Plein Air Trippin' and a "Duck 'n Pencil!"

We just returned from our very first OFFICIAL Braithwaite Family Reunion in Boulder, YEW-Tah!!  What a blast!  Doug planned it all and pulled it off without a hitch!!  All I did was pack my bag and head to the car.  Here's what I found:

Seriously??  Jeff, on the left, is looking a bit perturbed, "These ya-hoos think they're going with us!  bahaha!" I kinda thought the same thing!!  

We stayed at my brothers cabin on Boulder Mountain at the Peterson Ranch - the pasture where my mother lived as a little girl.  We arrived Thursday afternoon and Amy and her bunch arrived Friday afternoon.  The boys (Doug, Ryan and Wes) all brought their paints (haha, I first wrote pants! - they brought those too!!) and were up and at 'em bright and early in the morning to go paint - well, Ryan and Doug painted.  Wesley is still on the fence committal-wise.  6:30 am is still allocated as sleep time for him!!  I'm like "You're on vacation, for hell sakes!"  But to no avail.  Ryan got the itch after sitting in on two or three of Doug's demos at classes over the past couple of years and spending a week painting with Zach and Company in Helper last summer - he just built him a new pallet, he has a "studio" in his garage and is tearing it up!!  Here was he and Doug's first morning:

Ryan's plein air study
Boulder, Utah
June, 2014

Not bad.  Not bad at all little boy!!  Here's Doug's from the weekend as well:

"Kiva View"
10 x 10
oil on panel

"Sky Hole"
10 x 10
oil on panel

"Morning Glow"
8 x 10
oil on panel

We had such a blast - the dogs were in serious heaven.  No cell phone service.  No electricity.  Just a whistling wind blowing through the pine trees outside and squirrels teasing our 3 dogs to no end.  We rode motorcycles, played cards late into the night, sang songs around the campfire while roasting perfect marshmallows and s'mores!  Don't let me forget to mention the "out of this galaxy" star gazing!  We were as close to heaven as we could get--except . . . for Wesley's nose that wouldn't stop "crying tears" due to allergies.  poor Wesley . . . note for next year:  bring extra soft tissues with aloe . . .

Speaking of Wesley, he and Doug went and did the whole Helper Workshop thing!!  Wes had a blast painting and serenading the group with his electric guitar.  I "face-timed" them a couple of times and Wes is standing out on the back porch jammin' with his amp for the group!  BONUS!!  They had such a great time, although the weather was a bit dicey - didn't seem to stop them from some great paintings.  One of the very talented students, Sue Nuhn, said about the workshop, "Doug Braithwaite is a fabulous artist.  If you get the chance to take one of his workshops, RUN don't walk, to sign up!"  Doug, did you steal Sue's phone during break??  haha Byron Smith another talented student, emailed me midweek and said, "Hey Jeanette, I have had a great time working with  Doug down here in Helper and starting to feel like I'm making some progress.  Therefore, hook me up for the September workshop in Torrey!"  The Torrey workshop is almost full!  What a great place to paint!  Here's some paintings from Helper:

"Power Line"
(I just took more "titling" liberties just now!  It is such a cool little painting!)
8 x 10
oil on board
SOLD

"Helper Fields"
8 x 10
oil on board

"Duck 'n Pencil"
 uh, yeah, I just came up with that one too . . . I'm seriously on a roll . . . 
10 x 8
oil on board
I mentioned that the weather was dicey . . . therefore, they got a couple of extra demos inside as the winds literally took their paintings and covered them in dust!!  mmmm . . . texture . . .

Doug is heading to the Wasatch Plein Air Paradise in Midway - leaving on Thursday and will be up there through July 4th!  I'm hoping to get there for a few days with him!

So just a heads up:  Doug is preparing for some Plein Air Trippin'!  Take note because this is going to be a fun time for all of us.  First off, I'm super sad that I can't tag along this year to Wisconsin and give you day-by-day updates.  So, I've asked Doug to get up early, before he packs up and moves out of the campsite, and go paint us a little painting that he'll send to me and I'll post.  I'll post one each morning and they will be available to purchase at the "trippin" price ONLY while he's traveling!  (July 14 through, probably, July 31st or so).  These little studies will be unframed and ready to ship as soon as he gets home.  They will go on a first-come-first-serve basis so watch the blog daily!

