Art Journaling Class 2 ~ Dena Wenmohs Ranch

This is one of the entries I made before the two workshops at Dena's Ranch, July 19 - 25. This Raffine Art Sketch journal is 9" x 12" and has 100 lb. pages suitable for watermedia. I recommended the students bring a journal similar to this and Jerry's Artarama in Austin was so kind and made a special delivery of journals to the ranch along with the following Koi Water Colors Pocket Field Sketch Box, with 12 or 24 colors and a water brush. I enjoyed using a Hand Book about 5 1/2" square that was small enough to keep at the dining table when the stories began. Most of those private entries won't be posted to protect the not so innocent.

Here are some slides from the workshop that was held Friday, Saturday and Sunday (July 23, 24, and 25) The first one was Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday with Thursday off. We enjoyed an Austin trip to Ampersand and Jerry's. You can mouse over for captions and I'm sorry if I didn't get at least one of your entries. Some had to leave early.
The 2011 workshop has been put on the calendar. Save the date for May 12, 13, and 14 which is a Thursday, Friday and Saturday. See you there.

We enjoyed door prizes from Creative Catalyst, Blick Art Materials and Strathmore Visual Journals.

Please visit my web site and comment on my blog:

BLOG.............Nancy Standlee Art Blog

WEB SITE ........Nancy Standlee

WEB SITE ........Canvas By Canvas

ARLINGTON TEXAS ~ ARTIST NANCY STANDLEE ~ DAILY PAINTER ~
CONTEMPORARY ~ WATERCOLOR ~ ACRYLIC ~ COLLAGE ~ GOUACHE
ABSTRACT ~ EXPRESSIONIST ~ ART FOR SALE ~ FIGURATIVE ~ MIXED MEDIA ~ ALTERED BOOKS

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Art Journaling Class ~ Wenmohs Ranch ~ Texas Daily Painter Nancy Standlee

Journal Entry by Dena Wenmohs
"One of the Girls"


Eleven art journaling class members joined Nancy and Dena at the Wenmohs Ranch for a 3 day workshop July 19, 20, and 21. The workshop was designed for the first time journal keeper who was new to drawing but also included projects for the more advanced artist. We discussed how to "Love Your Life" journal and record those precious daily events that define our lives at home and travel. We played with altered books and making stamps, had lots of great meals and times together.
If you could not join us this year, we are scheduled for a repeat performance May 12, 13, and 14, 2011.

Here are some slides from the workshop. Mouse over for captions:

Please visit my web site and comment on my blog:

BLOG.............Nancy Standlee Art Blog

WEB SITE ........Nancy Standlee

WEB SITE ........Canvas By Canvas

ARLINGTON TEXAS ~ ARTIST NANCY STANDLEE ~ DAILY PAINTER ~
CONTEMPORARY ~ WATERCOLOR ~ ACRYLIC ~ COLLAGE ~ GOUACHE
ABSTRACT ~ EXPRESSIONIST ~ ART FOR SALE ~ FIGURATIVE ~ MIXED MEDIA ~ ALTERED BOOKS

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The Sketchbook Project by Texas Daily Painter Nancy Standlee

