Flight & Feather Round Two

Hello there!

Hope you are all doing well! We survived Halloween and even managed to donate most of the candy, leaving us with a more reasonable stash. My kids disagree but seriously – there is only so much candy one needs lying about! Now, as for art supplies – that’s another story! One can never have too much as far as I’m concerned! ;)

Speaking of art, I’m so excited to share just some of the gorgeous student work from the first week of Flight & Feather! My students never cease to amaze and inspire me!

From top left, Jan Blencowe, Gillian Bowditch-Cooper, Dee Vlasak, Liz Deck, Alissa Millsap and Karen Harrington

This first class sold out very quickly and with a healthy wait list, I have now opened up registration for a second session with the classroom opening on Nov. 9th!

Go here to learn more and register or simply click the button below! I am limiting my class size again, so now’s the time to join us bird/art lovers for this two week mixed media and encaustic class with lifetime access!

Here’s a little sneak peek at just a some of the projects we will be doing…

I look forward to seeing you in class!

Keep creating and have a beautiful week!

xo,

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Studying Under the Masters

Hello friends!

I’ve got some VERY exciting news to share with you!!!

I’ve been asked by Jeanne Oliver to be a teacher for the next Studying Under the Masters online course! I have taken both previous sessions of this amazing class and have grown so much as an artist by doing so! As you can imagine, I am beyond excited!! I get one, whole, fantastic week to share my love of art with you and teach what I have learned from an in-depth, personal study of a past Master – French painter & illustrator – Marie Laurencin.

Click here to register.

Five super talented artists have been selected, studying under the master of their choice – thus becoming the “apprentice”. This kind of master -apprentice learning is centuries old and is core to the practiced skills of all the Masters.

Check out the line-up of amazing teachers!! Wow…can you say honored!? Read on for all the details….

My fellow artists/instructors include Alisa Burke, Kelly Berkey, Jenny Doh, Melody Ross and of course Jeanne Oliver! Each of them have selected Master Artists that inspire them!

The master Artists we will be studying under are : John Singer Sargent, Gustav Klimt, Joan Miró, Marie Laurencin, Jean-Michel Basquiat and Horrace Pippin.

This 6 week course begins May 5, 2015 with lifetime access – yes – as in forever!
Early registration price is $49.99 and the price will go to $82 on April 6th.

Here is a glimpse of what you can expect each week:
*A brief history of the chosen Master.
*Start to finish video of the artist practicing a painting of the chosen master
*Videos sharing what they learned through practicing the techniques and style of another artist
*A start to finish video of the artist creating their own art using techniques they have learned but creating in their own style
*Each week will end with the artist sharing the artists that have encouraged and inspired them over the years.
*Each week will have book and video references
*Weekly live online “chats” with the artist
*All content has lifetime access
*All videos are pre-recorded so you can watch at your convenience

Click here to register.

{After you have paid from the above link please go to jeanneoliver.ning.com and register on the site where the course is held.  Once you have registered and your account is approved you will be added to the course before the class begins on May 5, 2015. Thank you.}

The Artist I have chosen is Marie Laurecin.

She is a fascinating and rather overlooked Master who hung with a pretty fab Artsy crowd…ya know…like…Georges Braque, Pablo Picasso, Gertrude Stein, Henri Rousseau and French poet and “father of surrealism” Guillaume Apollinaire.  Her work speaks to a deliberate and beautiful contrast to the cubist movement that her friends were so inspired by. Although often referred to as a rare female cubist, her work quickly derailed from this and evolved into a rather primitive, elegant and feminine style – where line and form blur, languid female forms and doe eyed faces tell little of emotion but rather evoke a state of ambivalence and mystery.

During my week of study with you, we will explore not only Marie’s personal history but her varied use of mediums, techniques and artistic methods. She mastered watercolors, inks, pencil studies as well as oils! Her works move from being cubist inspired to a place infused with inspiration from the Rococo period, Persian art, fashion and ballet. She was an illustrator, painter, portrait artist, set & costumer designer and muse to one of Paris’ most influential poets! A truly talented and powerful woman who I know you will love to study! I have planned for a super-inspired week chock full of learning, exploring and most importantly stretching beyond our artistic comfort zones! :) Get ready to truly feel what it is like to be an apprentice to a world renown artist right from the lovely comfort of your own home! Pretty sweet right?

Click here to register.