K, I'm heading to bed.  Nice to chat.  

I'll post again next week with some Wasatch Plein Air pieces!!  

Wet Paint and 50 Years of Braithwaite Fine Art! What??

Only a couple of weeks left until the Helper Workshop and we have had a couple of spots open up!  Doug's workshops are incredible.  Those of you who have taken them know what a great experience it is!  I know, I know, you think I'm just saying that because I get . . . . well, anyway, he's damn good!!  And a great instructor too!!  Oh my, this is going no where fast!  bahaha

Well anyway, back to the workshop.  cough cough  It starts Monday night at 6:00 p.m. on June 9th.  Full days (morning and afternoon/evening sessions) Tuesday through Friday then wrap up Saturday morning, June 14th.

Doug has been teaching workshops for as long as I can remember.  He started taking workshops with Paul and Dave when they first started doing "Summer Solstice" in LaSalle (near Moab).  They then transitioned to Helper when Dave Dornan purchased the great old "Hotel Utah" on Main Street in Helper and the rest is history.  What a blast to spend a week in Helper among other artists, the interns that take such good care of the place down there, and those professional artists who have made their living painting in that awesome little town.

Doug's working hard to get a couple more paintings in before he heads down to Helper.  He even did a quick roadtrip (he and Jeffrey - our "CHUG" - which is a chihuahua/pug mix)  They had a blast!!  Had a great time painting and Jeff loved the country.  Being able to run around for a while and then plop down next to Doug while he painted was a great time for both!!  Jeff's great company as you can see here.  Loves to hear the words "wanna play chuck it??"

Here's a few paintings Doug took to Torrey Gallery just recently.  Looking forward to doing the workshop in Torrey in September!  It will take place just a couple of days before the Escalante Plein Air competition begins - Tuesday through Thursday September 16-18 - three full days.  There's still a few spots left in that workshop!

"Boulder Home"
8 x 10
Torrey Gallery

"Boulder Fields"
11 x 14
Torrey Gallery

"Capitol Reef Rocks"
9 x 21
Torrey Gallery

"Club Sandwich"
8 x 10
Torrey Gallery

He also did a few flower paintings for Terzian Gallery for their summer season!  These were kinda fun!  He doesn't do many flowers so these were awesome!! 

"Blossoms"
8 x 10
Terzian Gallery

"Hollyhocks"
21 x 5
Terzian Gallery

And my fave - Sun Chasers!

"Sun Chasers"
8 x 10
Terzian Gallery

He also did this little piece for the 300 Plates Show at Art Access in Salt Lake City.  Love the downtown scenes.  Love it!

"Main Street"
11 x 10
Oil on Plate
SOLD

So in the midst of all of this,  Doug had his 50th birthday!!  Wahoo - 'bout damn time!  It was a blast - a little family get together and then a few people stopped by to wish him a Happy Birthday and he was THRILLED!

The kids "borrowed" his truck earlier that day and went and had a new stereo put in it.  I put together a book entitled "From Crayons to Paintbrushes:  50 Years of Braithwaite Fine Art."  Okay, not gonna lie . . . it turned out pretty cool.  It starts with a painting or two that he did as a kid, along with some from high school and college, then a few from each year up to just a couple of weeks ago!!  It has about 150 images in it and is a treasure!  Some of the best of the best of the best, SIR!  (Men in Black in case you're wondering!)  Many of the paintings had a special story behind them of which I have elaborated on those a bit in my quirky way.  I put in a few "all nighters" working on it because "of an evening," Doug and I would chill together and watch Cash Cab or Cosmos!  Then I'd yawn, "ahhh, well, I better get to bed!!"  Then I'd come and work till 3 or 4 in the morning cropping, resizing, and researching dates and titles.  But totally worth it - brought the big guy to tears as he looked through it.  Awesome!!  We've had a few requests for a copy so I'm working on getting some more published.  I'll keep you posted!

Okay - going to shoot this off!  Please let me know if you're up for the Helper and/or Torrey Workshop!  I'll put the link below to the website and the registration form!  Oh, and there's also the Fox River Valley Workshop in Northern Illinois right before Door County!!  That's July 17-19.

