tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-79382273511040626942024-02-23T18:02:54.929-08:00Gail Wendorf StudioA journal of the journey of an oil painter (Gail Wendorf), living in Glenfinnan, Scotland; specializing in figurative studies involving music and/or dance, and landscapes.Gail Wendorf Studiohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02622685704468981843noreply@blogger.comBlogger84125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7938227351104062694.post-42643891162957645892023-06-28T16:05:00.001-07:002023-06-28T16:05:18.972-07:00IT'S BEEN WAY TOO LONG! A COMMISSION!<p> </p><p><br /></p><p>I finally looked at my own blog page, and OMG, I can't believe it's been nearly a year since I've written. What a year it's been at that! I sat for 2 months with my very special Scottish kitty, Ceilidh, as she passed out of my life at 16 year.s old. (Not in pain, but truly more engaged with everyone and everything....she WANTED to be there with me.) I had trips to Arizona to watch a dear friend be honored at ASU; I sold a number of paintings. I began to paint again, albeit slowly.....finding the balance between work, family, and friends. I began to negotiate a commission in late August, 2022. </p><p>Then, in late September, I headed to Scotland and the Cote d'Azur for what would end up being a wonderful, yet very sad trip of 5 weeks. I'd not been either place in 3 years. Way too long for keeping up with beloved family, friends and staying inspired. I AM still inspired by Scotland, specifically the Western Highlands where I still have links and roots, and by the South of France, Provence and Cote d'Azur, also where I still have links and roots.</p><p>The changes that have been wrought by time, Brexit and Covid made my beloved Scotland and England almost unrecognizeable. It felt almost desperate. My village hotel/pub had closed because of a lack of staff an overwork by those remaining. And we are all getting that much older too.... London felt desperate....desperate to hold something, and therefore there was a overexuberance and change in how friendly people were. I found out just how exhausted I was by my work on my house, my desperation to keep some kind of painting routine, and my sadness about the loss of innocence in the world - at least MY world. The changes I saw in the Highlands meant for sure that I had to pack up the rest of my giant Ceilidh! paintings and what other pieces I had left at home in Glenfinnan, and ship them to the USA. I will always have work in the UK, but not the big collection. I would have had to stay for many months to find new places to display what was left of the biggest paintings, if it were possible, and it was better for me to try to keep my presence there emotionally, and in my work, and ship overseas back to Scotland if necessary. But for now, it all came home. A HUGE change for me in the last 25 or so years. </p><p>France, at least in my wee familiar pocket of Provence-Alps-Cote d'Azur, was healing. The same exhaustion that plagued me my entire 3.5 weeks in the UK, followed me to Le Rouret, and I spent my days drinking in the light, watching the villages pick olives, reading, walking in my favorite haunts, and napping, sleeping for hours. I didn't need to tour more of France, I needed to absorb all I could so that I could keep working on my paintings. It was the same in Scotland.</p><p>I returned, not at all well, drained of energy, and with a major commission that needed to start. I had a direction I wanted it to go, and was able to convince my client that it could be more intricate, more indicative of a young man's early passion - music and composition - than she had thought. I spent months sketching, doing research. Trying to get to know a subject, having only met him once, and then it was before I knew I was going to do a commission. I started painting it, after many sketches, photographs, emails, etc, in late January. Truly the most complicated commission I have done. It came from my gut, my being, what I learned about this incredible young man, now a doctor. Bits and pieces at a time, as the family remembered things, stories....like the fact that when he composed, he always did so at the piano. It meant the piano had to anchor the whole painting. I put him into each of the instruments he was playing, into the music coming from his piano. In the end, I found the peace, the end, knowing I had put it all into that canvas, and it came mostly from me, from unfamiliar places deep inside, and yet, from Ceilidh!. Here it is: Ryan Williams, 40 x 30 inches, sold. </p><p> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1Fx-RXC4g7_CSdoPjUGkmxvk-0BMd6KzyKBvhx5AiCzbniNx8h_kP7geyy51tw6Jv5Trrw4uyDm8Zv42Z_2fGhKrnMFXmiwCQ-jWzseVOuoJmdHFZjfHzG_jbwFibHYxQPXgK6F_XXUzvGiP27bhzIxoiB5hIjSUrDfuVjBs2wjQ5jhI4Dq-GlMPM5YM/s1799/Ryan%20Williams,%2040%20x%2030%20in.,%20oil%20on%20canvas,%20commission,%20$5,500.00%20(SOLD).JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1799" data-original-width="1350" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1Fx-RXC4g7_CSdoPjUGkmxvk-0BMd6KzyKBvhx5AiCzbniNx8h_kP7geyy51tw6Jv5Trrw4uyDm8Zv42Z_2fGhKrnMFXmiwCQ-jWzseVOuoJmdHFZjfHzG_jbwFibHYxQPXgK6F_XXUzvGiP27bhzIxoiB5hIjSUrDfuVjBs2wjQ5jhI4Dq-GlMPM5YM/s320/Ryan%20Williams,%2040%20x%2030%20in.,%20oil%20on%20canvas,%20commission,%20$5,500.00%20(SOLD).JPG" width="240" /></a></p><br /><p><br /></p>Gail Wendorf Studiohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02622685704468981843noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7938227351104062694.post-38337404758881337592021-07-04T11:21:00.001-07:002021-07-04T11:21:40.857-07:00Fire Dream Series<p> Hello Friends,</p><p>I imagine by now you've been wondering where I've been. I used to be such a productive artist! This blog will help you understand, I hope, what my journey has been. </p><p>I had a dream in late March, 2021. We'll call it the Fire Dream. </p><p>"I am in the Pot Creek/Little Rio Grande Valley, at the Art Barn at Ft. Burgwin (SMU @ Taos). I'm there with what feels like hundreds of people, all talking, wanting a piece of me, as I'm trying to think about which paintings I'm going to put into the Fall Arts Show or something like it; a big, juried exhibition