Moleskine Cahier 5.5" x 8.5" sketchbook

I have signed up for a Sketchbook Project at the Art House Co-op for the journaling class at Dena's art journaling workshop. The book theme I chose is "Storybook" and it will be in the permanent collection at The Brooklyn Art Library. At present there have been over 6,000 signed up. I've paid to have it digitized and the pages will eventually be viewed on line and the sketchbooks will tour the U.S. so if this is something your friends might like to do sign up.
I wanted to see how the paper would take watercolor and pen yesterday as the pages are thinner than what I usually work on and I'm very pleased as there is only slight wrinkling and no bleed through with the Sharpie.
Bio
I thought it might be good for each participant, if willing, to write a few short sentences of their bio, and we could print it out to add to the back side of all the painting and drawing entries. If the book becomes too thick, guess we could hand print our info but these books will be checked out and I thought they would be easier to read if computer printed. What do you think? If you had this amount of space 5 x 8 inches approximately, what would you say about yourself? First thing I put is that I'm OLD. I hope our little book tells our story of Texas faces and Texas places of meeting as strangers to work in our journals and going away as friends.
Dan and Danny
If you have any of Dan Price's chronicles or books you may recognize the way I wrote the date. It's sorta his signature and I like it so I've copied it. In planning for the workshop I have revisited all of my Dan Price and Danny Gregory books and I'm ready to draw and draw. I found an old letter/note from Dan from 2002 and put it in with my journaling notes to share with the students because it takes time to really decide if this journaling is for you. At one time I was ordering Dan's Moonlight Chronicles and the last one looks like it's notebook 52. Maybe I need to get some updates. I know this for sure as I've seen that Part of the Solution YouTube video I could never, never put all my stuff in an underground Hobbit Hole unless it looked like Carlsbad Cavern. I congratulate Dan Price for getting that Simple Life down pat by discarding most of his "stuff" but every time I've ever gotten rid of anything I need it the next day or week and I'm forever wishing I had it back, hence my big old problem of stuff and where to put it.
Peaches
For instance, I have last night's peach seed washed and out on the kitchen table because I had to draw it and put in my journal along with the receipt. I went to Greens Produce yesterday, found some Parker County peaches that were calling my name at $2.99 a pound and when you pay $10.38 for 7 peaches to really get your money's worth you need to save the seed. I might even throw some gold leaf on it.

Please visit my web site and comment on my blog:

BLOG.............Nancy Standlee Art Blog

WEB SITE ........Nancy Standlee

WEB SITE ........Canvas By Canvas

ARLINGTON TEXAS ~ ARTIST NANCY STANDLEE ~ DAILY PAINTER ~
CONTEMPORARY ~ WATERCOLOR ~ ACRYLIC ~ COLLAGE ~ GOUACHE
ABSTRACT ~ EXPRESSIONIST ~ ART FOR SALE ~ FIGURATIVE ~ MIXED MEDIA ~ ALTERED BOOKS

Contact NancyStandlee@sbcglobal.net
For workshop:
I think the workshop if filled but here's the info anyway as there is a waiting list.
dena@wenmohsranch.com or
call 830 825-3465.

Frida Kahlo ~ Art Journal Page by Texas Daily Artist Nancy Standlee

Frida Kahlo journal page start

I will add some print/lettering and more information later but I wanted to post this recent collage to show one of the things that will be covered in the workshop. This is an altered photo collage with some painting/glazing with liquid acrylics at the art journaling workshop at Dena's Ranch that is soon, soon. I finished this yesterday so you see I'm working down to the wire. As I'm looking through old journals and reading entries, I've found a theme in my journals, "Lose weight/walk and clean/straighten house." I promise not to mention either in the workshop.
I loved the Frida movie in 2002, and I had to buy the music from the movie CD, and when I traveled to Mexico for a workshop, I found a wonderful beach wrap/shawl where her face completely covered the background and a plastic tote bag with her image with a monkey. (All which I had to put in my travel journal.) I found an unusual handmade Frida necklace that I wanted on the last morning at the market there but felt like it was too expensive and I've regretted it ever since. I've ordered and received this EBay one and I'm very pleased with it and I can wear it when I'm feeling "very Frida".
One of her quotes I like is "I paint my own reality. The only thing I know is that I paint because I need to, and I paint whatever passes through my head without any other consideration." That's the way journaling is. Paint what is in your head and your life and not what everyone else is doing.
Sketchbook Project:
This is a little surprise for the workshop group. I've signed up for the Sketchbook project 2011 and I hope each person will agree to add a page or two. I'm waiting for the sketchbook to arrive. I chose the theme "Storybook".. wonder if an ex elementary librarian was thinking of her favorite phrase "Once upon a time?"
No, I've never entered before and don't know a whole lot about it but I have a little motto.."what if, why not" so let's go for it. I've also paid to have it digitized so we should be able to view it online after it's mailed back. All of you coming to Dena's be thinking about a short personal story to share and illustrate in this book or maybe something that happens when you are there. We'll figure it out together.
Door Prizes:
Do you not LOVE door prizes? Oh, I do and they can be an eraser or a pencil but I love a freebie. Thanks to Creative Catalyst art DVD's, Blick Art Materials, and Strathmore Visual Journals, I'm bringing some door prizes. You're gonna love 'em. Thanks for sharing with my class, you generous companies.

