David Hockney painting expected to break auction records

One of David Hockney’s famous “pool paintings” is coming to auction and is expected to sell in the $80 million range, easily breaking the record for a work by a living artist.

The British artist’s “Portrait of an Artist [Pool with Two Figures],” to be auctioned at Christie’s on Nov. 15, is considered one of his premier works. Christie’s has estimated the work at about $80 million, but says it expects it to sell for more.

The previous record for a work by a living artist was set by Jeff Koons’ “Balloon Dog,” which sold for $58.4 million in 2013.

The 1972 painting by Hockney, now 81, is “the holy grail of his paintings, from both the historical and the market perspectives,” said Alex Rotter, co-chairman of post-war and contemporary art at Christie’s. He noted that it reflects both the European and the American perspectives of an artist who came to live in sunny California in the ‘60s, and saw himself as living on both continents.

“It has all the elements that you would want in a Hockney painting,” Mr. Rotter said in an interview. He noted that writers have referred to the swimming pool as being sort of a self-portrait of Hockney, though he never confirmed that, just saying he was fascinated to paint moving water.

The painting has been held by a private collector, and “we have been trying to get it for a very long time,” Mr. Rotter said.

A depiction of two men one swimming the breaststroke underwater, the other standing by the pool looking down the painting was originally inspired, according to background provided by Christie’s, by two photographs Hockney found juxtaposed on his studio floor, one of a swimmer in Hollywood in 1966, and another of a boy staring at something on the ground.

The rocky landscape is in southern France, and the standing figure is said to represent Peter Schlesinger, whom the artist met in 1966, when the younger man was a student in one of Hockney’s art classes at UCLA. For the next five years, according to Christie’s, he was both “the great love of Hockney’s life” and one of his favorite models.

The relationship ended in 1971. Hockney had already begun the painting and he abandoned it, starting again the following year.

The upcoming sale, Mr. Rotter said, “will definitely be a record for David Hockney at auction. And with Mr. Hockney one of the last of his generation still standing, and also painting, this painting will likely be the most expensive work by a living artist sold at auction.”

But who will buy an $80 million painting?

“It will be someone who wants the best painting of an artist,” Mr. Rotter said, “and the best painting of an artist with historical relevance.”

Resource   :https://www.thehindu.com/news/international/david-hockney-painting-expected-to-break-auction-records/article24943447.ece

Painting her passion

Former teacher John Bosco Mary has nurtured a lifelong love for fine arts that is finally coming to fruition
Retirement gave John Bosco Mary what 34 years of service as a Mathematics teacher and headmistress in Government schools couldn’t: the leisure to finally develop the talent for drawing and painting that had lain hidden behind the everyday concerns of balancing a family and a career.

“I used to draw from a very young age. But my father didn’t encourage me to take up art classes because in those days, girls weren’t sent out of the house unnecessarily. And the fine arts weren’t given much importance then, just formal school education,” says Mrs Mary, who retired as the headmistress of Government High School, Rachandar Tirumalai in Karur in 2003.

Born in a hamlet near Velankanni on September 12, 1944 as the eldest of five children, Mary got her unusual name in memory of Saint John (also known as Don) Bosco, the Italian Roman Catholic priest, educator and writer of the 19th century.

Her father S Soosai Kannu, taught Tamil at the Roman Catholic Higher Secondary School, in Tiruchi. He was, Mrs Mary remembers, a strict disciplinarian.

“I didn’t have the courage to draw in his presence. But in my free time, I would always be lost in my paintings, for hours together. Maybe if I had got some encouragement, my life may have taken a different path,” she says.

Early talent

Her father may have disapproved, but there were others who recognised her talent, says Mrs Mary. As a student of St Philomena Higher Secondary School, Tiruchi in the 1950s and ’60s, she excelled in Mathematics. But it was her drawing notebook that would invariably be shown around to senior pupils. “My Art teacher was used to take my sketches to the higher classes, to scold the older students into putting some effort in their work,” she says with a chuckle.

