Seeking Angels

It was glorious to sketch and paint in the Salt Lake City cemetery today! The morning greeted us with a blue sky and drifting clouds - and of course we got busy and 

captured the moment in our illustrated journals!

The Christmas Box Angel was first on our workshop agenda. She represented the angel in the book "The Christmas Box Angel" by Richard Paul Evans. Notice the small trinkets and gifts that people left at her feet and in her arms. 

 We gathered around to learn some new techniques 

and then began sketching and painting her.

 

We learned to use watercolor pencils, sketch with ink and graphite and dab color on our papers with sponges.  We washed our drawings with soft watercolor and then wrote about what we saw, heard, smelled and how we felt about our surroundings. 

 

Here is a glimpse of our journal entries before we wrote on our pages.  These were quick gestures studies with watercolor washes over the top. It was challenging to stay loose!

Next, we visited the statue of Michael the Archangel. His a powerful strength and vitality 

was a strong contrast to the innocence of the Christmas Box Angel. This memorial was created by the Starks family in remembrance of their son, Michael. Resting on top of the pedestal where the angel was standing, were many special tokens of love that people had left in behalf of Michael Starks.  Among them was a laminated photo of Michel and his dog, candles, messages, colored ribbons (hanging from the angel's arms) and stones representing sentiments and prayers.

 

You can see Michael, the archangel, in the upper left corner of the image above.

The last place we visited was the graceful statue of the female angel located in the 

Catholic part of the cemetery. Although we didn't sit and sketch her, we 

admired her elegance and snapped pictures for future reference.

 

We decided that there is a lot of life contained within the boundaries of this cemetery! There were squirrels running around, birds chirping and cawing and many types of green trees. It was a peaceful and rewarding event...and SO FUN to take time on a Saturday morning to write and paint in our journals! 

Why not come and join us in July and August as we journal on Main Street in 

downtown Salt Lake City and up at Silver Lake in Big Cottonwood Canyon?

Celebrating the Jordan River!

The "Get Into The River" event was a lot of fun. It was a beautiful, sunny day 

and a small group of artists were adding to the festivities by plein air painting 

next to the Jordan River in Salt Lake City, Utah.

The Fisher Mansion (where I was painting), was the home of Albert Fisher, a German immigrant who owned and operated one of the largest breweries in the U.S. The stately mansion has been the headquarters for several organizations including a convent for Our Lady of Victory Missionary Sisters and a drug rehab center for men (in the 1970's), It's now being preserved and restored.

Patty Kimball (a fellow painter) Nancy Monteith (Salt Lake City Parks Planner) and Blake Luther (another painter) enjoyed the morning at the Fisher Mansion.

 Each time I paint, I learn something new.  Today's thought was: never paint something that is blowing in the breeze!  Ha-ha...my rose moved continuously.

 My set-up stayed mostly in the shade for the most part.

I used a limited palette (red, yellow & blue) until I started blocking in the leaves.  Then I caved in and used a little viridian (yes, you can call me chicken).

On the whole, everyone had a good time!