though. I meet a volunteer who introduces me to another volunteer who can help me with my computer problems. This second volunteer is the artist Chris Morel (No I don't know him). I ask him if he is the painter Morel and he says yes. He hands me a piece of paper to sign into the show with, rather than the computer; but it still doesn't make it easy for me to find and choose what paintings I'm going to submit. I ask him to give me a ride to the far end of the valley (in my mind, when I dream about Ft. Burgwin, the valley is always huge, as it would be to a 5 year old). We get outside and can see a huge black cloud rising over the hills, and as we head that way, I realise it is smoke. We arrive and the air is hot, dried out, full of swirling ash, and the light is red and dark. It's so hot and dry, it's hard to breathe. There are wranglers there, cutting the fences, herding horses that have been grazing there. We leap onto horses and help get them organized and moving out across and down the highway, away from the fire. People are busy moving vehicles, animals, things important - evacuating. I'm also trying to find a place where I can fill out the form Chris had given me, and manic, trying to figure out where paintings are, images, what I can put into the show, with no success or organization in my head. It is pure chaos inside my skull. I ask for a ride back down to the fort - more indecision....the house, the fort? - not even aware of the landscape zooming past. I ask him suddenly to stop and let me out. I look up, and see what was once the Fort. The fire had split off around one of the hills and gone around us and swept thru the whole valley, taking everything in its wake. And I see a dear friend, George, walking toward me from the ruins where he and other volunteers had been trying to save the fort. The old apartments are still standing, with no logs around the outside, because the roof there never caught; but everything else is gone. There are piles of still burning logs, and corners of adobe buildings and a few hearths still standing. George catches me just as I collapse, crying at the destruction of all I hold dear from my childhood."</p><p>I woke there, feeling the devastation. Then, the realization that those flames are incredibly cleansing, sweeping through all my comfort zones. I realized that I was looking at how I have been feeling for several years, trying to calm and center enough to return to focused painting, but completely unable to except for short bursts - especially during covid. But, I COULD work on the giant, living, breathing sculpture that is my house. Since that big dream I have felt more at ease. Being shown just what I have been going through has lifted a shadow over my heart. Cleansing is hard, but I am so very grateful for the grace. </p><p>I realized that as there were a few elements to the dream, I needed to paint them. A small series of 6 paintings. Chaos, frustration, heat and fire, and devastation and sorrow. I began sketching the images, and found the smaller sketchbooks too confining. I graduated to my biggest sketchbook (about 18 x 24 in), and picked up my oil paint brushes, and started working with sweeping color, oil on paper without taking the time to gesso the paper or I'd never get them painted. Those paintings are below. The 4 colour sketches for now, as the two chaotic ones are done on small sketchbooks and don't feel as important here. I wanted to express the futility of my art endeavors, while I'm enduring such cleansing. I believe I have. I'm hoping now to be able once again to paint the passion and beauty in front of me! In my newsletter, you can see the final oil series. Thank you for listening.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEheNKuqr9RVJHjXnOuAN34lUe_FKk2H_6xqknfOTR-5scy6UxLeCpXsVHXTjeRpd0In2XK-u2SHvUcT6zLjASRSf9CkK_rsJKpiWCPqTtuYPnyyalznFbP_3qNQnQDgx3G-zhOqcP-JJvw/s2048/DSCN0495.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" height="226" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEheNKuqr9RVJHjXnOuAN34lUe_FKk2H_6xqknfOTR-5scy6UxLeCpXsVHXTjeRpd0In2XK-u2SHvUcT6zLjASRSf9CkK_rsJKpiWCPqTtuYPnyyalznFbP_3qNQnQDgx3G-zhOqcP-JJvw/w302-h226/DSCN0495.JPG" width="302" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">BUILDING CLOUDS, RED LIGHT</div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgLCzs8VyE0NIdDLn1WBviOLGitFdowmTwUCf1RfawHGN_jQcyDANa_khdjNF1snz_G8Vu5wvHbhL_Fx3-BrluTgI8ocUPpvjM6FaCd3LH-wrtnkSw1rDTq4Uz645cWE-bQu8F6W09w6HY/s2048/DSCN0499.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgLCzs8VyE0NIdDLn1WBviOLGitFdowmTwUCf1RfawHGN_jQcyDANa_khdjNF1snz_G8Vu5wvHbhL_Fx3-BrluTgI8ocUPpvjM6FaCd3LH-wrtnkSw1rDTq4Uz645cWE-bQu8F6W09w6HY/s320/DSCN0499.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">HERDING THE HORSES</div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRS-4dEqpnFKIPtgXTvDpdLI0cm9rypWGuqLl67Ft9ub8jG_kUzwM7boJbcvHXHL6h7H78kMimVNafmPi_s2RH0akzepW9DGIhs5S4Bgrvm9XDrD_3yRGO-J_Wg9c_cs2RGg5bXGfkJG0/s2048/DSCN0494.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRS-4dEqpnFKIPtgXTvDpdLI0cm9rypWGuqLl67Ft9ub8jG_kUzwM7boJbcvHXHL6h7H78kMimVNafmPi_s2RH0akzepW9DGIhs5S4Bgrvm9XDrD_3yRGO-J_Wg9c_cs2RGg5bXGfkJG0/s320/DSCN0494.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">FT. BURGWIN GONE</div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWBJ8WAwTqaFzCfFrlG4u_avkRPWwF-mOzfZ1hwrZ-T8aTYuBUkNA6HKtJYE9W3EzKqay-v1tEr1ErZmXDcdDOtD4E6pMKiJHUuDpXxbjKpSG18WKd4ArJhha4An-2WiVyF1ZCEnbcmCs/s2048/DSCN0497.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="2048" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWBJ8WAwTqaFzCfFrlG4u_avkRPWwF-mOzfZ1hwrZ-T8aTYuBUkNA6HKtJYE9W3EzKqay-v1tEr1ErZmXDcdDOtD4E6pMKiJHUuDpXxbjKpSG18WKd4ArJhha4An-2WiVyF1ZCEnbcmCs/s320/DSCN0497.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">DEVASTATED SORROW</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="text-align: left;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="text-align: left;">These are in order. Oil on paper, 18 x 24 inches. Unframed.</span></div><p><br /></p>Gail Wendorf Studiohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02622685704468981843noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7938227351104062694.post-72383184709547555022021-01-22T14:51:00.000-08:002021-01-22T14:51:30.024-08:00Painting Mysticism and Other Things!