Updates from Terri on Her Art Journey
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For the first five months of this year, my art life has been mostly about producing art, promoting it, selling it and taking a few workshops and online courses to educate myself.
It’s time now for me to get back to my true love: TEACHING. I’ve always loved school. My mother said that the day she dropped me off for kindergarten, I kissed her goodbye and never looked back. Almost as soon as I could read and write myself, I was teaching younger kids about their ABCs and 123s. Even after I began my career as a journalist, I entertained the idea of going back to school to get a degree that would enable me to teach children. Instead, I wound up teaching journalism at the graduate level. At least it was teaching. When I retired from Columbia Graduate School of Journalism nearly five years ago, I transformed myself into a “visual artist,” and began my art journey by taking courses to learn some basic skills. But my desire to teach never waned. Fortunately for me, among my instructors was Rod Moore, an Australian painter and founder of the Learn To Paint Academy. In addition to teaching the fundamentals of painting, Rod has a course that gives you all the tools to teach a painting class to absolute beginners. I took the course, passed it and was certified to teach using Rod’s method of painting. As a Moore Certified Instructor, I began teaching nearly a year ago. But I got distracted. Life got in the way, as they say. Nonetheless, I’m now looking forward to seriously tackling the task of teaching absolute beginners how to paint using the Moore Method of Painting. One of the initial obstacles for me was finding a venue to teach. My earliest classes were taught in my backyard. That’s fine when the weather cooperates. But the hot desert sun of Las Vegas makes it nearly impossible for much of the year. So, I’ve been lucky to find a home at City Lights Art Gallery in Henderson, NV, which has a classroom I can rent for a modest fee of just 20% of what I charge in tuition. My next class is scheduled for Tuesday, June 13, when I’ll be teaching a Moore project called “Cape Otway Lighthouse.” Space is limited to just six students per class, and I’ll be spending the next two weeks promoting this one. Who knows? Perhaps I’ll develop a following and teach a regular, ongoing class. Let me know if you or anyone you know might be interested in learning how to paint with me!
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Last week, my husband and I took my sister on a trip to the Napa Valley in California. We visited some gorgeous vineyards, drank plenty of delicious wine, and took a tour on the wine train.
So, I wasn’t able to make a single painting, but I didn’t let our little vacation stall my art journey. Instead, I took some amazing photographs of the beautiful scenery. And I plan to use them as reference photos for some future paintings. Who knows? Maybe Napa will be the subject of another series of paintings! This past Mother’s Day weekend, I participated in the Henderson Art Festival for the second time, and I must say, it was even better than last year’s event.
Not only did I hang out with good friends, but I also more than doubled the amount of money I made on the sale of my artwork. That’s partly because I lowered my prices to a level that accommodates the budgets of local residents. In the end, I sold 20 acrylic paintings, a couple of small watercolors and one greeting card. I’m satisfied with the sales. But even better, I got to spend time with the dedicated artists who are members of the City Lights Art Gallery co-op. It’s a non-profit organization that raises funds for art scholarships. We are all volunteers, and, boy, did we work hard this weekend! It was all worthwhile. Plus the best outcome for me is that a number of people took my flier for my upcoming painting class for absolute beginners which I’ll be teaching on June 13 at the gallery. If just six of these folks sign up for the class, I’ll be more than happy. Thank you, Lord, for the beautiful weather and for all the art-loving folks who came out to enjoy the festivities (and bought my art!) Last week, I kept busy preparing for the Henderson Art Festival, which is being held this coming Mother’s Day weekend (May 13-14).
This will be the second time I’ve participated in this art festival and if it’s anything like last year, it will be loads of fun. The city of Henderson (which is right next to Las Vegas) closes its downtown Water Street District from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. on both Saturday and Sunday so that local artists can set up tents up and down the street. I will be setting up across from City Lights Art Gallery, which is located at 3 E. Army Street, just off Water Street. Local artists will be selling original artwork (everything from paintings, drawings, and photography, to jewelry, ceramics and glass art). Outside the gallery there will be a childrens craft tent. And City Lights will conduct raffles and host a Silent Auction (to benefit our scholarship fund). For details about the Silent Auction, check out the gallery's website. As for me, I’ll have a number of paintings from my sunflower and sky series available for sale, as well as a few new pieces I’ve put together just for this art festival. I’ll also have details about the class for beginning painters that I’ll be teaching in June. So, if you happen to be near Las Vegas this coming weekend, check out the festival. And if you stop by my tent and mention that you read my blog, I’ll have a little gift for you. Yesterday I completed my 30SKIES series in which I posted on Facebook one of my skyscapes every day for the entire month of April. And last week, someone who has been following me on Facebook purchased one of my paintings. Hallelujah!
Getting the money is nice, of course, but even more satisfying were the kind comments I received during the month from my friends and followers on Facebook. Because I was posting every day of the month, I received more than 400 reactions on Facebook and my engagement more than doubled over the previous month. I really felt the love. And that was so gratifying. So, I’ve come to realize that what motivates me to paint is NOT money. It’s because I love to paint, and I love to bring joy to people who love (or at least like) what I do. If you’re a fan of mine, thank you for following me. I love and appreciate you. |
AuthorTerri Thompson is a journalist-turned-visual artist, who is on an "art journey" and exploring how to tell her stories through her watercolor and acrylic paintings and photographs. Categories |