{After you have paid from the above link please go to jeanneoliver.ning.com and register on the site where the course is held.  Once you have registered and your account is approved you will be added to the course before the class begins on May 5, 2015. Thank you.}

So you might be curious…what are others saying about the Studying Under the Masters Course? Read on my friends…

Praise for the Masters series…

“In all my years as an artist, I have never had a course that stretched and grew me so much. Not only has my art taken off in so many exciting ways, but I was blessed with friendship and support I never expected. Thanks for all that you do. I am so looking forward to part two!”
-Renee

“The Studying the Masters class inspired me to look deeper into my own art process. The format where I was able to find out more about the artist’s process and their techniques captured my attention. The presenting artists were quality women whose own art process gave me confidence to keep going. I look forward to the next class.”
-Linda

“This course is one of the best I have taken in that it introduced me to several different modern day artists. In watching how they studied under some masters, I became a student of, not one, but TWO artists each week, some of whom I feel a real resonance with!! I feel as though I am finding more of my artistic voice as a result of this class, and that is pretty exciting!! Thanks so much Jeanne for helping me take another step closer to my dream! ”
-Silvia

“The best class ever no matter your talent level…seeing the instructors paint right along in  “their” style of painting trying to get close to what a Master created was so enlightening since each had awesome talent but different ways to get the final results that they wanted! We were in their studio with there favorite supplies, magic!”
-Tari

Please let me know if you have more questions about this fantastic course. It is truly an opportunity to spread your wings as an artist and learn from a selection of the greatest Masters in history!

Click here to register.

Can’t wait to see you in class!

xo,

Ivy

More Matisse love.

Hi all! Happy Friday.

This week has been rough! I got sick, then Grace got sick…now Chris is sick. Ugh! It’s such a domino effect! My throat is still killing me but I made myself paint yesterday. I couldn’t stand it! Once I got Grace all cozy in her bed with toast and O.J., I armed myself with a strong cup of tea and got to work…

As many of you know I am taking Jeanne Oliver’s course, Studying Under the Masters and one of our assignments was to study one of Matisse’s works. I chose this piece, entitled – “The Idol” 1906.

{via}

The intense colors, patterns and contrast attracted me to this piece, mostly because they are completely out of my comfort zone. I really wanted to push myself. The painterly brush strokes and somewhat unfinished elements to this work also made me nervous BUT I went for it anyway. I had started this work several days ago and was itching to finish it!

Here are some shots of my progress. (I had to keep reminding myself that the goal here was to learn from his techniques and NOT create a perfect replica. I’m not an art forger, after all! lol.)

Just like Matisse, I executed my first sketch using charcoal and then did an under painting using Raw Umber.  My chosen substrate is a Blick Birch Panel.

I blocked in the colors and tried not to think too much. Thinking while painting is over rated, in my opinion, too many icky, critical thoughts come up and inhibit the process. Trust me, I had many moments when I almost gave up!

As you can see, my scale was a bit off. So I decided to use a little artistic license, and add a bouquet of flowers in her hands. I’m sure Matisse wouldn’t mind. ;)

This was such a wonderful experience. It really got me using bold colors and much looser brush strokes. I found the freedom of not making everything so refined very inspiring. I felt like I was painting with emotion and not logic.

Doing this piece inspired me to create my own little Matisse portrait. I was able to complete this in one sitting…which is SO not like me. I could go back and add more detail but I’m not sure I will. Leaving it a bit raw and primitive feels good.

So far this e-course has blown my mind! It’s always a good sign that my creativity is flowing when I start actually composing paintings in my head…(like all the time). It’s a little distracting but it fills my heart with such joy.

They say life begins on the edge of your comfort zone and so far…I think that might completely true.

Have a beautiful weekend. Stay healthy!

xo,

Ivy

Inspired by Matisse

Hi there! How are you? Hope your week is treating you well.

As for me, well, I’m a little overwhelmed with creative energy. You see, I just started this amazing online course with Jeanne Oliver called “Studying under the Masters“. It’s a nine week course with nine different teachers. Each week, we get a new teacher and a new Master to learn from.

This first week has been with Jeanne teaching us about Henri Matisse. It has been an absolute delight!

Back in Art School, we covered Matisse and hundreds of other artists but was I really paying attention? Well… not so much. With so many lectures, dead lines, assignments, critiques and social events (keg parties)… let’s just say I didn’t absorb as much as I should have. Often, I took being a student for granted.

Now, learning has become precious to me. It wakes me up and makes me feel alive, connected and passionate. That’s why I’m hooked on Jeanne’s courses.

Oh Matisse, you wonderful man! I didn’t know I was so fond of your work till now! He was a master of color, pattern and portraits! I love how he captures a scene, flattens it and layers it with brilliant hues and complex patterns! His faces, sometimes refined and others primitive and simplified. However, his intensity is consistent. His pieces almost vibrate with energy and mood. Truly inspiring!