<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjncYsK2j68bxKQEzk_P0RR9G_k-3CyzNULCWuqxDot39OzTgEfn6oGiao18siZHD7JIL4BzrOEzbgbLRutKlCIyCZ5EX7aPF15NiUMWNXQFlPIhVBYd2vQqLi8qKC6Bfy0tiCSXuhxqJM/s1711/I+AM+THE+OCEAN%252C++12+x+14+in.%252C+oil+on+canvas%252C+L1%252C250.00+%2528%25242%252C000.00%2529.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1485" data-original-width="1711" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjncYsK2j68bxKQEzk_P0RR9G_k-3CyzNULCWuqxDot39OzTgEfn6oGiao18siZHD7JIL4BzrOEzbgbLRutKlCIyCZ5EX7aPF15NiUMWNXQFlPIhVBYd2vQqLi8qKC6Bfy0tiCSXuhxqJM/s320/I+AM+THE+OCEAN%252C++12+x+14+in.%252C+oil+on+canvas%252C+L1%252C250.00+%2528%25242%252C000.00%2529.JPG" width="320" /><br /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">I AM THE OCEAN, oil on canvas, 12 x 14 in., L1,250 ($2,000)</div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBAOnwMp7vDXZbTqUXEHzsRzoo9SKa9e1C7M4uT13vjklElv1V_cxw9THn2c6k0WgI585JpyZKHDsf5gsDCSrVwcbaMtCF3dGbdM7mXoj7MHQBm1VMZTgIeaJ8xKCDUrO0bPVPp4bPAnE/s2048/The+Path+Beneath+My+Feet%252C+20+x+16+in.%252C+oil+on+canvas%252C+L2%252C000.00+%2528%25243%252C600.00%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1621" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBAOnwMp7vDXZbTqUXEHzsRzoo9SKa9e1C7M4uT13vjklElv1V_cxw9THn2c6k0WgI585JpyZKHDsf5gsDCSrVwcbaMtCF3dGbdM7mXoj7MHQBm1VMZTgIeaJ8xKCDUrO0bPVPp4bPAnE/s320/The+Path+Beneath+My+Feet%252C+20+x+16+in.%252C+oil+on+canvas%252C+L2%252C000.00+%2528%25243%252C600.00%2529.jpg" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">The Path Beneath My Feet, oil on canvas, 20 x 16 in., L2,000 ($3,600)</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">As I have written about last Spring, (was it really that long ago?!) I have struggled to express the emotion that is swirling around me. I have elected to throw myself into finishing my house - a living, breathing sculpture, if you will. When I finished the final project for 2020, 4 flagstone patios, I sank into the depths of anxiety, depression, fear.....all those things that I had pushed aside for months of living in these uncertain times. I knew better than to ignore them; I had to let them pass through me so that they would exit. A very dear friend suggested that I paint what I was feeling when I told him that I was in an incredible thick bank of fog and cloud, and couldn't see the path beneath my feet. I also said that I had to trust that my path was laid, and all I had to do was put my feet down, one foot at a time. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">In the first one, much later, after the end of that wonderful relationship; I had a vision while I was doing my morning contemplations/meditation. That I WAS the Ocean, that my own inner peace kept the waters calm. The turmoil below me untouching my waters as my lover chose to descend into the crevass below, unwilling to pull himself up by the golden thread between us.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">It is a huge thing for me to put these images out for the public to see, even more to write about it all. But my painting has needed these mystical paintings; these voyages into expressing what I'm feeling rather than seeing. I hope this is the beginning of finding the focus that I lost when I left Scotland. It has been a challenge. But I can't complain - look what I've done! I have a beautiful 270 year old house over my head! That's where my focus has been...</div><br /> <p></p>Gail Wendorf Studiohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02622685704468981843noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7938227351104062694.post-1669124005582681632020-06-28T10:56:00.000-07:002020-06-28T10:59:47.565-07:00Covid 19 and painting a house<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Here it is, the end of June! As I said before, I'd probably not paint til June....I finished the house, the exterior of the studio (but not the interior of the studio), and it has passed FHA inspection. There will always be work to be done on this 270 year old mud house, but for now, I'm resting. Now comes the age old question for me, when will I begin to pick up the brushes and finish the little painting I had started late February. I never finished it, I had to start on the house because FHA was coming to assess its' value. I dropped everything and took care of a ceiling that needed work before it was inspected. Then I headed to Dallas for a one night charity exhibition of Ceilidh! with the American Ireland Fund - Texas. It finished March 7, and I headed home because of the problems starting with Covid 19. The rest you know from my last post. I just thought you'd all like to see the exterior results of my labours these past 4 months. The white building is the studio building that you saw before.<br />
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Without the house to throw myself at, I'm discovering that I was definitely hiding my anxiety, grief and stress. An artist can't hide from feelings for long, or she becomes tied in knots. So here I am, going through what I forgot to see last month, and the month before that. But I'm tired of not being able to paint - always a good sign. I'll get going soon. I feel it in my bones.Gail Wendorf Studiohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02622685704468981843noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7938227351104062694.post-82258504482444370592020-04-19T13:07:00.001-07:002020-04-19T13:07:21.216-07:00An artist in the time of Covid 19I see so many other artists filling their time with painting, blogging, videoing, teaching online, etc., etc. I can't. I can't paint with all the anxiety swirling around me (mostly not mine), with all the unknown things happening. So I've been throwing myself at my house/studio walls... continuing to finish the outside of the building. I've replaced rotted trim boards, screens, scraped walls, brushed walls with a wire brush, hammered nails into chicken wire to make it easier for my guys to plaster what needs fixing, etc., etc., until my hands hurt, I fall asleep over a tv program, and I don't feel the anxiety or sadly, the pain of loosing my beautiful husky, Jake. I'll paint again. Hopefully things will subside enough to just pick up the brushes and finish the little seascape on my easel that I was working on before I took Ceilidh! to be exhibited for a night at the Ireland Fund, TX, annual Emerald Ball. Then covid 19 hit and I think most of the people I know and don't are trying to just get through the crisis in front of us. Maybe I'll not paint til June, but my house will be sparkling and finished.<br />
