Sherry Meidell's Blog, page 5

The 2024 National Watercolor Society Member Show? Yes, I was juried in.

”Passing Penguin Time”

One thing you know for sure, if you don’t enter a show, you won’t get in. You have to take the leap and put your art out there and enter some shows. It is exciting to see your watercolor up there with some of the other great artists in the world. There were artists from 9 countries, and 32 states that entered. About 1,000 entries and 100 made it in the show. Larry Moore was the juror. He is a Gold Medal winner from the Society of Illustrators and other numerous awards along with articles in many art magazines.

I also got a great email from Judy Saltzman who is the vice-president of the National Watercolor Society letting me know that my painting, “Passing Penguin Time” is being featured on The National Watercolor Society site in the slider at the top of the website. You can go check it out. I’ll put the link at the bottom of this blog post.

Dave and I went with some friends down to Antarctica on a cruise. Not a lot of sunshine and laying on a tropical beach. More like all day out on the side of the ship, bundled up, looking at icebergs and searching the ocean for penguins.

But when I would get back to our room and zoom in on the pictures of the ocean, treasures would appear. Chin-Strapped Penguins.

Another treasure was captured in my sketchbook, a group of ladies from Japan playing Mahjong. Some things you see in life and you just want to capture them in a painting. So “Passing Penguin Time”came to be. Something to do while waiting for the next Penguin encounter. Have you found hidden treasures when you’ve zoomed into life?

THE National Watercolor Society

Larry Moore Studio

The Zoom Link to the NWS Membership show 2024 on you tube.

Back from the Western Fed. Watercolor Show

I was one of three artists from the Utah Watercolor Society that was juried into the Western Federation of Watercolor Societies’49th Annual Exhibition. It was great to make the trip to Phoenix and spend time with the other artists.

Here is my painting “Hyrum” hanging behind the band that played at the awards ceremony. It is good to see a show and look at the original art. There is a lot more to see and learn when you see the paintings in person. You can see the hand of the artist.

We were also able to go to Taliesin West and see the school and home created by Frank Lloyd Wright started in his 70’s. Everywhere you looked you could see the hand of the artist. There was good design in every angle and detail and natural material in the buildings. It was a great place to get inspired. It is important as an artist to fill up your creative cup. This was a good place to do that. What do you do to fill your creative cup?

Utah Watercolor Society

Western Federation of Watercolor Societies

Stepping Out of Your Comfort Zone

I had the chance to be an assistant ski instructor at a local resort this winter. It sounded like a good idea. Being outside in the fresh air. Getting a bit of physical activity. I didn’t think about getting up to the mountain in all kinds of weather. (Blizzards) Standing in the HR line with a bunch of sun bronzed young athletic people made me want to run for my art studio and close the door. But I mentally stood my ground and like most challenges in our lives, I came out the other end with a great experience.

It did take away from my time to create art. But it is good for an artist to get out of the studio and have new experiences. I met some amazing 6 year olds. I met one six year old that had Taylor Swift as a Nanny. It really impressed the other 6 year old riding up on the lift sitting on the other side of me. He leaned out and said, “Wow.” Six year old number one said she would sing him a song at night like Haters Got To Hate Hate Hate. I said that song would not help me to fall asleep. He said she whispers the song in his ear. Sounds like an up and coming fiction writer with a great imagination on the way. Look out world.

The six year olds couldn’t keep their skis uncrossed. Life inspires art. Have you had experiences that have inspired your life?

Struck by the Art

I attended an Artist reception at the Cottonwood Presbyterian Church this Sunday. The above painting “Mary Kept All These Things and Pondered Them in Her Heart “was hanging there. A man came around the corner and said, “Where is Sherry Meidell?” I introduced myself. He said that my painting struck him. He wanted to know my feelings on creating it. 

My Artist statement was hanging next to the painting. “The first time a new mother holds her little newborn, she falls in love. The bond is so strong between mother and child. Besides the strong bond of love, Mary had a lot to think about. She had the visit from an Angel, and she was willing to be the mother of Christ with all that entailed. She witnessed the visit of the shepherds and their testimonies of their own hearing a chorus of angels. But there was a lot to ponder and a lot of things to witness. She saw the Lords journey from birth to the ending on the cross. And she pondered all these things in her heart.
‘We also can ponder in our hearts her watchfulness as Christ went about his Father’s business. We can ponder what we will do to honor Him.”

So the painting struck him. That was good to hear as an artist. You put a lot of your life into a painting and it is nice to know that all that work was seen and struck a cord in someone else. He like the curly hair of the baby. I told him my husband and I had traveled to Israel and had taken a picture of a father holding his child with beautiful dark curly hair. Perhaps that photo taken years ago worked its way into my sketches.

Pondered in Her Heart

Here comes the Christmas Season. The above painting was done for my friend to hang in an exhibit at her Presbyterian Church. The topic was the Annunciation. There is a lot to think about when you want to paint a picture. There is more than how you want to move the paint around. You also have to think of how you will portray the subject. You have to step a bit into the picture. It’s an oil painting.

‘Below is the picture I have displayed by a bell at the Bountiful Davis Art Center. “Every time you hear a bell ring, an angel gets his wings ” a quote from the movie It’s A Wonderful Life. Come check out the art and ring the bell. You can also write some comments in my comment book. The opening is this Friday November 17, 2023 6pm. to 8pm. At the Bountiful Davis Art Center. Here comes Christmas.

