The End of Summer At Sitka

As many years of teaching taught me, summer does end on August 31, regardless of what the calendar says. Vacationers generally head home, families have their last vacation before school starts, and of course, the leaves begin to change color. So in the last three days of summer (August 2025), I took great pleasure in teaching art at Sitka Center for Art and Ecology on the Oregon Coast.

In this 3-day workshop, I was sharing many ways to include pen and ink marking with watercolors. This group of 10 fellow art devotees really soaked up the ideas I presented. My goal, as always, is not to have participants paint like me, but to give them various ideas and tools to go home with. 

Day 1: Use a still life set up to paint loosely, then use pen and ink to finish it by containing the painted image in an artistic way.

Teacher's work: 
Garden on a checkerboard

I brought a vase and greenery from home, then painted like a wild woman. I never want my participants to just "watch," I want them to get ideas and go for it! 

I did not bring a tablecloth, but I felt like my bouquet needed to sit on something more substantial than a white table.

As you can see, the participants brought their own style to the

assignment. 

Day 2: On the second day my theme was "No matter where you are, no matter how blah your hotel room is, you can find something to paint. (ABSTRACT!)

Van Gogh's Chair

If Van Gogh painted a chair that now sits in the National Gallery of London, we can use a mug to create a piece of abstract art.

Take a mug then draw it from many angles. Put lines over one another.  Add patterns, colors if you wish, then step back and be in awe!

Day 2 Afternoon: This was a chance to go outside and find an area of the beauty of Sitka to sketch. I emphasized looking for small, medium and large shapes in the trees and shrubs.

Teacher's work
A Stone on the Walk

Sharing What Was Learned

Day 3: I asked participants to come to class with a quote or poem to be the theme of the day's art. I chose a small poem by Mary Oliver. Others used words that represented their goals. Some chose very personal words written by a deceased loved one. 

Teacher's work
Go Outside and Sing

Concentrating

Joy

I hope to return to Sitka next year to share art and art making.  A bonus is that my husband can join me and launch his boat every day!