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This is a project I tackled in mid-November....putting a new roof on what will one day be my studio. It had a 2' x 4' hole in the old roof....now covered in tin.Gail Wendorf Studiohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02622685704468981843noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7938227351104062694.post-76225276518465695672019-12-18T11:07:00.003-08:002019-12-18T11:07:45.935-08:00IT'S BEEN AWHILE!I hadn't realised how long it has really been since I wrote in here! Since March, I've completed 2 more major commissions, and finished up enough work on my old house that I could finally get my permanent certificate of occupancy! Then, it was a month in Europe - work and R&R - then back to New Mexico to finish two major outdoor projects on the house that had to be done before winter truly set in. I managed to do enough, and am now sitting happily in my snug house, watching the snow blow, and resting from my exertions on behalf of the house.<br />
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Which gets me to what I actually decided I wanted to talk about! I haven't painted since August, when I finished a few paintings to put into an annual Scottish Exhibition at Iona House Gallery in Woodstock, Oxfordshire. I had also to get my full c/o before I left for Scotland and the Cote d'Azur, because there were no more extensions on the building permit I had originally obtained in 2016. I returned from Europe, rested and inspired to paint, but also knew I had to put it on hold until I could finish the outside work. That hold came at a price....While working on my house is essentially a creative endeavor, a sculpture if you like, the projects I was working on weren't... it was sheer graft, rather than creativity. I knew it, and knew I would have to struggle to make the shift from construction to creation.<br />
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For me, the need to paint becomes visceral. I can feel the channels in my body get stuffed up if I can't get it out. But if I stop for awhile, for whatever reason, I go through this process I've become very familiar with, before I can actually look at photos I have for inspiration, sketch a study for a painting, much less pick up those brushes and put paint on the board or canvas. In the fog stage, I experience doubt, fear....doubt that I'll ever paint again; fear that if I do, it will be horrible or that people will discover what a fraud I am. Yet, the fog and rising above it after enough time putting one foot in front of the other since I can't see anything, is an integral part of my creative process. I must allow it, and move through it, not getting caught by the fear, in order to reach new levels in my work. So here I am, stuffed channels and all, beginning to talk about it after a fairly eventful year art wise. I hope in speaking about it, someone else out there can see how necessary this down time is for an artist. The last fog period I had was this time last year, and and when I came out of it I began the first of three different commissions, a few other little paintings to take to Scotland, and managed to get my permanent occupancy permit on my little house. No wonder I'm in the fog. I tried to put all the work up, but it caused Blogger to freeze and loose half my writing...so here's the 2nd commision...<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzXJzdviNguC0nmgrlz2amSYg_cwzJtIXuuuKSWWMNt8Ho5Nm43W3-MpKd8hyFt3Td0FflEIYO-6evY9BKpoAB8Dlg8glKbkyVMbp92BXRnWlx6QPQY75fszPiU43DYdeSYexst2XyVIM/s1600/Gold+Hill+and+Organ+Pipe+Cactus+blossoms%252C+30+x+50+in.%252C+oil+on+canvas%252C++sold.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="968" data-original-width="1600" height="193" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzXJzdviNguC0nmgrlz2amSYg_cwzJtIXuuuKSWWMNt8Ho5Nm43W3-MpKd8hyFt3Td0FflEIYO-6evY9BKpoAB8Dlg8glKbkyVMbp92BXRnWlx6QPQY75fszPiU43DYdeSYexst2XyVIM/s320/Gold+Hill+and+Organ+Pipe+Cactus+blossoms%252C+30+x+50+in.%252C+oil+on+canvas%252C++sold.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Gold Hill and Organ Pipe Cactus Blossoms, 30 x 50 in., oil on canvas, commissioned<br /></td></tr>
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<br />Gail Wendorf Studiohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02622685704468981843noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7938227351104062694.post-79855836846108338242019-03-05T09:36:00.001-08:002019-03-05T09:36:41.740-08:00Finished Commission!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiSjEjZnX4qnnf_K57D2_I6Xa238kXsCQrSjHZnerKE-2S2ik_7kbCOOhJ64xWm8RW2tamgBbIRXQlfrbTrhTPP22XPUgdYJ2uUfDKrqAydJ3AlpB4nqSant4FOR9p1XVPDw6M-qtrJw9E/s1600/Cowboy+Doctoring%252C+%2528about+1930%2529%252C+16+x+24+in.%252C+oil+on+canvas%252C+sold.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1063" data-original-width="1600" height="212" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiSjEjZnX4qnnf_K57D2_I6Xa238kXsCQrSjHZnerKE-2S2ik_7kbCOOhJ64xWm8RW2tamgBbIRXQlfrbTrhTPP22XPUgdYJ2uUfDKrqAydJ3AlpB4nqSant4FOR9p1XVPDw6M-qtrJw9E/s320/Cowboy+Doctoring%252C+%2528about+1930%2529%252C+16+x+24+in.%252C+oil+on+canvas%252C+sold.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: xx-small;">Cowboy Doctoring (about 1930), 18" x 24", oil on canvas, sold (commission)</span></div>
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Here is the finished commission! It was delivered in mid-February. I have been trying to finish another painting since, and until 2 days ago, couldn't even look at it much less pick up the brushes. I spent over a week, sitting with it, reading a book, listening to music, trying to let it keep coming forward. As I tried to get comfortable with the inevitable wait until I could work again, I realised how much I had emotionally wrapped up in this particular commission. The exhaustion when I left my friend's house after delivering the painting was incredible - from the emotional let down of a commission happily received. </div>