After gaining a Bachelors degree in Mathematics from the Holy Cross College, Tiruchi, the young Mary did her B.Ed at the Stella Matutina College of Education in Mylapore, Madras in the late-1960s.

“These portraits were displayed there on the noticeboard,” says Mrs Mary as she shows us a selection of pencil drawings of famous film personalities of the day. “I would take any picture in the newspaper, and then enlarge it using squares as a template,” she says. Drawn with just a basic HB pencil on standard school-issue 2-anna sketchbooks, the portraits of actresses K R Vijaya, Saroja Devi and former Chief Minister M G Ramachandran, among others, have a luminosity that shines through even today.

Tryst with oil

Her first brush with formal art training was in response to an advertisement for classes in Thanjavur painting. But while she attended the course for 15 days, she found the traditional art difficult to practice without assistance. “So I dropped Thanjavur painting, but returned to the master with my watercolour paintings and asked him for advice.”

The master suggested she should switch over to oil painting, as her samples showed her fine eye for colour and composition.

“I was totally ignorant about oil painting, but my teacher set my doubts to rest and gifted me a couple of brushes, some linseed oil and paints. My task was to redraw the picture of a flower.”

Pleased with the result of the test, the teacher asked her to perfect her nascent skill with continuous practice. “So I started out by redrawing pictures done by famous artists like Raja Ravi Varma, M F Husain and (Iranian artist) Iman Maleki. Unlike watercolours, oil paintings take time to create. I found that while the picture could emerge in a matter of days, the real depth comes from adding layers of paint, for over three weeks. These master painters and their paintings were my real teachers,” says Mrs Mary.

Towards perfection

She has no studio, and tends to work late into the night in different nooks of her home in Crawford, whose walls are decorated with her work.

“I can’t sleep if I make a mistake in the painting,” she says. “Sometimes, I get up mid-way to doodle a bit and then go back to bed. It’s an obsession to get it right.”

Her early talent for portraiture has developed into a style that echoes Hyperrealism: a method of painting that makes pictures assume the quality of a high-resolution photograph.

“My first portrait in this style was of Mother Teresa,” says Mrs Mary, who recently showcased it in an art exhibition in the city. “Finding the pastel shades to convey her pale skin tone was the toughest part, but otherwise I’m glad it came out well.”

In another of her ‘Notable Women’ series, actress Aishwarya Rai’s glossy tresses are the highlight of the realistic portrait.

“I usually start a painting when I’m challenged by my sons to recreate a particular effect,” says Mrs Mary. “I did Raja Ravi Varma’s Kadambari chiefly because my son wanted to see if I could get the shine and folds of the subject’s silk sari realistically. It’s not the same as that of the great artist, but I’m happy with the result,” she adds.

Grateful for the support of her spouse, former professor and singer P Peter Natesan, Mrs Mary hopes one day to create her own original works. “I’m still learning,” says the 73-year-old, “there’s so much more to know about Art.”

Resource :http://www.thehindu.com/entertainment/art/painting-her-passion/article23334590.ece

The Artist Who Paints With Fire

Steven Spazuk’s flame-powered technique is inspired by 1930s Surrealists. 

Artist Steven Spazuk sets his paintings on fire. Usually that’s the sign of something being destroyed, but not in Spazuk’s case. Instead, he is employing the art of fumage, a technique popularized by Surrealist painters in the 1930s, that uses fire like paint. Using the soot an open flame leaves behind on the paper, Spazuk explains on his website, he “sculpt[s] the plumes of soot to render shapes and light” using brushes and feathers.

In an interview with Slate, Spazuk said he started experimenting with the technique after a dream. “I was in a gallery [in my dream] and was looking at that black and white landscape and I knew that it was done with fire and completely understood the technique,” he said. “That was in April of 2001, and I have been working with fire ever since.” 

