Art Classes

Watercolor journaling with Helen Shafer Garcia:

Here's a sample of Helen's journal art-

Our first class assignment- Dropped In Watercolor and Intro To Collage-

Second class-

A trip to the library. As we walked along we wrote down words from signs on the way-

then chose some of these words to put together into a short poem. We chose a plant to draw at the library and then drew something inside the library. Our colors were limited to a Triade- 3 colors.

I chose yellow, green and purple and wish I hadn't. There was a yoga class going on in the library which I drew for the background- also wish I hadn't. Not at all happy with the results. Oh well!

I kind of like the poem, tho.

Third class- Buena Creek Gardens. This was a wonderful nursery that was also full of entertaining animals, which I wrote about in an earlier blog.

 Our assignment was to choose things to paint including an architectural element and to paint across two pages of the journal. I didn't finish this one.

Fourth class- We worked at the school. We painted succulents gathered from around the school and added elements of white gouache. we also added a pocket to include 3-dimensional elements.

Fifth class- We met at Ron Chisum's succulent- filled garden in Escondido.

He was a very interesting man who is a retired dentist and a wonderful watercolor artist. He's obsessed with succulents-

grows them, studies them, propagates new ones, knows all their complicated names and just generally loves them. Unfortunately, I don't share his love but I did enjoy drawing them.

 Margery and Ron.

 Ellie and Lois

 Lois photographing fruit from the Cereus peruvianus, which goes so nicely with her shirt and camera (phone?)

 Helen in the greenhouse. 

 Lois in the garden.

 The plants I drew.

We were supposed to add a poem (notice the empty space). I just couldn't do it. I'm definitely not a poet. Everyone else did brilliantly. Besides not being very fond of succulents, I don't like poetry, either. Everyone I know likes poetry AND succulents. What's wrong with me? (I did enjoy writing the poem in the previous class where we started with the words we found on signs.)


Sixth class-
We met at the school and went over everything we had done. Then went to Myrtle Creek to paint and have lunch. It was a wonderful lunch. I haven't finished my painting, yet.