Presentation Is Important?

Years ago there was a Utah Watercolor Society Show up in Logan. Life was busy (either going to wrestling matches or getting a son ready to come home from a mission and another to go out). There is always something good going on. But life was busy so I didn’t have time to properly frame my small works entry. I found a make do frame with no mat and entered the show. The judge approached me after the show and said presentation is important. If your painting had been properly framed it would have got a higher award. So presentation is important? I knew that but since then I’ve taken care to properly frame my paintings.

So as I get ready for the Bountiful Davis Art Center Christmas Show, framing and presentation is on my mind. I’m framing paintings and taking them over to the BDAC. So if you would like to see if I’ve learned anything about presentation and see the prints, the information on the opening and the show are below. Come chat with me about life and art. See you there November 17th, 2023 6-8pm at BDAC, 90 North Main Street, Bountiful, Utah 84087.

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BDAC

Doing Demo’s

This is the last demo for the fall watercolor class at Bountiful Davis Art Center. Painting in front of others for your class or a workshop is always an adventure. You’re watching the progress of your painting in actual time as are all the witnesses of your painting skills. No pressure whatsoever. It takes some courage and some diving in and going for it. And a few exclamations of surprise from you as it progresses. You’ve got your exclamation of delight and your exclamation of “Oh no.” Some demos go through a phase where you may be as surprised as the viewers are that it turns out. This demo worked from the beginning and demonstrated everything I wanted to teach my class. Which is an amazing class filled with delightful people.

I’m starting to gather some things together for my Christmas Booth at the Bountiful Davis Art Center. The show will run from November 17, 2023 through December 23rd. Tuesday – Friday 10am-6pm and Saturdays 12 noon-5pm. The opening will be November 17, 2023 from 6-8 pm. Come check out the booths and say hi.

Arts in the Parks vs the Ring of Fire

The annual Utah Watercolor Society Plein Air Competition down in Wayne County and Capitol Reef had a slight conflict this year. We were told to get lodging early because everything would be booked because of the annular eclipse.

I thought for sure I had made reservations at a local RV campground but when we arrived they had no reservations under my name. And I had no confirmation number. They had a spot for that night but not for the rest of the week. It was dark and absolutely freezing. The wind was whipping as we plugged into electricity and tried to get things set-up. I told my husband we should just wake up in the morning and drive home… but we would miss the eclipse.

First thing in the morning I peeked out the window and saw a glorious sunrise with the morning sun hitting the cliff face behind us and shimmering through the yellow leaves of the trees in the distance. I did a little sketch in my watercolor sketchbook. Maybe we could stay if we could find a place to park the trailer.

Some kind friends of ours offered their driveway to park our trailer in up on Boulder Mountain. It was a great place to be. So we were set for the weekend of painting three watercolor paintings and watching the eclipse because of their kindness. Thanks to those who purchased all three paintings. I also received an award of third place in the large category. It was a great weekend.

I will have a number of my Christmas prints for sell at the Bountiful Davis Art Center during the month of December. Come check out the display and maybe find some Christmas gifts for yourself or others.

bdac.org

Thinking About Backgrounds

A lot of artists focus on the subject and don’t think about the background until all of a sudden the subject is done and you’re left with an unpainted background. Now what do you do? Even if you paint the subject before the background, you should have some idea of where you want your painting to go including the background. Here again is my demo for the Dixie Watercolor Society in St. George, Utah that I started. I did have an idea of where I wanted the background to go but not enough time to finish the painting. I told the Society that I would finish the painting and then send them a copy. One of the drawbacks of finishing the subject and then tackling the background is the fear you might have of messing up the background and thus ruining the entire painting. But you have to dive in, have some faith and go for it. If you’re afraid it will show up in each stroke of your brush. Here’s how my diving in ended up.

I love how the dark background shows off the face. I also love how the dress turned out. It was painted freely by looking at the photo of the dress. It’s a combination of the reference material and what ended up on the paper. Below is the demo I did the year before for the Dixie Watercolor Society. The graphic quality was achieved by using masking tape instead of masking fluid.

The Dixie Watercolor Society Workshop and Demo

I had a delightful time teaching and presenting at the Dixie Watercolor Society. These students were dedicated painters and jumped right into the different projects we worked on. We talked about bringing life into our portraits and paintings of people, the freedom of painting florals and topped things off with a landscape watercolor.
It was interesting to see the artists that were so timid with their portraits dive into rich color and movement in their floral paintings. It was a nice group to hang out with for three days.

It can be intimidating to paint in front of people and painting babies can be especially hard so I chose the little cutie below to paint. My husband had never sat through one of my demos and said at the first he was worried that I would never be able to pull off the painting. He called it a zombie baby. (His words not mine.) It is like magic to put angle and shape and brush stroke down on paper and suddenly a cute baby appears before your eyes on your paper. I could not wipe the grin off my face each time I looked down at her. And at the end my husband said. “Oooh nice.”

I did not have time to finish the painting at the demo but said I would share the finished product with the Dixie Watercolor Society and you here on the blog. So here she is the unfinished painting and I will post the finished painting next blog post. If you have a watercolor society near you it’s a great opportunity for education and friendship and a chance to display your work at shows. Here is the link for the Utah Watercolor Society and the Dixie Watercolor Society.