Our October General Meeting Will Be

Tuesday, October 16, 2018
Homewood Suites
23320 Hwy 59N
Kingwood, TX
77339

6:30pm Meet & Greet
7:00pm Meeting & Demo

Artist Demo for October, Robbie Fitzpatrick – Watercolor

For most of my life, I thought myself a writer.  As a child, I’d wished I could draw, but I knew I could write…so I wrote.  A sixth-grade teacher stayed after school to help some of us learn to draw horses; the junior high school Creative Writing Club asked me to do the illustrations for our anthology.  A visit by a hurricane, that kept me ensconced in my townhouse working through the exercises of a book entitled Drawing on the Right Side of the Brain, started the wheels really turning.

Much later, after achieving a B.A. in English and Speech Education, an M.A. in English Literature from the University of Houston, and finally a Ph.D. in Educational Psychology from Texas A&M, I moved into the art world through the venue of pottery.  Something about wet mud was mesmerizing, but more so was the enjoyment of painting on green ware, and waiting for the pictures to emerge from the kiln.

With a “small” nudge from my husband, I re-considered the direction of my art.  Hmm….there ensued a torrent of pencil drawings.  Still, wanting more  and loving color, I reached  for watercolor pigment, and the simplicity of black and white was transformed into the transparent colors of watercolor.

Eventually, I entered some drawings and a couple of watercolors in an area art show.  I won a first and third.  After a year or so of studying books, I took my first formal lesson at the Houston Art League.  There, I confirmed that I most enjoy the detail, and life, of Realism.

I heard of teachers who taught realism, and I saw their work.  I showed up for class, and I have been learning and growing ever since, studying hard with the 2 Collaborating Artists, Keiko Yasuoka and Duncan Simmons.  The journey took off!!

September Demo Artist Laura Spector

A great big Thank You to our demo artist for September, Laura Spector!  Laura is a very knowledgeable and entertaining teacher who gave us all a new understanding of color, value and hue, and we thoroughly enjoyed the evening.