Have a great day, everyone!!  Thanks for following and letting me ramble!  Looking forward to more roadtrips with Doug so I can ramble more often!!

HUGS!!

J'net

Workshop Link 

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Wet Paint and Queen of Procrastination!

Wesley just told me about a great "organizational" tool he's using called "I Procrastinate" and I thought "Damn, I should have patented that!"  because I do it all the time  So while I'm confessing my many shortcomings, I'll share some amazing stuff with you!!

Doug had an incredible show at Terzian Gallery in February.  It was an incredible variety of work. Here's some of my faves!

"Majestic"
42 x 45
oil on canvas

This was the largest piece for the show.  Beautiful Boulder Mountain serenity in my book.   Another favorite was taken from some of the awesome photos I took of the midwest!!  I'm going with that, anyway!  This is one of my favorite paintings from the show - and probably from his 2013 paintings.  This one you really need to see in person - still hanging at Terzian Gallery I believe.

"Optimistic Horizon"
9 x 20
oil on panel

The glazes he used on this were so incredible listen to me talking all "painter-like" . . . yeah, I'm all over it!  Love the red barn and how it looks weathered.  Fun to see it up close and zoom in on how he does that.  I continued to be wowed by this man of 27+ years.  And did I mention we are now empty nesters?  I know, we came home one night and, BAM, they were all gone!  Like a magic trick!  That's how fast 27 years goes!

Wes doing some recording in his new "studio!" compliments of Ryan!

Ryan, our oldest son, bought a house a couple of miles from home here and Wesley, our youngest son, moved in with him!  Quite the bachelor pad goin' on there!  We told Ryan "get your room picked out quick because Wes has TONS of stuff!"  I think Wes occupies 2 of the 3 rooms with all his stuff!  One room with guitars and instruments on every wall!  What a great time they're having tho!

Okay - next painting, yes, I digress, which, I believe is a common trait in people who procrastinate!  

This painting was another FIRST in the Braithwaite book -- he painted an elk.  As we drove home from Wisconsin last fall, we came through Estes Park and came upon a herd of bulls surrounding this "King of the Hill."  He stood not 10 feet from the road and Doug stopped, and we took pictures for 2 or 3 minutes while he stood very still.

"King of the Hill"
18 x 24
oil on canvas

Doug's first inclination was to title it "Nice Rack" but I didn't want anyone to confuse that with . . . oh, never mind.  seeing the incredible variety already??  I know huh!   

This one was another first!  There's some pretty big moose in the Huntsville area!  Great capture of this beautiful and quiet little space.   

"Solitude"
24 x 24
Oil on Canvas

The ski paintings were such a hit.  Always so fun.  Here's one of my faves - this one we posted on facebook and asked people to name it!  Some awesome names!  Skis and Trees, Got Skis?, Vertical Reality, Can't See the Forest for the Skis, Standing Tall, Winter's Silent Sentinels, Anticipation, Ski Garden, Board Meeting, Apres' Skis, Tips Up!  We went with Pick Up Sticks via Joy Richmond and Katrina West!  Thanks everyone!!  Loved utilizing people's creativity!  Doug was leaning toward "Skis!"  Hmmmm clever, I know.  

"Pick Up Sticks"
16 x 12
oil on panel

Also another beauty of Park City's favorite downtown - this includes the Kimball Arts Center.  What a great capture of a moment in time!

"Park Avenue"
9 x 20
oil on panel

"Shadow Play"
8 x 10
oil on panel

Wish I could post them all.  Seriously.  What a great show.  The day after, he did a little demo there in the gallery and people came in to watch.  He was a little painting of the Huntsville area.  

He also just completed an amazing painting for the Springville Salon which is currently being judged and paintings selected to be shown.  A list of selected paintings will be posted on April 16th.  Keeping my fingers crossed!  

"Base Camp"
42 x 45
oil on canvas

I think it's a winner myself.  And I'm really not that biased.  I really would say if I thought it sucked!  haha 

Doug also had a great showing at Zion's Plein Air Invitational.  I wasn't able to go with him this year so I was so anxious to hear how he did.  We were texting back and forth and I asked how it was going, he said "eh, okay."  I'm like, "really??"  Then he sends me a picture of this and says "well, there was THIS."  