Studying his work has made me feel free again…to just draw and play and not worry about perfection, perspective, technique. Just create and explore! I can’t seem to stop drawing! Even the white board on our fridge is covered in doodles. :) Here are a few of my own little works that I did in my sketchbook…all inspired by Matisse!

More projects to come! So…what artist inspires you?

Have a fantastic Friday.

xo,

Ivy

{all Matisse images via here}

Up for the challenge…

Hi everyone. Happy Friday. I come to you today excited about possibility, learning and expanding! Even though I am exhausted from a night up with my poor teething, Claire – I am thrilled at some of the new things I’ve been trying lately!

First of all, I am super excited to let you know that I just signed up for Blog Boss – a new e-course with Holly Becker from decor8! I took her first course – Blogging your way – a couple of years ago and it taught me so much! This next one looks to be amazing and I can’t wait for class to begin. There is still time to enroll – check it out here.

Lately, I am trying to expand my photography knowledge so I’ve been dabbling in portrait photography. I know you have all seen my attempts with my children but recently I’ve been taking pics for friends and it has been quite the learning experience. I have such respect for those professional photographers out there that do portrait work. It is a true art! My latest subject was my neighbor, Taryn Emerson. She is such a fantastic friend and an incredible interior designer too! She asked me to take her portrait for her website (in production) and online social profiles. I agreed. So, last Sunday, I handed over Clarie to my hubby and off I went down the street with my trusty camera, in the hopes of capturing my friend and doing her beauty justice! The overcast sky provided the perfect, softly filtered light. We jumped around from her place to mine, outside, inside, front yard, back yard…but ended up with this as our winning shot!

Some of our other attempts…

Taryn was a great sport and put up with all my amateur-ish mistakes. In between giggles, she was poised and patient.

It is so wonderful to have another creative buddy right in the neighborhood and she is always encouraging. She likes to challenge me too…which is a rare gift in a friend. Since I have been avidly taking pictures, she suggested I shoot her gorgeous designer kitchen for her portfolio too. I balked at the request, insisting I knew nothing about interior photography and how we would probably have to rent lights and wide angle lens. She rolled her eyes and said, “Oh come on, let’s just try it!” So over a bottle of wine that night, we styled the entire kitchen and shot it the next morning…

It was so much fun dusting off my interior design skills to style this lovely space and collaborating with another designer is something I have missed! When we started the shoot it was dark and gray outside and I was doubtful that the light was sufficient but like a sweet gift, the sunshine broke through the clouds, spilling light into the room. We scrambled to move Taryn’s heavy kitchen table so we could let the shadow of the window unfurl onto the warm wood floor.

All in all, we were both pretty pleased with ourselves and I learned a lot! There is nothing better than the feeling of meeting a challenge, especially a creative one. So don’t limit yourself, expand your creative gifts – sure it can be a little scary and you might even mess up but one thing is for sure – you will learn and you will grow – and that is worth it every time!

Have a wonderful weekend!

xo,

***Check out more of Taryn’s beautiful interior design projects here and like her new Facebook page here.***

A Vintage portrait with Grace

Hi everyone! Hope you had a lovely weekend. Grace and I got to work on one of the art projects for my online art class this weekend and it was so much fun.  The assignment was to create a vintage inspired portrait on a small piece of canvas.

Grace was anxious to start and dived right in! I love that about creating with kids this young – they have no fear! While I sat there, carefully selecting each scrap of vintage paper, she got straight to work, with no hesitation.

She, of course, finished before me.  Her little fingers were covered in glue but she was just giddy – as was I!

Soon we both had our canvas’ prepared…covered in a patchwork of vintage papers and doilies.

I showed Grace examples of Jeanne’s original work so she could envision the outcome of the project.  See Jeanne’s beautiful piece below…

image via jeanneoliverdesigns

We will be attaching these canvas’ to vintage door plates or escutcheons, just as seen above. I have two coming from Etsy! I love how this makes a stand for these tiny artworks!

Here is Grace’s finished portrait…

When I asked her to tell me the story behind this portrait she said, ” She is a princess, waiting in the garden outside her castle for her prince to come.” I melted. My little romantic.

Here are the first steps of my process…sketching in my girl…

I painted out some of the background papers to create a light area.

Using a Stabilo Marks all pencil, charcoal, white gel pen and acrylic paints I filled in the details. I couldn’t resist adding some tiny pearls to her headband. I thought I was finished but something was missing…

The flock of birds and flower in her hair completed the piece for me.

This was a wonderful little project and I can’t wait to do another one! I bought these little canvas’ in bulk from Michaels and Grace has already started her second one!

Hope you all have a beautiful day!

xo,