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I have always been emotionally tied to my work - even finishing a giant painting would require that I not paint for 3 days or so after, and that was when I was painting nearly every day! Actually, I've never been one of those artists who can just go in and work in my studio like I was going to a job. And I believe this is because I'm so emotionally tied to my work. </div>
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In order to even move forward on the NM Ceilidh painting on my easel (about 1/2 done now), I had to finally look at sketches from elsewhere and began a painting of Les Grande Dalles, not far from Honfleur on the Normandy coast. I'm not sure what the problem is, painting NM subjects. I have painted them before - yes, 30 years ago, but I have. But all I can say is once I took the pressure off of finishing a NM painting, by starting something NOT of NM, then I could slowly start to put more paint on the NM Ceilidh painting, and see the journey I need to take with that painting as well. I think, that it's all caught up in the emotional reality of living back in the USA after being gone for so long. And more, in trying to focus and find myself in a different situation than I thought I'd be in. Ill get there. </div>
Gail Wendorf Studiohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02622685704468981843noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7938227351104062694.post-78486882292859343632019-01-14T15:35:00.000-08:002019-01-14T15:35:30.017-08:00A COMMISSION!!!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjtPZHS8EKTlEgi7SWAOfBtL_AH4gU4G-8MwMIpOkHrEPlVv7b5hWRTZbACn5UBlL-2quRRdp7lXtVZ2Q_Bv-HH5JW59hyphenhyphenELJFM2fpnjZemP5Z_XtI92RUVoRriFaAltxTo_qQ4Vr07bSU/s1600/Omaha+Beach+Summer%252C+Normandy++24+x+30+in.%252C+oil+on+canvas%252C+L3000+%2528%25244%252C500%2529.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1271" data-original-width="1600" height="254" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjtPZHS8EKTlEgi7SWAOfBtL_AH4gU4G-8MwMIpOkHrEPlVv7b5hWRTZbACn5UBlL-2quRRdp7lXtVZ2Q_Bv-HH5JW59hyphenhyphenELJFM2fpnjZemP5Z_XtI92RUVoRriFaAltxTo_qQ4Vr07bSU/s320/Omaha+Beach+Summer%252C+Normandy++24+x+30+in.%252C+oil+on+canvas%252C+L3000+%2528%25244%252C500%2529.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: xx-small;">Omaha Beach, Summer (Normandy), 24 x 30 in., oil on canvas, </span><em style="font-family: "comic sans ms", "marker felt-thin", arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11px;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman;">£</span></em><span style="font-size: xx-small;">3,000 ($4,500)</span></div>
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Well, 2019 has begun with a positive bang!! Not only did a commission come just before Christmas, but a new client fell in love with a Ceilidh! painting formerly on display in Scotland! But I'm writing today about the process of commissions. <br />
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I love a commission! I get paid in advance (half) to create a painting. I get to explore, generally, a completely new direction for my eye; and work closely with the client to make sure that what I produce is exactly what they were expecting (if not more!). This particular commission is an offshoot of the roping piece I did in 2015. My client saw that piece and thought about what I had done, then contacted me just before Christmas to hand me a very old photograph of cowboys, horses, children and the landscape around Hot Springs, South Dakota. The client's instructions were to make a great painting of action/passion/light/color that also happens to document the fact that two family members (and now 3, as I looked closely at the image), were participants in a historic time and place near the Pine Ridge Sioux reservation.<br />
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I have spent days focused on creating an image that has presence, balance and character; making sure that even if the horses and people aren't really more than strokes of a charcoal pencil and later brush loaded with paint, that they have proportion that shows action and passion. I now go back to the client with my sketches, and once approved, the painting is mine to produce. This is where my soul's reaction to the image comes forth and all the light and movement come out. I can hardly wait to show the piece. <br />
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And as for finding the balance and focus I need to create this work of art, I've made huge leaps forward....just by devoting a week to the sketches. And as you can see above, I did do the painting of Omaha Beach, finally! It's always a relief to know that the images will come, no matter what I seem to do in my life that gets in the way!<br />
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Just wait for it!!Gail Wendorf Studiohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02622685704468981843noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7938227351104062694.post-38716071920482648612018-12-05T13:56:00.002-08:002018-12-05T13:56:29.586-08:00Brushes In My Hands Again - FINALLY!Well, after my last blog post getting things off my chest, and a few days of real quiet and focus, I've finally started to paint. Not what I'd expected to begin to work on - but that doesn't matter, as long as I'm painting! I've begun with strong momentum. Two paintings are sketched on, and one is begun. I'm starting with a piece from my sojourn at Omaha Beach. The second is about my favorite music spot at the moment, on a Wednesday night, when often an extra musician or two will stop by and join Jimmy Stadler for a real Ceilidh! These both speak to where I was, and where I am now....and it seems I need to bring both to the fore, instead of other planned ideas. It's like having been badly constipated and shell shocked as well, and when I can start to focus on my work, suddenly everything loosens up and the smoke dissipates into clear skys ahead. <br />