"Best of Show"
Doug Braithwaite
Zion's Plein Air Invitational 2013

The big dork.  I was so excited for him and bummed that I wasn't there to share in the excitement.  All the neighbors in surrounding houses did get in on the excitement however!  Here's one of the paintings done there.  

Plein Air piece from the Zion's Invitational
2013
12 x 16
I don't remember the name . . . 

Next post, I'll tell you about the "company party" Doug planned and executed at Christmas time.  Hil-AAAA-rious!!  

Doug has a busy year planned!  He's been invited back to Door County, Wisconsin!  Wahoo!  So excited for him - we soooo enjoyed that trip and the people we met - well, totally worth the trip - what a treat!  He's also teaching a workshop in June in Helper - June 9-14.  We have about 5 spots left so get to our website if you want a spot!  Always such fun!!  We are also teaching a workshop in Torrey which will happen just BEFORE the Escalante Plein Air competition, which we haven't been to for several years.  Very excited about hitting my old stomping grounds again!!  

Last painting off the easel . . . still wet and amazing!!  Enjoy.

"The Grass IS Greener on the Other Side"
8 x 20
Oil on panel

Thanks for following and I really do enjoy conversing with you, via blog.  and otherwise, when you want to call, just feel free!  

Talk soon!!  

Jeanette aka Queen of Procrastination

Wet Paint in Oklahoma!

The grand opening was, well, a GRAND success!!  Thanks to all of you who came and supported us!! It was so great to see faces we hadn't seen in a really really long time!  Notice how I avoided saying "old faces?"  We were only open a short time and put Wesley in charge of holding the fort down as we headed out to Oklahoma to teach a workshop for the Oklahoma Fine Arts Institute at Quartz Mountain.

We left Tuesday morning and traveled the first 450 miles which took us just past the four-corners area to Farmington, New Mexico.  A short night and we were back on the road, facing 630 miles the next day.  What we failed to factor in was that we also LOST an hour so the 9 hours turned into 10 and I needed to take over the wheel to make up the lost time!  Goooo Mario!!

No worries - we made it in time and in the middle of this flat, but lovely state, is a little mound we call Quartz Mountain.  It's a beautiful resort and the Oklahoma Fine Arts Institute is such a great organization.  They provide full scholarships to bring their public school art educators to come to this lovely resort, Quartz Mountain, to be educated by world-renowned art instructors in all areas of art, such as music, photography, painting, print-making, theater, etc.  It is funded through their state education as well as private donations, which allows them to bring in art instructors to give their public school educators an opportunity to learn new areas of expertise or strengthen their areas of expertise.  We have met some incredible educators and are honored to be here and share in their experience!  Oklahoma has great, great art teachers!!

We arrived the first night and met the other instructors and the OFAI Staff and got settled into our room.  After a ten-hour driving day, we were beat!  The resort is beautiful and our room sits right on the edge of beautiful Lake Altus Lugert.  yeah, I looked that up!  It didn't exactly flow off the tongue!

Our first class met in our pavillion and Doug gave them a little overview and did a quick value study demo in the classroom.

They were anxious to get out painting!  The next morning, we took them out to a place Doug had scouted out to paint.  I think their impression of Doug's choice was "Whaaa???  You kidding me??  We just passed a beautiful lake!!"  But they humored him as he sat up in this dusty weedy parking lot with an old building with some broken-down fences (if you know Doug, you know he paints stuff no one else does!!)  The class sat their stools and chairs around him and he started his magic show!

The class of nearly 20 students was made up of public school art teachers in the Oklahoma public school education system.  What a great program to provide full scholarships to give them this opportunity.  We met some incredible people! 

He starts, as always, with the dark purple color and "draws" in the shapes and does a value study of the darks and the lights.

Value Study then the color added over the top - value still the same, just adding the color.  

Don't mind the horses off to the right, breaking through the fence and meandering their way through, oh, and yeah, the dogs also made their way over to the the group of students as well.  One even decided that one of the stools looked a lot like a fire hydrant.  Yeah, . . . he did.  He pure and simple lifted his leg and peed on it.  WTH?  The dogs in Oklahoma have absolutely NO manners!  bahaha!!

