where to begin?????

Portland and Art & Soul were just amazing!! Portland itself is sooo full of artsy places to visit and see..I think I could have spent another week just visiting shops there!

We had an amazing time at the workshops.. crammed our little brains with lots of new techniques, terms, and aspirin! lol
The first workshop was with Mr. Michael DeMeng "Assemblage Retratos"... which basically means Assembling Portraits.. gluing, painting, nailing, screwing junk together to make it look old, worn, rusted, weathered or like it has been under the sea!
This class was fun for me..being able to get messy and not having to worry to much about straight lines.. or accuracy..really felt good!

This is my 'assemblage' piece.. and now after doing it and seeing it all.. I'd love to make more and experiment more with different found objects and a different color palette.

Here is a table full of art that Michael 'critiqued' after class..

It was so fun to see what everyone came up with..from simple and striking to some of the more elaborate offerings with working mechanisms!

Here is my friend Christy .. while Michael holds up and talks about her 'mexican' art influenced piece:

He was a GREAT teacher.. very encouraging..and instructive and full of great ideas and insight on where to go next. He really made the class fun and made everyone feel very comfortable with whatever route their art took them.

The second day.. we spend in Misty Mawn's class.."Spontaneous Art"..and I found this one, for me anyway, was a little bit more challenging. Its hard to just 'let go' and relax and let the art flow for me...so by lunchtime.. I was more than ready for a glass of wine! :)

"To empty one's mind of all thought and refill the void with a spirit greater than oneself is to extend the mind into a realm not accessible by conventional processes of reason" - Edward Hill

Nothing is more intimidating than starting with a blank white sheet of paper..and trying to suddenly create.. with no plan in mind. Misty showed us its easiest to just go with it.. to just throw paints together on paper (she does this sooooo easily and naturally..she flows like no other! ).. add in some textures using various objects...and then to just start collaging papers.. text.. pencils... and waaa-laaa.. within minutes she created a beautiful drawing:

She is amazingly talented..and you can tell she's very deep and sensitive.. truly artistic to the core...and just the sweetest being!

After lunch at the Kennedy School..and a glass of wine.. ;).. I was able to come back a little more relaxed..and came up with this chick:

I'd love to sit back down..and give it another college try and see what else flows. Maybe more wine ??

A picture of us after class:

We then had a couple of days off from class..so we went to a ton of shops.. around Portland..and did lots of sightseeing.

We visited Pittock Mansion:

Which was GORGEOUS!!!! I want to LIVE there :) Amazing views.. beautiful marble.. exquisite furniture..ornate moldings.. very Drool-worthy!

Some of the shops we stopped in:

great finds inside "Rejuvenation":

Our Daily Haunt:

And unfortunatly, this shop was closed when we went on monday :( ..

and we weren't quite brave enough to stop in this place:

hehehehehe

We visited "Edgefield" for drinks and to stroll thru the amazing grounds there.. SOOO many photo ops.. but it was just starting to get dark when we arrived...

My Hosts, Christy & Greg:

This place has the cutest little bars tucked in and around the grounds.. The Little Red Shed ..quaint and cozy..complete with a stone fireplace and liquor..what more could a girl ask for??? lol

Our last class was on Sunday with Sally Jean "Soldering for Virgins"..and that was really fun too :)

We learned how to solder.. and make little charms and whatnots! Sally is so fun..and a great teacher at explaining step by step instructions..and what to do and what not to do. Her 'man slave' (her hubby Brad) was there to give us glass cutting demo's..and he was very informative too. They are a great team..and make everyone feel relaxed!

Here are the charms I made while in class:

Us with Sally Jean:

The whole week spent in Portland was very inspiring..very motivating..and even tho the sky looked like this most of the time I was there:

the bestest part was being there to just hang out with one of my bestests friends in the world :) They made me feel so welcome and comfy there.. and SPOILED!!

We came home everynite (either after class or a day of shopping..) to find Greg ready with dinner and DRINKS for us!!! :)

Here are some pics from around Christy's yard ..

And.. on the Monday morning before I left.. we were able to meet up with a dear friend, Annette (funnyfarm).. we spent a couple of hours chatting..hugging..crying..giggling.. it was so good to see her again and reminisce about the old days :)

I already miss Christy and her hubby..Portland and the autumn-colored trees..the vistas.. I even miss the gloomy sky and rain! :( But I am thankful for my pictures.. to keep me 'there'..and feeling that inspiration and motivation from the many artists we were surrounded by.. :)

If any of you ever get the chance to go.. I highly recommend taking a workshop class at the next Art & Soul or ArtFest

Get out there.. learn new techniques.. open the mind..push the envelope..and let your creative juices flow!!