Busy, busy busy and here's hoping the weather will be kind enough to let me back in Longmeadow Studio after a long damp winter. My trusty assistant (husband Ken) and I have cleared, sorted and tidied with 3 huge boxes donated to #hospiceintheweald and a carload due for the municipal recycling centre.
I have just watched a webinar by Brighton artist #faye_bridgwater on how to use
Instagram effectively to promote your work. Best £20 I have spent this year, the recording is available until April at https://www.stivesschoolofpainting if you are interested. Faye is such an inspiring and enthusiastic host, she makes you believe you can do anything. She advised to always have your face on your profile, (so I took my first selfie) and to have a personal hashtag, ( #chartwellartist ) why not take a look on Instagram?
There is also a FREE online international course being run by Nick Wilton an American abstract artist and founder of #art2life I have signed up. Thousands of artists have benefitted from his unique way of teaching and this intensive 6 day workshop called #artofyourlife begins on Monday 4th March. I have put the whole week aside so I can give it my full attention. There is still time to enrol if you want to join in.
This is my first year of taking part in the #100dayproject and so far so good. My theme is #100days100colourpalettes I have selected several photographs and every day I try to match one image with colour swatches in acrylic paint. This is standard procedure for many artists but I have always been rather lazy about mixing colours on my palette and tended in the past to mix on the actual work. I am only a couple of weeks into it but already my eye is more tuned in to the subtle shades and tints. My dedicated sketchbook will hold 45 images and palettes. I shall decide at that point whether to continue on to a second book using the same process or maybe adapting it slightly to a different medium. I can see this will be a great reference book for the future.
Now to April Fools Day and the big one. I have enrolled in Sally-Anne Ashley's 10 week course #creativeshift a creative development course for artists to explore mindfulness, focus and clarity. I am definitely no fool to have signed up for this, after a long chat with Sally-Anne at her open studio last September, I jumped in and can't wait for it to begin. Sally-Anne is an abstract artist based in Essex who listens and nurtures with nudges and prompts, a gentle soul with what appears to be an endless reserve of generosity and kindness. To see Sally-Anne's work and read all about her teaching activities go to https://sally-anneashley.com
During all this I shall still be preparing for my own open studio that begins on Saturday 1st June and continues throughout June from Thursday-Sunday 10-4 until the 30th June. I am enrolled with #southeastopenstudios and #artinjune There will be promotional snippets here and there on FB and Instagram and much more detail in my May newsletter. Please come along if you can for a chat and a cuppa with the chance to look around my garden and see what I have been up to. I also plan to demonstrate a few paper folding techniques and maybe some blind embossing. If you cannot make any of these dates you can always email or message me to make an appointment. You could even combine it with a trip to NT Chartwell House, just a short walk away. As Winston Churchill famously said;
"a day away from Chartwell is a day wasted."
Before we know it it will be Easter. The shops are already full of hot cross buns, fluffy chicks and chocolate eggs. We organise a treasure hunt every year for our grandchildren and this year we need to be a bit more inventive. I am thinking I may give them an explosion book each with a map and clues to the treasure. Not quite sure how I will do this but here is one I made depicting Hexfoils; marks made on ancient buildings to protect against witches and evil spirits. Take a look in my gallery at ARTIST BOOKS and you will find blank explosion books in 2 sizes. If you live in the UK and would like a book at the SPECIAL OFFER PRICE of £5 for the 12cm square or £10 for the 16cm square please send a Large Letter SAE with either a £5 or £10 note included and address to: Jane Sherwood. 2 Longmeadow Studio. Puddledock Lane. Chartwell. Kent. TN16 1PU. Let me know in comments or by email when you have posted it so I know to expect a delivery. I will email you to confirm receipt and advise delivery times. Talking of explosion books I have entered the #gfsmithpapers collage challenge hosted by #contemporarycollagemagazine and created 3 explosion books from their range of coloured papers. These will be available to view at my open studio and hopefully featured in the magazine.
Well I think that is all for now, wishing some sunny spring weather for us all and a delightful Easter break and I shall be back in May with the final plans for my open studio and a lot more.
Best wishes JaneS.
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