Where Has the Time Gone????

As I write this I see it has been MONTHS since I've posted anything.  Well, far from nothing has been going on.  It has been a busy Summer.

After my trip to Columbus GA to study with Bo Bartlett I was off to "Paint NC".  This is an invitational plein-aire painting event hosted by Germanton Gallery in Germanton, NC

I turned around and bumped into myself while painting!

6x8 study to begin the day.

 This event was followed by a trip to Clayton GA to speak with the N. Georgia Arts Guild. They were kind enough to invited me to speak about my artwork and painting process.

Once back home in Spartanburg I worked with the SC School for the Deaf & the Blind as an Artist in Residence to help the art classes prepare a piece of are for their "Very Special Arts" program. The kids at the school were really great to work with. They even taught me a little sign language.

Me & some of the students with their completed project.

May came and with it always comes the Spoleto Festival USA! This is an incredible performing arts festival in Charleston, SC. Several of the galleries hosted a Spoleto Sole and scheduled their artists to paint on Broad St so visitors walking from one performance to another could see some art being created. Edward dare Gallery represents my work in Charleston so I painted near the gallery the first weekend of the festival.

June was a adventurous month with a trip to Jamaica to celebrate the wedding of Kent Cecil and Marisa Axelrod. This had to be THE most beautiful wedding I've ever been to. While in Jamaica I had wonderful opportunity to spend a day & a half with my former room mate from Ringling College of Art & Design, Janis Rankin. Janis is a wonderful watercolor artist and also manages a magnificent villa in the mountains of Montego Bay, Jamaica called The Anchorage Villa.  This place has breathtaking views of Montego Bay and also once the home and studio of the late Michael Lister who painted the people and places of Jamaica.

June also brought a great opportunity to work with a Wofford College art major. I was asked to work with a student who won an art Fellowship. Once a week we meet to discuss the paintings she is creating for a show in November. Teaching is a wonderful give and take experience, I'm getting alot out of this too.  Several times we've done some plein aire paintings, even in this blistering Summer heat!

July was the beginning of helping my Mom move in to a new phase of her life.... moving from a 3000sq foot home she's been in for over 38 years to a 1000 sq foot retirement apartment at White Oak Estates.  The move is a big one for her but she has many friends already living there just waiting for her to move in!

In between all of this I have been painting so blog and website updating have taken a back seat.  Life just keeps happening so just keep on painting.

Happy drawing & painting!

Marsh Madness

Edward Dare Gallery
Friday March 4
FIRST FRIDAY ON BROAD, Charleston, SC
5 - 8 pm French Quarter Gallery Association Artwalk

I will be one of several artists represented by Edward Dare Gallery in Charleston, SC that will be a part of this exhibit. My painting Lowcountry Marsh, 24"x24" oil on canvas, is one of the pieces in the show.

Postcards from Charleston

My last post was about my "Postcards" project. I've decided to expand on this idea and I have created some "Postcards from Charleston". Both of these series are available at the galleries that represent me in Charleston & Sullivan's Island. In fact both Edward Dare Gallery at Charleston, SC and and Sandpiper Gallery at Sullivan's Island, SC are currently hosting a show for the holidays called "Postcards from Charleston" and "Postcards from Sullivan's Island" through January.

I really am enjoying creating these small works (all of these paintings are 6"x8") in between the larger studio paintings I create. The process of being able to create something in one studio setting and the challenge of keeping things simple keep me on my toes.

© Isabel Forbes 2010

6"x8" oil on canvas, Window Box

http://isabelforbes.com/

© Isabel Forbes 2010

8"x6" oil on canvas, Basket Weaver

http://isabelforbes.com/

© Isabel Forbes 2010

6"x8" oil on canvas, Market

http://isabelforbes.com/

© Isabel Forbes 2010

8"x6" oil on canvas, Charleston Porch

http://isabelforbes.com/

© Isabel Forbes 2010

8"x6" oil on canvas, Carriage Ride

http://isabelforbes.com/

© Isabel Forbes 2010

8"x6" oil on canvas, St Philips Steeple

http://isabelforbes.com/

© Isabel Forbes 2010

8"x6" oil on canvas, Sweetgrass Rose

http://isabelforbes.com/

© Isabel Forbes 2010

8"x6" oil on canvas, Rx King Street

http://isabelforbes.com/

© Isabel Forbes 2010

8"x6" oil on canvas, Sweetgrass Artist

http://isabelforbes.com/

© Isabel Forbes 2010

6"x8" oil on canvas, Artist's Hands

http://isabelforbes.com/

Several of these paintings have already sold, but if you are interested in any of them contact the galleries listed.

Happy drawing & painting!

Berlin's, Downtown Charleston, SC

This is an abbreviated step by step of a recent oil painting. The easel shots were taken with my iphone so the color cast is a tad bluer than in reality but this gives an overall idea of how a painting is developed.

Block in: I paint over the entire canvas to get a feel for where my colors and values are.

Big to small shapes: Once I'm comfortable with the overall composition I begin to develop areas of the painting. I usually start with the focal area and work out from there.

I continue to bring areas in to focus...

This is the finished painting. Berlin's, 18"x24" oil on canvas.