some of the best bits of Tybee

WIFEBEATERS

This is about the time that the sand entered the palette

Meanwhile back at the ranch....another wifebeater

Fun

So I closed my palette today and heard the sand that followed me home from Tybee. Bothered me when I was in Savannah, but now I just laugh.

Anyways, Here is another page from the Sketchbook

New Cup

My warm-up painting this morning. Ahh... coffee....

Time to correct the Epic Fail!

My one good painting from the week. I learned so much from everyone that week and I'm stoked about the work I'm doing now. I'm going to do a bunch of these little cup paintings so hopefully they'll get even better!

My Savannah

For my christening post I wanted to share some of the photos that best represent what the trip meant to me. I am so very grateful for the people that I got to know, and for what I learned about myself. I'm happy that I got to be a small part of it, and I think that will be reflected in the work I will be posting here in the future.

 

Click on the images for higher resolution and go here to view the entire collection.

KK

Demo Reel, Facebook, Blog, Tumblr, Twitter, LinkedIn, Sons of Turner

Two Buildings

Here is my favorite watercolor painting I did in Savannah. I did it for the Sketchcrawl thing going on, but I decided that I would like to keep it.

Kim and I took hundreds of photos the whole trip, so I have plenty of reference. I did this sketch this morning. Architecture is tough for me, so this is good practice.

Sons of Turner

Tybee Island sketch

Had to take a photo of it because my scanner decided that it was going to die. However, at MBK's request, here is the Tybee Island sketch.

Mosquitos

Hey Sons,
So first off, is anyone still itching from mosquito bites they got in Savannah? I sure am. My foot is swollen from one.

But on a different note, start posting your sketches and stuff, especially the first group. I would love to see everyone's.

So I did this today because I am longing to be back with the SoT. I remembered what it was like to be surrounded by people who all thought in images rather than whatever everyone else thinks like. I have a new drive to do art all thanks to Savannah and you people.

As for the painting, I think I would like to paint something like it again. Landscapes are so fun and let you explore the brush and paint more than anything I've ever painted.

Forsyth Park Living Room

Painting in Savannah challenged me to paint subjects of man-made structure. I'm so used to painting organic objects that it definitely came as a challenge. This was my favorite room at the Forsyth Park Home because of the beautiful set of chairs, the awkward loveseat, the enormous mirror with all the swirls I could ever hope for, and the beautiful view of trees and houses through the patio doors and windows. Even with the A/C running, sitting in this room was a breath of fresh air. Quite different from sitting in the front room of a Chicago home, even one as thrifty & tasteful as my own.

On another note, I took a stroll around my apartment today. My goal was to get 5 strangers to smile or say hello to me (as most people in Savannah did). Out of 8 strangers, only 2 acknowledged me. It was a little depressing but it really made me think about my body language and trying harder to connect with the world.

Sitting around on the last day

So I really dont like saying goodbye and on the last day of each of the trips I've wanted to just be alone, and of course at the end of the first trip I was surrounded by 24 people milling around. On my last day in Savannah I walked across Forsythe Park to have coffee at The Mansion, you remember that big red brick hotel on Drayton Street opposite the park's Cafe? It was quite wonderful in there and obviously very expensive. I had the terrace to myself although there were a lot of lizards scurrying about. It was one of those moments where I felt like I was living in Savannah rather than hungrily trying to discover it. After coffee I strolled through the park and sat at the northern end at a bus stop and drew this cupola that I'd enjoyed every morning as I walked up Bull Street. Diana had challenged me to look at trees and I'm really grateful as I think they will be an essential ingredient in my paintings even if its just the trunks.

Welcome Sons of Turner. And thanks Elisha for getting this set up. Its a beautiful hot Sunday back in Illinois and I'm still digesting and feeling the impact of my time in Savannah. I hope something of our time there will remain with us all and make us changed people. For me these trips are not a vacation. They are a part of my life. They are a part of my identity. Part of my work. They feed me. They enrich me. They inspire me. They are a priority for me and for my family. I am who I am because of Santa Fe. I am different because of Savannah. I am only here because of my time in New York. I make you laugh because of London.

As I reflect on the week and try to see what was really most exciting about the trip I have a hard time separating you all from the City and from the heat and from the ideas that I birthed there. But one of the things that I was writing about yesterday was the joy that I felt seeing people working around the house in the evenings. At the table. Max alone downstairs in the kitchen. People taking over the front room. Finding something to paint on the balcony. Sketchbooks and computers out everywhere. Not because you had to but because you wanted to. Because you need to. Thats how it has to be. Always.

I hope this blog can become a point of connection, a place where we can inspire eachother, share images, share thoughts and share life as artists together. For as long as you have the energy and the appetite. MBK