This unconventional technique produces an element of unpredictability in Spazuk’s work, something that intrigues him even more. As he says on his website, fire, and its ability to be “both a constructive and destructive force is a constant factor in my creations.”

Video Wonders are audiovisual offerings that delight, inspire, and entertain. Have you encountered a video we should feature? Email ella@atlasobscura.com.

Resource   :https://www.atlasobscura.com/articles/painting-with-fire

HARMONIC EASE: Tatyana Kulida and Mio Reynolds showcase a study of peace in latest show at Art in Bloom

"Beauty, like love, is a limitless resource and is available to anyone,” according to portraiture artist Tatyana Kulida. “Hostile thoughts and actions are ugly and they do not sprout in harmonious soil. They are a result of imbalance and fear.”


Peace and harmony are the focus of Kulida’s latest show, “Dreaming of Peace,” at Art in Bloom Gallery in downtown Wilmington. Alongside realistic faces of friends and family are still-life floral arrangements, some of which pop off the canvas with perfectly etched lines of color representing light. In fact, it’s the true craftsmanship in Kulida’s work overall: She understands light and shadow to near perfection, which make her paintings look as real as photographs.

“Harmony is something I search for when selecting colors and creating a composition,” Kulida tells. “With my portraits, I seek for a harmonious expression and pose. The portrait ‘Reading’ carries a certain inquiry in the sitter, yet she is in harmony within her pose and herself.”

Included in the show are Kulida’s and her daughter’s self-portraits, both of which are newer works. The full-time artist—who has been painting for two decades now—puts in anywhere from 15 to 30 hours of work in each painting.

“I still heavily edit my work and not every painting I produce ends up framed and on a wall,” she notes. “I prepare my materials and many of my frames by hand. Gilding layers and preparation can take up to 10 hours alone.”

Her subject matter remains a passion: people. She often has models in her studio, including friends. And she is well-known for her commission work.

Floral still-lifes are new to Kulida, who began doing them as an exercise in composition and color, and as a respite between portraits. Some of the florals are in arrangements, others singular.

“There are a few pieces featuring traditional water gilding technique I have recently learnt from a restorer in Italy,” Kulida notes. She calls Italy her creative home, Wilmington her American home (where she has had shows at ACES Gallery, Caprice Bistro, Patterson Gallery and Frames, and Cameron Art Museum), Russia her birth home, and New Zealand her current home.

“New Zealand is a place for discovery and experimentation,” Kulida tells, “But I lived in NC for over a decade; I received my B.A. and M.A. here. In NC I have many dear and long-term friends whose faces mean comfort and love.”

Of such is local Japanese artist Mio Reynolds (cover model), who is sharing space in the exhibition with Kulida. Reynolds also has included portraits to represent ideals of rapprochement. Two were painted during CAM’s night classes at the Museum School, directed by Donna Moore.

“‘Reflecting’ and ‘Christina’ started there and I worked on them further at home, adding colors and backgrounds,” Reynolds says. “Reflecting” features a young woman whose stillness of facial expression indicates she’s looking inward and assessing the meaningfulness of her life. Reynolds and Kulida believe such wholeness comes from good will, even if the process of getting there isn’t always uplifting.

“I use painting as a way to channel emotions, some of which are very violent and have to be released,” Reynolds details. “Sometimes profound sadness can be triggered by poems; in order to release deep sorrow one has to express it. I paint a painting, and once the feeling is expressed, I feel peaceful.”

Reynolds finds inspiration from nature, music, a past experience, or even the written word. Two poems, “Over the Mountain” by Carl Busse and “Peace Prayer of Saint Francis,” hang in tandem with Reynolds’ works. The hopeful line, “Make me an instrument of peace…”, opens the prayer, which both Kulida and Reynolds are hoping to represent through art and action. Thus, partial proceeds from “Dreaming of Peace” will benefit DREAMS Center of Arts Education in Wilmington; the 2018 encore Best Of beneficiary, which keeps arts alive for at-risk youth. Kulida was a board member of DREAMS when she lived in Wilmington and when the nonprofit was fundraising for its current home at 901 Fanning St.