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No, I'm not going to show you half-finished work....but I will tease you with an image of Omaha Beach, and one that MAY become a painting from the Taos Ceilidh!<br />
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<br />Gail Wendorf Studiohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02622685704468981843noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7938227351104062694.post-53682085784845690102018-11-21T15:07:00.000-08:002018-11-21T15:07:22.313-08:00SETTING LIMITS...Hello! Been awhile since I've talked about my work.....mostly because getting to the work point, the painting point, has been such a challenge that I'm not doing much writing. I remember talking about setting limits in August! But since mid September, I have tried unsuccessfully to keep those limits, keep my focus, keep my painting time. I fought hard to produce the two miniatures for a show at a new gallery in Ft. William, Scotland; and again, fought to finish in time, a painting for the annual Scottish show at Iona House Gallery, Woodstock (UK). Unusually for me, I was scrambling to get all three pieces into the mail, leaving enough time to get them to the UK. But I made it - by the skin of my teeth! Below you see the two miniatures...<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5WoX13SVIVbvidul5TPyXGrIIKapPBPu2us5ZBevfypme8N1kbyOGnuX2u-9akGZbGKq-ldkgnDSXAeaG6OMl_CUb6UfNmIpDdO5De1eXQ5_4tF8XUZ0LeUc4lE2Z-23gFxd-xdfhB-E/s1600/Eilean+Shona%252C+6+x+8+in.%252C+oil+on+board%252C+L500+%2528%2524750%2529.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1156" data-original-width="1600" height="231" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5WoX13SVIVbvidul5TPyXGrIIKapPBPu2us5ZBevfypme8N1kbyOGnuX2u-9akGZbGKq-ldkgnDSXAeaG6OMl_CUb6UfNmIpDdO5De1eXQ5_4tF8XUZ0LeUc4lE2Z-23gFxd-xdfhB-E/s320/Eilean+Shona%252C+6+x+8+in.%252C+oil+on+board%252C+L500+%2528%2524750%2529.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: xx-small;"><i>Eilean Shona, 6" x 8"., oil on board</i></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2UupeiiTqiVdOFsy5ROtI89-_MuBuUPeJsS5723g7Wfn4EUAaiMGc6MztOmz4tRKhujaMNBaO3z9NYgmbGXUnXIOLd0ApguzoDeHHlwVja7Qmf42frVa_M2N4FoaCCGiDC0jlq1H3mmU/s1600/Picuris+Peak%252C+Autumn%252C+6+x+8+in.%252C+oil+on+board%252C+L500+%2528%2524750%2529.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1146" data-original-width="1600" height="229" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2UupeiiTqiVdOFsy5ROtI89-_MuBuUPeJsS5723g7Wfn4EUAaiMGc6MztOmz4tRKhujaMNBaO3z9NYgmbGXUnXIOLd0ApguzoDeHHlwVja7Qmf42frVa_M2N4FoaCCGiDC0jlq1H3mmU/s320/Picuris+Peak%252C+Autumn%252C+6+x+8+in.%252C+oil+on+board%252C+L500+%2528%2524750%2529.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: xx-small;"><i>Picuris Peak, Autumn, 6" x 8", oil on board</i></span></div>
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I also managed to produce a few other small, but good images of Scotland - Iona and Glenfinnan. So its not been a complete waste. For the miniature show, I decided to paint one Scottish and one NM landscape, as I have a foot on each side of the pond now. </div>
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Since I managed to get the work off to Scotland in time, I've not put paint to canvas. I've a list of ideas; sketches of things I want to explore on canvas or revisit. However, my inability to set limits has gotten in my way. If I have one big boogie man in my fairly charmed life, it's monetary. I have been helping a friend out in her shop, while she recovers from double knee replacement; and what began as a 2 day/week job, turned into many more hours as others didn't respect my off time. I'm so glad I had the time to do this for her; but it's had a negative, knock-on effect on my art time. That is, the time I need to have to contemplate, to be quiet enough to hear my inner voice; to do the selling, writing and coordinating that must be done to be successful as a painter has been hugely diminished. (I estimate that the business of being an artist takes about 60% of one's time!). And the biggest boogie man comes from that - I am terrified I will become so dependent on that little bit of income that I will be stuck. The basic lack of understanding, by the general public, of the fact that my very life is a business, is one reason why I moved overseas in 2001! Coming back, I knew nothing had changed; but I had put 17 years (at that time) into the focus of painting full time, and I figured I could be strong.</div>
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It took a lot of time and courage to jump off the cliff of being an artist full time. I've been living off my work since 1998. Over the last 20 years, I have taken the odd part-time job when things got too tight, opened a bed and breakfast the last two years in my home in Glenfinnan; but none of those things have interrupted my creative time like this little job has done. I always made time to do the marketing of my work, the record keeping, planning, looking for exhibitions, meeting clients. I have had to put ALL of those things on hold, or in second or third place behind duties keeping my loved friend's business and employees on an even keel. </div>
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There is an end to the job, I know; but, what scares me is that the 3 - 4 months that I have happily and knowingly given, has translated into another delay in my work reaching clients who have only just begun to realize I'm painting again. I'll be out of a job, a paycheck, that I have cursed and can hardly wait to end, but my business will have suffered, and I'm TERRIFIED that I'll not have enough to pay my bills. Active painting translates directly into active sales. I'm afraid that I'll not be able to stop working because I'm now so dependent on this little paycheck; because the selling part of my job had only just begun again. And perhaps THAT is what is keeping me from painting....that and exhaustion. Shopkeeping, and I'm good at it, is the antithesis of a quiet, creative life. You must be on the entire time you're there. I don't sketch (Its a dress shop....charcoal and expensive clothing don't go together); in fact, there isn't enough time to really read a book. There is NO down time. I collapse when I get home, because my day starts very early as well. </div>