The magic came together and the little painting was a gem!  Because Doug makes this look so easy, the students were excited to get out and do their own painting!

Day 1 Demo Painting - Didn't get quite finished but turned out really great I think!!  

The afternoon took the students out doing their thing and they knocked out some great little paintings.  So proud of them - many of them were first-time painters!  Pretty impressive, folks!!

Kim Heckenkemper, an Art Teacher, loves to paint in her spare time and so loved this experience.  However, her choice of location landed her right smack-dab in the middle of an ant bed.  She had a hard time pulling her coffee cup out of her bag . . . ewwww!  But an awesome painting of some little boats down in the water, Kim!  Totally worth an ant attack!!!  

We had to hustle back after the afternoon painting session because we were going to have a most-impressive "meet the artist" presentation by plein air painter, Doug Braithwaite, from Utah!  We were all pretty anxious to see what the man of few words had to say!  He wowed everyone with his presentation and slides of many of his paintings and his "not-so-few-words!  Whoda thunk?  In fact, Emily, the Director of Programs, sitting in the front row, was holding up her "5 minutes" card . . . then "3 minutes" card . . . then "1 minute left!!" card.  None of which were even noticed by Doug.  I finally had to say "uh, hon - your time is up!!" It was hilarious!

This morning, we took the students down to the water's edge to watch a demo in the wind!  Yes, breezy, but no rain!  In your face, forecast!   The wind created a comfortable temperature for many, but too cold for some!  Some were bundled up with jackets, blankets and sweatshirts, while others, whose body temperatures said "it's just right!"  Love it!!

We also had a few extra students slip into the class.  Mostly non-paying customers.  One woman in a bathing suit headed down to the beach.  We were bundled in blankets and she was hustling down to the beach!  I told the class Doug's model had showed up right on time!  Also, this little guy slipped in and out of the rocks at lightning speed!!

Also on scholarship!

Here are some progress pictures of the demo.

Ah, and thanks for the sunflowers in the front!  'preciate that!!  I'm going to post a few more pictures tomorrow of some of the rest of the paintings of the students.  They really did some great work.  Hoping some of them will come out to Utah to paint some of our Utah landscape one of these days.  

So far, what a great experience.  Thanks, Oklahoma!  For our first time here, it's been fantastic!  And for Rick Heckenkemper, THIS is a blog, and just from MY perspective!  

To all the new friends I've made here in Oklahoma, big hug and THANKS for your warm hospitality!

Talk soon!!

J'net

Braithwaite Fine Art & Custom Frame

Hi friends and fam!

We have gone non-stop and I haven't blogged for a whole month!  Holy cow - the time has flown by!  So, where should I start?

Well, we came together and made an executive decision and decided, unanimously, that we were going to start a real-live family business and we are jumping in with both feet!  YEE-HAW!  It's something we've wanted to do for many years but the timing never seemed right.  So, ladies and gentlemen, could I get a drum roll please, we present to you Braithwaite Fine Art & Custom Frame.

I mean, we already HAVE the building, it's on a busy street with about 25,000 cars driving by every day, and we already have all the equipment needed to frame.  Add to that the fact that Doug started framing pictures as a teenager in high school.  He's amazing at it.  I want to be able to continue blogging, marketing and promoting his work and classes so, well, Wesley and I are going to go into business together!  So there you go!  With Doug's help in teaching us the "framing ropes," all the stars are aligning and we're ready to take the plunge!   

We started by booting Doug out and moving him back over to his old and original studio (which he was actually thrilled about!) and moving US into the new frame shop (which we're equally thrilled about!).  It was so much work taking his easel apart, moving it piece by piece - thankfully, just two doors over!  

  

Doug's studio located in our back yard.

We wore out several pairs of shoes making the move and got a few dings and "oops" on the way, but he's finally in and working productively again!  Check out a little "before and after" action!  

 Okay, funny side note:  With all the construction and rebuilding, we easily have made 5-10 trips to Lowes every day for the past month.  The staff at Lowe's kinda know us by name and, well, I'm not sure but I think we're going to be invited to their company Christmas Party this year.  We're kinda like part of the Lowe's fam and I think are paying most of their wages!  I'm almost thinking we're going to be getting some red vests with our name embroidered on them so that we can just check ourselves out when we come and go!  Every morning I wake up singing "Hi Ho, Hi Ho, it's off to Lowes we go" and then I skip and whistle all the way to the shop!   

