Hey friends,
thank you from the bottom of my heart for all your comments to my last post. I couldn’t help but express my frustration and overwhelm when I wrote it, the constellation of my current personal and the overall world-wide situation somehow made this necessary.
I’ve been very, very moved by all your supportive messages (not only for me but also for each other) that’s been happening below that post. I hope it’s alright I send out an answer to all of you instead of individual messages (I’m positively overwhelmed by all your words!).
I just want to say: thank you thank you thank you. You are a amazing community of people, and you’re making the world a little bit better with your kindness.
I deeply appreciate you all for taking the time to reach out to me and sharing how you find strength right now, how you are experiencing current events, for letting me know what books and music and food and art projects you are spending time with. This connection and shared experience feels very healing and quite incredible to me, it dampens the continuous shockwaves that are rippling through our stupid reality right now.
I’m trying really hard to stay positive, and do things that I know are good for me, and that many of you have also cited: noticing small moments, looking at nature, art, trying to move around gently and not worry so much about my recovery, taking a break from the news. Reading a good book in the evening. I’m also sketching more blue landscapes.
Over the weekend, I’ve put up new art on my walls – something I’ve been wanting to do for a long time – now I can enjoy looking at different artworks when I look up from my computer screen. I hung a selection of different prints: works by the old master who’s left the biggest impression on me (Flemish painter Pieter Bruegel the Elder), different Japanese woodblock print masters (prints by Hiroshige and Kawase Hasui), and finally some art by Mateusz Urbanowicz, who is an amazing contemporary watercolor artist. Links to all the artists are included in case you want to learn more about them.
In other news, I’ve thrown myself deep into the script for my landscape sketching course. I’m rewriting large parts of what I already have, but that’s good, it’s slowly taking shape, and I’m feeling good about the progress. After writing and collecting reference material will come the hard part of putting it all together in useful lessons and painting demos. If you’re interested in taking this course when it’s finished, and you have a wish for what I should include, let me know.
This concentrated approach also means there will be no feedback round of Sketching Fundamentals this winter/spring. Sorry about that, I know some of you have been waiting. But I need time to write and create and process.
I think the course is also worth it if you work through it on your own, there’s a lot in there to learn and practice.
Anyway, I just wanted to put this out there, thank you all so much for being here, I really really appreciate it. I hope you all are getting through these rough times with unbroken spirits.
I m really looking forward to the landscape course.
at the moment I’m in Spain and there are a lot of beautiful plants to paint but also such a beautiful landscapes. but I miss the skills to start to sketch and paint these
So I take a lot of pics to use as inspiration and as dot on the horizon to use them after the course.
Hope all goes well for you ……I just love your thoughtful explanations and teaching style…..keep strong….this too will pass.
I wish you a very good recovery.
Julia, I’m so glad you’re taking the time to care for yourself (including work on the landscape course, because good work is a kind of care). Your blue sketches capture the beauty of the dark and shadow times so well. My Papa the painter also loved Bruegel the Elder and had prints of his work in his studio.
What a beautiful blue sketch there at the top. So thankful that our chiming in on the previous blog post was helpful and no, we do not need individual thanks. Love that you are getting new artwork up on the walls – that can be such a help. Carry on!
I was very moved by your latest blog Julia and your previous one. Thank you for being so open and candid about how you see things at the moment in the world and how these shape your outlook and approach. Remember, you are not alone!
Two things occurred to me. Firstly you are right to have the conviction to focus time on what you think is the right thing for you to do. More of us should do this. Secondly, is the ‘blue’ artwork, which I love, a reflection on your current mood? It will be interesting to see if, as we progress from winter, though spring, to summer, whether green, or yellow begin to feature in your style.
You are a very talented individual and sometimes it’s ok to not feel ok. It will pass. Keep doing what you want to do.
Best wishes
Mike