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I'm writing all this because I need to understand myself how I got to this twisted place. I allowed it. No one's fault but my own. And if there is a fledgling artist out there reading this, I hope that they realize that its HARD to be a full-time artist in the USA. Hard enough in Europe, where there is a culture of patronage for artists; but here, it's a challenge to find that balance of being supportive and kind, and saying "NO! This is MY time, my work, my business! Nothing can interrupt my time unless MY work is done!" It takes tremendous self-drive, focus, and a "never give up, never give in" attitude. Even after all this time, people say, "Gail, you have to pay your bills, have money. You have to have a job." NO. I don't. I have a more than full-time job. Being an artist is 24/7. Everything I do, everywhere I go, relates to my work. Even if that is a little job that has a negative relation to my work. It all affects my work. This is where having the back-up plan that so many people insist we have gets in the way....that back-up plan will, every time, get in the way of getting the artist's work done. Even if its just putting things online so that people can see you're working. I've always said, "if I had a back up plan, I'd be doing that! Being an artist is harder than you can imagine!" </div>
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Perhaps I'll get lucky and the three paintings on exhibition will all sell! Or a new client will grace my new studio, or see something at one of the other places I have work on display, and find something they can't live without. That hasn't changed, no matter what side of the pond I've been on. Always the hope. Thanks for listening. </div>
<br />Gail Wendorf Studiohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02622685704468981843noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7938227351104062694.post-14374372788387971372018-08-21T11:09:00.001-07:002018-08-21T11:09:09.966-07:00Painting - finally - and setting limits!Well, I've now been in my house on the Talpa Ridge just outside of Taos, NM for nearly 3 months. I've managed to paint and complete 3 little gem paintings from Saussemare in Normandy, and have begun a 4 th from Glenfinnan in Scotland. I began after being in my house for 2 months; and once I started, for the most part, its been simple. But I'm out of practice in the art of keeping my focus despite welcome (mostly) interruptions! We artists have to practice at keeping the intense focus it takes to delve deep into ourselves and let it come out on canvas (even if its a pretty landscape!). I have intense focus, from the construction, but its different this time. With the construction of my casa, it came of desperation to get the old place habitable (in the eyes of the county), so that I could finally stop sofa surfing after 4 years!! The first 2 months were just letting go and getting rid of the exhaustion that was constant when I finally got my TEMPORARY occupancy permit...getting the Waltz Across Texas series moved from TX, settling my cat and dog after living with other people for a year, and finding my feet. Still doing that - finding my feet -, because I am very easily shifted from the focus necessary to create and sell those creations to the many other things here in my home country that claim my attention. I'll get there. I am forcing myself to have several quiet days in a row, writing, looking at images, sketching, and just being alone, in order to corral the focus back from all the other necessities of life. <br />
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I can only imagine what its like (or remember perhaps is a better word) for young artists/musicians/writers coming out of school, getting hit with the necessities of working to pay off loans, suddenly completely responsible for your well being, and yet, the need to keep swerving back to your purpose.... for me, that's painting. <br />
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<span style="font-size: xx-small;">Route de Saussemare, 8 x 10 in., oil on board, sold (commissioned)</span></div>
Gail Wendorf Studiohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02622685704468981843noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7938227351104062694.post-2844152148650949532018-06-09T10:28:00.001-07:002018-06-09T10:28:08.525-07:00Made it!!Well, after three months of 7 days/week, full time construction, and nearly 7 days/week from December, I have finally satisfied all of the various County rules/regulations, and have my temporary occupancy. This means I can live in and still work on my studio. But more importantly, I can set up a studio and begin to paint. I have spent the last 9 months attempting to consolidate my life in two places in the world: Taos, New Mexico and Glenfinnan, Scotland. From these two places, I'm hoping I can keep traveling the world to paint. But right now, I'm setting up the studio, feeling the good feeling of a job well done. Here is 7216 Hwy 518, Ranchos de Taos, NM!<br />
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Gail Wendorf Studiohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02622685704468981843noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7938227351104062694.post-40503631022985863342018-02-18T14:52:00.002-08:002018-02-18T14:52:56.858-08:00Nearly There!I can taste it; the ability to stay in one place with my scottish cat, my husky dog rescue, and my paints! Sooner than you think, I'll be living in my little 3/4 finished house on the Talpa Ridge and painting, hosting art classes, workshops, and friends. This journey, to create a home space from which to launch myself once again, into the world, has tested me physically, emotionally and of course, financially!! It's been like resurrecting a living, breathing sculpture. Walls can't be finished yet; not until the electrical system has its' rough in exam... What a process! But I've got 3 floors down, a 4th ready to be screwed down and the bricks for the kitchen. I am so tired, I can hardly move, let alone pick up a paint brush!!<br />
