Day 139

Full moon on the beach at HHI.

I'm back from my week-long workshop with Karin Jurick in Hilton Head Island, SC. It was an amazing trip that I'll never forget. Not only was the workshop incredible, I had never been to the South before and didn't expect to fall in love with it the way I did. In addition to Hilton Head Island, we visited Savannah, GA, a city I've wanted to visit for years - it was everything I dreamed of and more. I didn't want to leave! We also visited Beaufort, SC, where it was love at first sight as well. 

I truly loved the lowcountry and it's friendly people, beautiful scenery, and incredible food. I felt so at home there, and can't wait to go back.

Before I talk about the workshop, I have to say I'm thrilled to announce that my painting Shadow Walk 6 won the top prize at the Edward Hopper House show Small Matters of Great Importance in NY! It was extra special to find out while we were in Hilton Head and to share the news with Karin and my new friends at the workshop - to be in a supportive group of fellow artists that included one of my biggest art heros, Karin Jurick... that meant so much to me, and it couldn't have been more perfect.

Shadow Walk 6

6 x 6 inch oil on panel, © 2012 Kathleen Coy

On to the workshop - It was a huge thrill to meet Karin Jurick - as I said, she's been one of my favorite artists for years, and she was a top notch teacher and a whole lot of fun, too. My main goal at the workshop was to learn from her masterful and bold use of color, especially in regards to skin tones. By the end of the week, I really felt like I was starting to "get it." In addition, I learned a lot in regards to working with reference photos that will be very helpful, as well as some great tips on drawing the figure. One of my favorite parts of the workshop was watching Karin do a demo painting every day. She is truly amazing to watch.

This is the first painting we did at the workshop. The entire class painted this photo of Karin's. We watched Karin paint it as a demo first, then it was our turn. It was a great warmup, and it was fun to line all the paintings up together when we were finished and see them all together. This was my painting:

Workshop Warmup, 8 x 10 inch oil on panel.

And here's a shot of Karin's demo in progress. I LOVE her skin tones and especially that little spot of reflected light in the shadow of the underside of the right arm. She is brilliant:

Karin Jurick's demo in progress.

I'll be writing more about the trip during the upcoming week, but I'll leave you with a few of my favorite things about my time away:

• Getting to spend a week in the company of an amazing group of women at the workshop. Seriously, these ladies were fantastic! Love you gals!

• Watching Karin Jurick paint a dog. And a museum scene. And a landscape. 

• A private party at Morris and Whiteside Gallery for our group, where we got to see incredible artwork that included Dan Gerhartz, Milt Kobayashi, and Andre Kohn. Simply amazing.

• Fresh seafood! (Can you overdose on oysters?) 

• Riding bikes on the beach with my husband.

Hope everyone had a good week. Even though I wish I could have stayed for another week, (or a lifetime), I'm inspired and ready to get back to work! Here's a link to Karin's blogpost about the workshop: http://karinjurick.blogspot.com/2012/11/live-work-play-time.html 

See you tomorrow!