice.
So I started recording my studio-intentions.
I mean ‘intention’ here in the way a yoga instructor might; these non-concrete thoughts that embody the ideals for the day, week, year or beyond with essences that I can reach for and visualize. These serve as a reminder that though there are physical steps to complete projects, frame of mind is just as important. Some are solitary words, some are short sentences. What matters is how I connect with and reference them throughout the day.
So when Pilot Pen reached out to me about working together, I knew exactly how I would use their new Ensō Collection of Watercolor Brush Pens.
The kit features 7 super vivid and precise felt tipped pens (black, brown, red, orange, blue, pink, green) and a black pen with a very long brush tip for sweeping lines and shapes. Using these with varying amounts of pressure I can create a number of different lines, exploring and defining the nature of the word, learning from it and emblazoning it on my practice for the day. I’m able to just play and create knowing the pen is going to give me amazing control and beautiful color.
The pens write beautifully and effortlessly, letting me focus on the design and nature of the word. I record these in a number of different sketchbooks; scribbled on top of old paintings, hidden in the margins, wrapped around sketches and the rich, vibrant ink allows the words to stand out in the chaos. The fine-tip allows me to be precise when I want to create fine lines, while applying a bit of pressure helps to create bold, broad lines.
Using the Watercolor Brush Pens as my tools for these intentions has become a little bit of a ritual at this point. Get into the studio, make coffee, find a good sunbeam (or comfortable spot by a plant) and use the Ensō Collection Watercolor Brush Pens to design the intangible goals for the day.
Again, big thanks to Pilot Pen for sponsoring this post, these new pens were fast favorites of mine. Do you have a practice of recording your studio intentions? Do you also love writing out words with really beautiful pens? Leave me a message, I’d love to see how you work these into your practice.
Opening Night at Miss Kim
Today’s the day!
I’ve been planning, painting and prepping for this show since October and I’m so excited the the opening night at Miss Kim is finally here.
My list for the morning’s preparations….
Here we go!
Water Anthem in it’s new home for the month.
Hand-crafted cocktail from the bar to match ‘Blush Response’
It was an amazing night. I was so grateful to be able to meet so many new people, talk with old friends and see my family surrounded by paintings that are very close to my heart.
Thanks so much to everyone who came out and made it as magical as it was <3
My work will be up throughout the month with sold pieces rotating out for new paintings - so if you haven’t stopped by make sure to check it out!