Monday, February 23, 2009

2009 Workshop Schedule

I have set my workhop schedule for 2009. This link... 2009 Workshops... will take you to the information for each one.

Here are the locations and dates-

April 17, 18, 19 - 'Pastels in the Studio' - Stillwater, MN

May 22, 23, 24 - 'Landscape from Life' - Taylors Falls, MN

August 10, 11, 12, 13, 14 - '3rd Annual Taylors Falls Landscape' - Taylors Falls, MN

(More details soon on this New York workshop)

August 24, 25, 26, 27, 28 - 'Landscape Painting at Tilly Foster Farm' - Brewster, NY

Hope to see you at one of these!

Wednesday, February 11, 2009

February Thaw


"February Thaw" - oil on panel - 9x12 © Marc R. Hanson '09

I haven't been exercising anything lately but my will to rid myself of another winter bug that I picked up last weekend. I've done that now. This is the first day that I've been painting since Friday, can't believe it. Good thing is that there can't be too many bugs left that I haven't had already this year... maybe I'm safe now???

I spent today working on a larger studio painting which should be finished in a few days. I'll post that one on my 'other' blog when I'm done. After working on that one I decided to paint what's happening outside right now. For the last few days we've had a major thaw, leaving us with almost no snow left AT ALL. Yesterday I felt good enough to get in the car and just drive around looking at what the countryside looked like sans snow cover. I was moved by just how rich the color was despite everything that I was looking at being either dead or dormant.

In the spirit of my reason for this blog, I opened my mind up to absorbing as much of the landscape as I could, it's mood, color, atmosphere. I would have painted on location if I felt better. Or at least photographed what I was looking at on the drive. I did neither. I'm happy that I didn't. I feel that this piece really captures my memory of what I was seeing. It's a summary of the impressions left by all that I saw.

It's not a true "imagination" painting I guess... Hey... there are no rules!!!