“Back then I lived on Ann Street, a block or so away from the original DREAMS home,” she tells. “I felt passionate about the work they were doing in the community and  served as a board secretary for a year. I passionately believe investing into children and their education is much more profitable in terms of social returns, as well as financial, than having to heal and subsidize in some way adult lives that are broken or unfulfilled.”
Details:
Dreaming of Peace
Art work of Tatyana Kulida and Mio Reynolds
Art in Bloom Gallery
910 Princess St.
Hangs through Jan. 13
aibgallery.com 

Resource :http://www.encorepub.com/harmonic-ease-tatyana-kulida-and-mio-reynolds-showcase-a-study-of-peace-in-latest-show-at-art-in-bloom/

Painting dreams in the city of stars

Amarjot Kaur
Like a window in the wall, 39-year-old artist Ranjit Dahiya’s murals of Bollywood stars, and their films’ posters, have been spelling the Bollywood cult and its evolution over the years.

Since 2012, he has been nurturing the Bollywood Art Project (BAP) and has created a 230-foot tall mural of Amitabh Bachchan’s iconic look from Deewaar in Bandra and late Shashi Kapoor’s 12-foot tall portrait at his studio.

As he prepares to paint a portrait of Smita Patil at his studio, a task that he undertook last Wednesday, he is reminded of her eternal beauty and grace. “She was 31 years old when she died. Today, it’s going to be 31 years since she died. I will take a few days to complete this one. I think she’s extraordinarily beautiful,” he says.

Calling it a creative outburst that defines the very core of his being and influences, Dahiya identifies with Bollywood not only because it is popular but also because he has been associated with it ever since his brush with the brush!

On the wall

He peaked to success with poster making, and painting commercial ads on walls, rediscovering the era when ‘internet printouts on flex’ were neither an option, nor fashionable enough. “I was whitewashing at a school in Sonipat for Rs 40 a day, the principal demanded that Goddess Saraswati’s picture be painted on a wall. I volunteered for it, to make extra bucks. That’s when I realised I can paint. So, I ended up painting advertisements on boards and walls, and truck art too, back in 90s,” he says.

A graduated Chandigarh’s Government College of Arts, Dahiya did his masters in graphic design from National Institute of Design in Ahamdabad. “That’s also when I learnt English, by the way,” he adds. “I had the taste of Bollywood’s popularity in France, back in 2009. I met a France-based Indian artist in Mumbai’s Wall Art Project who landed me an exhibition and a show in La Rochelle. There, I met a girl who could barely speak in English, let alone Hindi, and she was singing Nimbuda Nimbuda Nimbuda..’ when she got to know about my nationality. I painted a mural of Sarkar Raj in Paris, In La Rochelle, I painted a mural of a residential area that was to be demolished after a year, and held an exhibition on ‘The History of Bollywood’ too.” 

At present, Dahiya teaches at Balwant Sheth School of Architecture in Mumbai and he is planning to take his Bollywood Art Project further. “I painted Amitabh Bachchan’s look from Deewaar just before his birthday and this is one is the biggest murals in the country. It was sponsored by Zee,” he signs off.

amarjot@tribunemail.com

Resource :http://www.tribuneindia.com/news/life-style/painting-dreams-in-the-city-of-stars/515797.html

Painter Colt Idol at Art Focus in Hamilton Dec. 2

Perhaps you’ve seen Colt Idol's amazing oil paintings of the old West with a more contemporary flair and ethereal feel.

Idol, a 27-year-old Whitefish artist, will be at Art Focus on Dec. 2 to meet the public and talk about his paintings, which have a strong sense of another era but with a modern twist.

“I’m still kind of growing into it,” Idol said. “I grew up art-inclined. My dad (Dick Idol) was a career artist who did sculpture, furniture, painting, writing, and even apparel.”