Please visit my web site and comment on my blog:

BLOG.............Nancy Standlee Art Blog

WEB SITE ........Nancy Standlee

WEB SITE ........Canvas By Canvas

ARLINGTON TEXAS ~ ARTIST NANCY STANDLEE ~ DAILY PAINTER ~
CONTEMPORARY ~ WATERCOLOR ~ ACRYLIC ~ COLLAGE ~ GOUACHE
ABSTRACT ~ EXPRESSIONIST ~ ART FOR SALE ~ FIGURATIVE ~ MIXED MEDIA ~ ALTERED BOOKS

Contact NancyStandlee@sbcglobal.net

For workshop info:
dena@wenmohsranch.com or
call 830 825-3465.

Pets to Pintos ~Art Journal Page by Texas Daily Painter Nancy Standlee

Art Journal Page Kilimanjaro 140lb. Watercolor Journal

This is a page I will share in the art journaling workshop at Dena's Ranch in July. See previous posts for more details.
On the first day I will have the students to paint something they are familiar with - favorite food, kitchen utensil, ingredient, or pet. I don't have a pet but I took a photo of this fine looking dog in Ingram while Cindy and I were attending a Pat Weaver workshop. The animal was waiting patiently in the back of his truck for his daddy to come back from an errand. On another occasion we were delighted to find a young man who crawled in the bed of his truck to share his breakfast with his dog. I didn't want to be so obvious on that one and my photos weren't as clear. The owner wasn't around in Ingram and we felt free to take lots of photos but the dog never looked just real happy, maybe he didn't like to wait in the truck or have his photo taken. On this sketch I used the Pentel Pocket Brush pen that I learned about from Roz Stendahl's Blog.
Texans share food with their dogs and neighbors and you might find a big pot of pinto beans cooking on the largest burner for the human food. There is nothing better than a meal of pinto beans and cornbread and I never sit down to sort a cup or two of beans without thinking about my Mother. She has always given me good advice and I miss being able to give her a call and discuss an issue or ask for that advice but I remember this. "You buy the Casserole brand of pintos. They cook up tender and you bring me that brand."
I had a package on the counter and looked at the brand and see they are packaged by Russell E. Womack in Lubbock and they are a product of the USA, always a good thing.
Once upon a time (I am a former elementary librarian and still love stories that start with once upon a time) I was a Home Economics major and I was Mrs. Betty Crocker, cooking, entertaining, being a school mom, and serving dinner promptly at 5:00 PM with a homemade dessert for the grand finale. In my advancing years my thoughts have turned to art related activities but a pot of beans still have a central part of my menu plans. Now because they can be warmed up quickly and can give me more art time I love to have some cooked or in the freezer for an emergency and it was after one of these sorting, soaking and cooking times much to my chagrin and surprise sometime later I looked in my sink and found a pretty good sized plant growing out of the disposal. Oh, my gosh what is going on. Surprises that entail any part of plumbing are very scary. I gingerly tugged at it and saw a healthy growth of roots and realized one or more of the pintos had fallen into the sink depths and loved the dark and damp and sprouted and I knew in an instant I'd lost my Betty Crocker crown. I think I may have displaced it sometime before this incident, however. At the time I didn't take a photo but with the help of a plastic flower tucked in my yellow sink, I created an reenactment and a photo and a pinto bean sprout sketch. Now I'm into faster meals that give me longer art journaling time.
Join us at the workshop and paint your pet or your sprouted pintos.

Please visit my web site and comment on my blog:

BLOG.............Nancy Standlee Art Blog

WEB SITE ........Nancy Standlee

WEB SITE ........Canvas By Canvas

ARLINGTON TEXAS ~ ARTIST NANCY STANDLEE ~ DAILY PAINTER ~
CONTEMPORARY ~ WATERCOLOR ~ ACRYLIC ~ COLLAGE ~ GOUACHE
ABSTRACT ~ EXPRESSIONIST ~ ART FOR SALE ~ FIGURATIVE ~ MIXED MEDIA ~ ALTERED BOOKS

Contact NancyStandlee@sbcglobal.net

dena@wenmohsranch.com or
call 830 825-3465.