I've been busy painting at Lusher Farm for Plein Air: A Chronicle of Lake Oswego. It was such a wonderful surprise to be invited to participate, and it's been an adventure trying to get back into the plein air groove. It's coming back...slowly.
One of the best parts of Lusher Farm for me is the dog park. It's big, the views of the hillside and farm are beautiful, there are nice restrooms and safe parking. I took Deuce, my sweet chocolate lab, with me to paint last weekend. It was his 11th birthday, so to celebrate he got to spend an entire afternoon in the previously unexplored timid/shy dog area of the dog park. It was great! In the past, we've gone to the big, all purpose dog area. The last time we went I realized that while my boy is still full of fun, he can't keep up with packs of young adult big dogs. So we tried the other area. Deuce had a blast meeting a steady stream of non-aggressive dogs that were more into sniffing then wrestling. I met some very nice folks who had their dogs there for some off leash fun, and got started on a couple paintings for possible inclusion in the plein air event.
On Monday, I went to my first Painter's Showcase meeting. I'm so excited to be a new member! I had to pinch myself- I was sitting there with more than twenty of the area's finest artists that chose me to be in their group. I'm thrilled to be part of PS, am excited to get to know the other members, and be part of the big show they put on in September.
I also received notice today that I've been accepted into the Wild Arts Festival in November. Yippee! I was rejected a couple of years ago, but tried again this year with a more cohesive body of work, and a clearer vision of what I really want to be painting. Birds. Wetlands. Nature Refuges. Repeat!
I am so happy to have these awesome additions to my art show calendar. It feels great!