Idol will be premiering five new limited edition canvas prints and more prints not previously shown at Art Focus.

He was born and raised in Big Fork and has been to Hamilton many times, competing in high school basketball and track. Idol played for Montana State University on a basketball scholarship and transferred to Carroll College for basketball and track, but after a few injuries he decided to hang it up and get serious about art.

“It was a blessing, really. I was going through college without a specific major or interest,” he said. “I fell into oil painting about six years ago and haven’t looked back. I thought I had a passion for athletics until I compared it to my passion for painting.”

Idol describes his work as “the new face of the old West.”

“It is the purpose behind my work,” he said. “It is old West subject matter – cowboys, Native Americans, wildlife, old buildings or landscape - but done with a more contemporary flair. Each piece has a strong sense of light, a slightly exaggerated color usage, and a high-value contrast. Those are my three characteristics. I like the light and color to be right on the edge of possibility; not over the top, but once-in-a-blue-moon moments.”

Idol said his old West theme inspiration comes from being born and raised in Montana. he's been collecting Native American artifacts since he can remember, and his dad’s studio was like a museum with fur trade items, birch bark canoes, fossils, and Native American remnants.

Idol said that as a child his family attended the annual CM Russell events in Great Falls, which was a yearly highlight for he and his brother.

“We’d go and wheel and deal and come home with interesting items and books," Idol said. "So when I started painting that’s was what I was drawn to.”

Idol said he learned of his father’s fame in the sporting world as he got older. Dick Idol published a few books and started North American Whitetail magazine. He is well-known in the hunting world and started the first non-green camouflage for Alaska and tundra areas. Dick Idol’s nature connection came out in the creation of eclectic furniture and some of the largest bronze monuments in the country.

Attend the artist reception to meet Colt Idol, 1 to 4 p.m. on Saturday, Dec. 2 at Art Focus, 215 West Main St. in Hamilton.

Resource:http://ravallirepublic.com/news/local/article_d37037f9-8e96-5ff0-945a-16703362baf4.html

Art Production Fund and FriendsWithYou Unveil ‘Little Cloud’ Sculpture at The Street

The sculpture has been installed at The Street in Chestnut Hill, MA.

 A cloud has descended upon The Street.

The 10-foot fiberglass sculpture “Little Cloud” — a smiling, Cumulus cloud — is the latest public art initiative from Art Production Fund. The sculpture is located at outdoor shopping center The Street in Chestnut Hill, Mass., and is the latest work of FriendsWithYou, a collaborative art duo. The L.A.-based artists Samuel Borkson and Arturo Sandoval 3rd have become known for incorporating cheery symbols in their colorful experiential installations, such as last year’s “Super Moon” in Seokchon Lake in Seoul.

“How we view artwork and the world in general…universally, it’s to really embody everything with a soul,” Sandoval says. “[We] imagine that things aren’t just objects to be consumed, but they’re actual living things.” Adds Borkson, “Almost every piece that we make has this one rule that it does have some kind of spirit inside of it.”

RELATED STORY: Moncler Unveils Capsule With L.A. Artists Friends With You >>

The artists often work with the cloud emblem, which they’ve implemented in large-scale murals, video projects, light installations, and even onto Moncler jackets, as part of FWY’s collaboration with the fashion label earlier this year.

“The cloud is a very warm and sweet and light carrier of this kind of message,” Borkson says. “It’s something that is very approachable to people, no matter who it is, and where they’re coming from. It’s a symbol that everybody knows,” he continues. “People just have a very optimistic projection toward the symbol, which is what we aspire to do. There’s not a lot of art that is optimistic or that is [a] positive projection, and we always aspire to have that positive projection.”

 While simple in nature, the artists hope that the sculpture inspires visitors to the outdoor shopping center to interact. Their work, which draws comparisons to the post-pop cartoon quality of Takashi Murakami and the neo-geometric nature of Jeff Koons, is certainly Instagrammable.