Anywho, the new space is working beautifully and Doug's got every corner organized and every wall space covered . . . it's all on file for future records on our "My Lowes" card, btw.  The paintings and drawings are some oldies but goodies that he did in high school and a few drawings from college (see the Ninja Turtle "self portrait" above) . . . ah, he's such a cutie . . .  

Great space, no??  24 x 30 with 12 foot ceilings. 

We are happy to have him productive and working again.  This is the first painting off the new easel.  A painting for some dear friends of ours, Nyla and David Pilkington.  We sat next to them at the Jazz Games for a couple of seasons and have stayed good friends ever since.  Thrilled to have gotten the chance to paint something for their beautiful home!  Nyla wanted "color" - David wanted "movement!"  I think he nailed it!  

"Dancing"
28 x 28
Collection of Nyla and David Pilkington

Back to the old studio and frame shop in progress and yes, back to Lowes for a little of this, and a little of that.  No offense, hon, but dang, bring on the duster, scrub brush, broom and mop!  Lowes has it all, I tell you!  Before long, we are putting a long paint brush in the ol' master's hands and letting him at it again!  And seriously, how many frame shops do you go in to that you get to FIRST, be greeted by a room full of Braithwaite paintings under some gallery lights!  In-Credible!!      

Put a different kind've brush in Doug's hands and said "paint away!"  Jeff Kennedy asked "What, no purple paint as a base first?"  bahaha  Good one!!  

Max using some tape to take on a ninja look.  Great look for you, Max! He seriously thinks he looks cool . . .  

Wesley's favorite is painting the closets.  bahaha!   What a trooper!  Hard little worker and is going to make a fabulous business partner!!  

Carpet layers came (yes, from Lowes) and did a great job laying the carpet EXCEPT for the liberties they took in scratching up my beautiful paint!  grrrr!!  Never fear, Doug gets out the mud (again!) and touches up and before you know it, he's rollin that paint back on and it blends right in and dries beautifully . . . EXCEPT for, uh, "hey hon, isn't that supposed to dry the same color as the rest of the wall?"  WTH??  Doug has some colorful expletives about now . . .  he pulls out the two gallons of paint and, as my Dad would say "well I'll be go-to-hell!  One says "primer!"  Oh, did I forget to mention we used all the light gray paint?  Never fear, Lowes has it on file!  And as Aaaaanold would say, "I'll be back . . . "

 

So, hanging paintings was so stinkin fun!!  We have a wall in front of the window so we can hang a painting there with a light shining on it at night like the cool galleries do . . . Oh man, we are so legit!!  did that paragraph even make sense?  I feel myself rambling because I'm so excited . . . you just have to come see it I guess!  

So over the years, we have taken some of our favorite paintings that have sold and had them professionally scanned at a very high-resolution so we, and our families, could have the opportunity to enjoy them as a giclee print!  (I'll ALWAYS say "there's nothing like having an original!  but a giclee (pronounced zhee-clay) print is an "okay" second!)  Try not to pronounce it like my friend, Ange Ellsworth . . . gick-lee!! tee hee  

So along with a few original paintings, you also get to see some of these beautiful giclee prints (say it with me again, zhee-clay . . . you're getting it!) in some different sizes (from original size to some post-card and greeting card sizes!) that have turned out so beautiful and we've been thrilled that some of our family and friends have been able to enjoy some "Braithwaites" in their homes and offices!  

We are going to do a "grand opening" that will be on Friday, October 4th, (hey, that's Wesley's 20th birthday!!) and invite you to come see the frame shop, gallery and Doug's new studio!  We'll give you more details very soon!

In the meantime, a few more paintings that have been done in the midst of all this moving and remodeling over the last month or two that I failed to share with you!  

"In Passing"
40 x 30

"Sculpting"
18 x 24

See you at the opening - or at Lowes.  We usually have lunch in aisle 12!  bahaha!

Find "Braithwaite Fine Art & Custom Frame" on facebook and "like" us for Pete Sake!  Can you tell we're having a blast?  

XOXO

Jeanette - da boss!!