Hours

First day of the new school year today. I have a new role this year as department chair, which means I have fewer classes, but it seems like I have more work and less time than before. After finishing up some school work I was able to spend some time packaging prints and panels to ship to buyers. I'm trying to get a dozen pieces shipped up to Stowe, Vermont to the Stowe Craft Gallery next week. Looking forward to the weekend and hope to find some time to work on some new drawings for autumn.

New Print

Posted a new Lumberjack print on my Etsy page. http://www.nativevermont.etsy.com

Back to Skool

Today was the first day of faculty meetings at Lake Forest Academy, the boarding school where I teach visual arts in northern Chicago, Illinois.

Things are getting very busy and I'm hoping I'll have some time to work on drawings and panel work once school jumps into full gear. It has been strange to be back at my "job" and doing other things as I pretty much worked on artwork most of the day everyday from July through August. I got a lot of artwork done this summer -- maybe 25 finished images. I still have a few dozen images in process, and another few dozen ideas sketched and maybe even more just in my head. I remember when I started it was difficult to get things the way I wanted, but after sitting 6-8 hours at a time and just working it was as if I was going through conditioning! I was able to draw the way I wanted and actually became more creative the more I worked. It makes sense, but I have never in the past devoted so much time to working on drawings like this. There is something to be said for a having a studio and a place where you only do your work and you are free from distractions. Of course, it's also nice to see your work as it progresses, which encourages you to keep working.

My goal is to not get bogged-down this year with "job" things and try to make time at the very least on my weekends to keep drawing--and finishing some of these pieces in my head.

Iowa On My Mind

Had a great weekend in Bettendorf, Iowa at a fundraiser for my nephew. Played some really terrible golf, but it was for a good cause! On our way out of town today we stopped at a couple of home decor stores in Le Claire, IA. One really cool store was POSH HOME. http://www.poshhomeleclaire.com/

They had really nice stuff and a great setup. My brother and I spoke with the store manager about carrying some of our pieces and she was very enthusiastic, so we'll need to start thinking about some Iowa-themed pieces ASAP. Rolling hills, farmers, scarecrows, the Mississippi river, and horses are just a few things that came to mind instantly. I'm back to school in less than two weeks and I have a thousand drawings I want to make!

Sent a huge shipment of items off to Middlebury, Vermont last week. Hoping everything arrives safe and sound! Tomorrow we're hoping to get the website polished up and get some new work online....then maybe spend some time drawing some new stuff. I finally got a banner finished for my Etsy page, so we're making some progress!

Long day, but I got a lot of work done. I'm headed to Iowa on Friday for a golf outing supporting my nephew Jack who has Hunter's Syndrome also known as MPS. (http://www.heresjack.com). I'm hoping to get some pieces out to stores before the weekend. Looking forward to seeing Jack and the rest of the family in Iowa.

August 1st. Hard to believe the summer is almost over. I've been working on lumberjacks and polar bears and trying to get into the winter mindset creatively. I need to get outside tomorrow and enjoy the weather before it's actually winter!

New Paper, New Pieces, New Ideas

Getting ready to ship some work off to Bella Donna, a shop that sells my stuff in Middlebury, Vermont. Just bought some nice water color paper and bristol board and I have a few dozen sketches that I'm looking forward to making into finished drawings. I've been producing a lot of digitally colored pieces for print, but these drawings will be made available as original drawings colored with watercolor or just pen and/or graphite. I'm also working on some images that my wife and I will be firing onto ceramic bowls, cups, etc. I'll get some pics up once something is in a near finished stage.

Drove from Vermont to Ohio and then onto our house in Illinois. Came home to find that the school (we live on the campus of a boarding school) had dug a large hole in front of our door and we could not access the house for 6-8 days. Nice surprise. Luckily, my wife has an aunt in Mt. Horeb, Wisconsin, about 20 minutes east of Madison. We spent the weekend with her and had a great time. She has been an art teacher at a public school for many years, so we spent many hours talking about the joys and pains of arts education. So many differences between public and private education. I've seen both sides of it as a student in a public school and now as an instructor at a private school. Anyway, it was great to spend some time in Madison--I had never been! Saturday there was a lot going on downtown; folk singers in the square, a healthcare rally at the capital, and we found a great art supply store and had some great beer at Great Dane Brewery. Glad to be back in my house this evening. I got my computer set up and unpacked all of my drawings and sketchpads from Vermont. Hard to believe "summer" is nearly over. I'm going to try to be very, very busy over the next two weeks and get as much done as possible before school begins!