NWS Acceptance!!!

I can’t help but SHOUT about this (as I jump up and down)…
My painting, “Raven Dreams” was selected for the National Watercolor Association’s Open show!

(Thank you Liz Walker for being the first to let me know)

It took several days for my feet to drift back to the ground. By then it had sunk in that I was also invited to apply for NWS signature membership. Only I was scheduled to teach a three day workshop and my three matted pieces were due to be shipped a few precious days after that! And I needed to marble. Time to buckle down.

First I talked with Geoff McCormack who gave me valuable tips on packaging and shipping the art, and then sent the selected painting for the show. Linda Nye loaned me a packing box I could modify. What an incredible artist community we have!

Next I set up for marbling. That takes about a full day! Plus I made a tray to hold a full sheet of watercolor paper. Then marbling into the wee hours. Matting and packaging the next day.

First the spritzing of paint… notice the concentration.

Here I’m pulling one out of the bath.

Art drying on the line.

Some pieces, like the unicorn above, need additional painting but several are right on target.

Here are the three paintings I sent in.
You can see BEFORE and AFTER versions of the marbled pieces.

Before marbling, and this is a full sheet….

And after… Transformed! I love the way the marbled patterning ties the border and center together. It allows the viewer to focus more on the orca, and the iconographic orca is subdued a bit. Just what I wanted!