“We’re really trying to make the world our gallery,” Sandoval says. “[We’re] trying to create meaning, create moments of shared interest. Art Production Fund is very much in line with our philosophy and how we always view art.”

“We really feel that art needs to reach people and this is a really good way for us to do that,” Borkson continues. “I think that there is a level of interaction, which you don’t find with a lot of very strict traditional gallery settings, and we always try to really play around with that.”

Art Production Fund executive director Casey Fremont and director of operations Kathleen Lynch joined the artists for the sculpture’s unveiling on Aug. 1.

“The work of FriendsWithYou is perfect in the public realm, it’s accessible while having a powerful message,” Fremont says. “We’ve already witnessed the positivity and joy that Little Cloud is bringing to the public,and look forward to so much more.”

The sculpture is on view at The Street through December.

Resource :http://wwd.com/eye/lifestyle/art-production-fund-friendswithyou-little-cloud-sculpture-the-street-10955906/

 

Lee Hyori Jadi Cameo Penting di 'Operation' Jo Jin Woong, Peran Apa?

WowKeren.com - Selebriti populer Lee Hyori ternyata tak hanya berbakat dalam hal tarik suara. Dia baru saja dikabarkan akan menampilkan kemampuan akting terbarunya.

Hyori diajak untuk membintangi film "Operation" sebagai cameo dan kabar ini telah dikonfirmasi oleh agensinya. "Hyori akan memberikan penampilan khusus ( cameo) di film 'Operation'. Baru-baru ini dia telah menyelesaikan proses syutingnya," ungkap perwakilan agensi (2/8).

Ternyata tim produksi mengajak Hyori karena dia sempat syuting iklan dengan penari Korea Utara, Jo Myung Jae pada 2005 lalu. Pasalnya "Operation" juga berkisah tentang hubungan Korea Utara dan Korea Selatan. Hyori berakting untuk adegan yang sama seperti di iklan itu dan memberi peran penting dalam jalan ceritanya.

"Operation" juga akan menampilkan usaha mata-mata Korea Selatan yang menyusup untuk mengamati perkembangan nuklir di Korea Utara. Tak hanya Jo Jin Woong, "Operation" juga dibintangi Joo Ji Hoon , Hwang Jung Min, dan Lee Sung Min. "Operation" sendiri telah mulai syuting sejak Januari lalu dan dijadwalkan rilis sekitar 2017. (wk/kr)
Resource :http://www.wowkeren.com/berita/tampil/00172490.html

Untung Rugi Transaksi Online Versi Bank Indonesia, Penting Nih

TRIBUNJAMBI.COM, JAKARTA - Perubahan transaksi belanja masyarakat dari cara konvensional ke online turut mempengaruhi lesunya konsumsi masyarakat.

Namun, Bank Indonesia (BI) menilai, transaksi online juga memiliki dampak positif dan negatif ke kondisi ekonomi di Tanah Air.

Asisten Gubernur Kepala Departemen Kebijakan Ekonomi dan Moneter BI Dody Budi Waluyo mengatakan, di satu sisi transaksi secara online memotong rantai perdagangan.

Hal ini akan menguntungkan konsumen karena harga produk bisa menjadi lebih efisien. Meski demikian, hilangnya rantai perdagangan tersebut juga menghilangkan nilai tambah.

"Misalnya, perantara satu, dua, dan tiga dalam statistik produk domestik bruto memberi nilai tambah. Packing misalnya, dari satu row material dipacking, itu sudah memberikan nilai tambah dan memberikan outlook tambahan ke PDB. Itu sekarang sudah tidak ada," kata Dody, Kamis (3/8).

Ia mengakui sejumlah indikator makroekonomi, seperti nilai tukar rupiah, inflasi, dan menunjukkan perbaikan. Di sisi lain, sektor ritel, produksi, dan impor melambat. Meski demikian lanjut Dody, pihaknya masih mengkaji gejala anomali ekonomi tersebut.

