Phew...it's been a long time and much has happened.  My arm has healed to about 97%.  Still don't have full extention or strength back in it.  Maybe I never will.  Since then, we sold our house in Raleigh and moved...all in less than a month.  We moved to Wilmington, NC and are delighted.  We lived here 18 years ago and always wanted to come back.  The summer has been spent unpacking (still not done), hanging blinds, shopping for household items, trips back to Raleigh to see dentists and hair cutters and friends and painting in the studio.  I had 5 commissioned pieces to deliver to Rocky Mount before the end of August. Annnnnd, Spectrum Art and Jewelry will feature me at their Sept. 10th open house and wine tasting.  It's been a busy summer and I hope to be more settled soon. 
Mid-Sept, I'll join my artist friends in Emerald Isle for a beach retreat.  It's always fun and in Oct. I'll take a Gene Costanza workshop on the North Carolina Coast. 
Anyway, it's good to back into the swing of things!

While on vacation, I fell and cut my elbow.  Embarassed, I jumped up and claimed to be okay.  I really was other that having to clean and bandage my elbow.  2 hours later, I couldn't move my arm.  An X-ray confirmed an artist's nightmare...it was broken and it was my painting arm.   An uncomfortable fiberglass splint followed making it impossible to do the simple things like take out my contacts, wash my hair, shower. Upon returning to see the local orthopedist, the splint was removed, more x-rays taken and it all confirmed that the bone was broken but the good news was it didn't need to be in a cast/splint. A sling would do.
Well, I'm about 2 weeks into the healing process and with the help of an elbow brace, I haven't had to resort to a left handed attempt at painting (could have been interesting). I painted a small one yesterday with a palette knife. It's very controlled and I have a sore arm for my effort but I did it! I will try to attempt to join my group tomorrow at a shopping center to pleinair paint.  I'm not expecting a good painting but it will be great to be with my fellow painters enjoying the beautiful spring in North Carolina. Wish me luck!  I'll keep you posted on the healing process.

I think it's finally here...Spring.  We turned the clocks forward this past weekend. It stays light longer but when the sun goes down, the nights are still chilly. Tomorrow is the first pleinair paintout for PAINT NC.  We are painting at Logan's (a garden center).  Will probably be a chilly start but I'm hoping for sun to warm the morning quickly.  If nothing else...it  will be great to see all my painting friends again and have lunch!

Show season is coming early this year.  Already shipped a painting to Richmond. VA to participate in a show at Braziers Studios in Richmond.  The show runs through the end of January.
February is shaping up to be a very busy month.  I am coordinating a show "Painting Prairie Ridge" at the NC Museum of Natural Sciences in downtown Raleigh.  This is a pleinair show featuring works by members of PAINT NC who painted at the museums ecostation called Prairie Ridge. This show runs the month of Feb. with the artists reception from 6-9 on Feb. 5th.
I am honored to be asked to present a solo show at the art department of Brunswick Community College, Leland, NC.  This show "Southern Accents" will feature landscapes and still lifes with a southern flavor.  The show runs Feb. 1st -25th with the artist's reception on Feb. 9th, 5-6pm. 
Would love it if you'd all come.

Le Vieux Couvent...this is a magical place.  As a young girl, Corinne accompanied her artist mother on an artists retreat.  She saw how special these artists were and how on this retreat they were treated as the special people they were. She decided that someday she would have such a place and make this her life's work.  Along with her husband, Bill, she created a magical place where creativity flows in southwest France.  The gardens, the comfortable accomodations, the superb, gourmet meals, a well equipped artists studio, tours to local villages and prehistoric caves...all the details are taken care of by the resident magicians.  This is Corinne's vision and I was fortunate enough to experience this pampered, outstanding, creative retreat.  I am looking forward to sharing this experience with others in Oct. 2010.  Contact me at ahair51@aol.com to inquire how you can join in on this creative journey to the place where art began.

I've been home about a week and the memory lingers.  7 wonderful, inspirational days in SW France at Le Vieux Couvent. Our every whim was catered to.  Most inspiring to me was visiting the caves of Lasceux. It's where art began.  I studied it in ancient art history and became one of the places I dreamed of seeing. It was emotional to actually experience a dream come true.  The entire trip got better each day; picnics on the banks of the Lot River, touring and shopping, painting in a well-equipped studio and in tiny villages nearby, gourmet meals magically appear. I'll definitely have to return.  Check out our group blog: annsvivalafrance.blogspot.com
3 nights in Paris was the perfect end to our journey.   

Yesterday, I was juried into the Triangle Artists Guild.  This a group of very talented artists who meet monthly to share work and information and have wonderful shows.  I'm looking forward to being a contributing member of this talented group. 

Rita Wade has done it again.  She has opened a second beautiful retail space offering gifts and fine papers.  It's called "Bliss" and is a gorgeous store in Rocky Mount, NC.  I am pleased to have more wall space to display my work and this store is different than the connecting Wade Designs Jewelry.  The original store has a beautiful, warm gold faux finish on the walls whereas Bliss is an icy, cool aqua with a sparkle in it.  Both are beautiful spaces and it's interesting to see where my paintings work best. The grand opening is Tues. Sept. 15 and will be a grand event.  Rita's events are always grand!
The painting attached is called "Poppies in Blue".  They are a painting of an arrangement in a Vietri jardeniere that is sitting in the window of Bliss.  Come by and see us at Bliss.

Another Tuesday painting with our plein air group PAINT NC.  This week we were invited to Jean's in Wake Forest to paint en plein air or still lifes if we chose or if the rainy weather chased us inside.  It was hot and humid but the garage offered shade and fans. I had a hand stretched jute canvas I was anxious to try out.  I thought it lended itself to a still life.  Trying to remember what I learned at a composition workshop a few months ago, I tackled one of the still lifes. I like the results...don't you? 
Thanks Jean, for having us.

The Thundering Niagara...the setting of painting with two other talented artists...Awesome!  I recently spent 2 days painting in Niagara Falls.  One in the US and the other in Canada.  The first day was spent trying to adapt to the local color and capture the roar of the Niagara River as it cascaded over the brink forming the legendary falls.  Cascade is not a word that can describe this.  Careened is more the term.  The roar of the water is indescribable. Jacqueline Baldini, a local artist who has the Falls in her backyard, was our guide.  She was invaluable in helping interpret the color and to capture the force of this magnificent wonder of the world.  Day 2 was painting from the Maid of the Mist Dock area looking up at the water crashing on the rocks below.  I can't believe we had access to this vantage point.  It pays to know people with connections. 
Just had to put the icing on the cake with a ride on the Maid of the Mist after a long day of painting! 

* Third Prize winner at Scope the North Carolina Landscape Show at the Visual Art Exchange
Just received notification that this painting has won a cash award at SCOPE the North Carolina Landscape Show at the Visual Art Exchange, Raleigh, NC.  I'm excited and honored.  Unfortunately, I can't attend the reception to receive the award.  I'll be painting in Niagara Falls. 
This painting was the first plein air painting I did this year.  It was early March and I was itching to get out and paint.  Beautiful, crisp, cool day and the winter light illuminated the trees and cast long shadows across the path near Bond Park.  I was pleased with the results.  Guess I was right...the judge liked it too.