Menurutnya, data transaksi online atau digital yang saat ini belum dimasukkan dalam kajian BI, masih perlu dilihat lagi. "Ini harus jadi informasi tambahan untuk kami bisa judge ekonomi kita seperti apa," tambah dia.

Dody melanjutkan, bank sentral masih memproyeksi ekonomi kuartal kedua tahun ini di atas pertumbuhan kuartal pertama lalu yang sebesar 5,01%, tetapi di bawah proyeksi sebelumnya sebesar 5,1%. Dody juga bilang, laju ekonomi akhir tahun masih bisa mencapai 5,2%. (Adinda Ade Mustami)

Resource  :http://jambi.tribunnews.com/2017/08/03/untung-rugi-transaksi-online-versi-bank-indonesia-penting-nih

High Cotton Arts bringing art to a slow simmer

It's sweet summertime, and High Cotton Arts in Athens isn't fighting the heat this year. Instead, the studio at 103 W. Washington St. is hosting Slow Simmer Sundays during July.

Community members are invited to spend a day out of their week unwinding at one of the four art classes hosted by High Cotton, which is part of the Athens Arts League.

There are classes for all ages this month, beginning with the Mommy and Me Class from 3 to 4:30 p.m. July 9 for children ages 2-5. Children and parents, grandparents or caregivers can spend time together working on a watercolor painting that will be matted to take home.

Artist and teacher Sonya Gordon said this is her first year to do a full class. She did a pilot class last year to see how it would turn out.

Children in the class will receive a coloring page and take-home projects. While the $20 class includes supplies and a snack, Gordon said parents can buy art supplies at Walmart for their children's take-home projects.

“I just wanted to get the little ones involved with art,” she said. “It gets them exposed to it early and they can get an appreciation for it. We want them to grow up and be art lovers and little budding artists.”

Gordon said five students have signed up for the class so far, and there are three spots left.

For those who want to kick off their week in a relaxed mood, the Mind, Body and Soul Creative Journey class at 4 p.m. July 23 combines light yoga and meditation with watercolor painting.

The two-part $30 class includes supplies and allows students ages 13 and up unwind physically with yoga and mentally through art, Gordon said.

She and Melissa Wright will work together to help students on an introspective journey.

“My therapeutic painting classes are an introspective journey where we search out questions within ourselves and find the answers through the process of painting,” Gordon said. “We discover attributes about ourselves and are able to translate those into a watercolor painting that is unique to ourselves.”

The theme for the session is Balance in Our Lives.

“We're going to try to make that the center of (the class) and build around it,” Gordon said. “The yoga gets you really relaxed and then you're in a good frame of mind to do the water color. They go together really well.”

To register, visit High Cotton Arts or email Gordon at sonyagordonfineart.com or at sonyasdesk@gmail.com.

Another art class for all skill-levels is the Summer Birdhouse class from 2-4 p.m. July 16, taught by artist and Coffee and Canvas owner Sanda Bishop. She will teach students ages 12 and up how to paint an 18-inch door hanger that features a birdhouse, flowers and bird. The $40 class, which includes art supplies and the wire hanger, is limited to 12 seats. To register, call Bishop at 256-777-5066 or email her at sandabishop@gmail.com.

For those interested in Native American Heritage, teacher Tina Swindell will teach a class from 3-5 p.m. July 30 on how to paint a horse with acrylics on an 11-by-14 canvas. The class is $35 and includes supplies, a snack and a performance by the Echota Cherokee tribe. Swindell said the class doesn't require previous painting or acrylic experience. To register, contact Swindell at 256-497-3838 or by e-mail at TinaS@pclnet.net.

Resource : http://www.enewscourier.com/news/lifestyles/high-cotton-arts-bringing-art-to-a-slow-simmer/article_ea62d808-6358-11e7-9737-0bdcd6e509f8.html