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I know I said in the last blog that I would begin to paint as soon as I have one floor down....but, in order to get into my house by early March, I must put all my energy into floors, and working with my plumber (soon as I call him) to get in toilets, a bath tub, the combi-boiler, two sinks, and right now, I need 3" screws!! I ran out today. I will begin to paint in March, when I occupy my abode with my cat and my dog!<br />
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<br />Gail Wendorf Studiohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02622685704468981843noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7938227351104062694.post-10577592820148512312017-12-03T08:44:00.000-08:002017-12-03T08:44:13.264-08:00EXHAUSTION!!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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First of all, I'm having a studio sale.....last time was 2008. I'm offering 30% off anything in my website: <a href="http://www.gailwendorf.co.uk/">www.gailwendorf.co.uk </a>, which will NOT include framing, but will include shipping anywhere. The page titled F. Wendorf Estate is NOT included in the sale. For any information re the sale, pricing or the F. Wendorf Estate, please notify me directly gail.wendorf3@gmail.com or thru my website so that I can apply the discount, rather than thru the website at this time. <br />
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That done, now talking about exhaustion.... Since returning from France and Scotland in mid-September, I have been solidly focusing on getting my old adobe casita and studio occupiable so that I can once again paint! I'm glad I actually am itching to paint once again! It's been a long process to get there! Because I don't have enough to hire labor to do the work, I'm having fun filling rooms with sand, laying floor joists, laying insulation, laying piping for the in-floor radiant heating system, filling in outside trenches (after first sifting the dirt of certain piles because it seems I live on top of an archaeological site!), and dreaming of what it will be like to occupy my home finally!<br />
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I work 7 days/week, and the level of focus is astounding - which I KNOW will translate directly to the easel once I have at least one floor down! What is also is even more miraculous is that I still seem to have the energy to do the hard work....I was gifted with a very strong body, and its still there when I call upon it! Incredible! There is a race to get as much done before the single digit temps of Winter finally hit Taos.... I've two fireplaces, and electricity inside...so I think I can keep working and stay warm. The trenches.... half full. I'll get there. Gail Wendorf Studiohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02622685704468981843noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7938227351104062694.post-6232095463400439712017-09-02T05:40:00.001-07:002017-09-02T05:40:56.592-07:00Happy New Year!!!<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
I have just realised I'd not published this, and it IS a good read into what was going on for me at the end of 2015. I don't know if it will publish in 2016 or now, but forgive the lateness or lack of timliness! Happy 2016.....</div>
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<span style="font-family: "californian fb" , serif; font-size: 14.0pt;">"I
have to say I’m not sad to see the back of 2015, even though 2016 means I’ll be
59! To have made it through the whole
difficult year, and to be able to pick up the brushes again by the end of it
is, in my mind, a feat of passion.
Passion to paint, that is.
Recovering from the loss of a parent takes time, and I venture to say,
we never really do – recover that is - , we become used to the idea that we’re
orphans in the world! I’m surprised that
I was able to begin work as quickly as I did – though by the time I did start,
it had been nearly a year, for other reasons, and I felt like I would explode
if I didn’t start to put paint on canvas somehow! Luckily, I still had a little bit of my
commission to finish….it was the perfect solution. That is, something I HAD to finish, to
create….and there was such joy in doing that little bit of creating that I was
disappointed that I had to stop again for the holidays…Thanksgiving right
through to 2016. Now I’m back; and trying
to tell you about it all! <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "californian fb" , serif; font-size: 14.0pt;">I
was able to do one of my favorite Christmas activities this year – for the
first time since I began to go to Scotland actually, some 18 years ago! That is, I was able to spend a few hours after dark on Christmas Eve at Taos Pueblo.
They have a service in their chapel on the Pueblo just as the sun is
setting. Then, at the end of this service, the entire congregation takes all
the statues out of the building, and there is a parade around the plaza between
the two ‘houses’. There are farolitos
(bonfires) of different sizes….small personal ones in front of a home or places
to warm yourself, dotted around the central plaza, and two, massive towers of
pitch wood that are lit when the doors open to the church. At the start of the procession, are two
Pueblo elders shooting their deer rifles off at an angle, then the liter with
the Virgin, and dancers, drummers, singers, a guitarist…..I missed the lone
fiddler who once accompanied it all from the back. Its magic, and it was lovely to see that
despite the expanded crowds, it still was magic, if you chose to allow it to
come forward. I think this is where I’m
going to begin my work this year….capturing the memory of this night. No photographs, no sketches, no phones,….just
being part of the magic, taking it in.
All you’ll see today, are the sketches…. But wait for it! "<o:p></o:p></span><br />
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Gail Wendorf Studiohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02622685704468981843noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7938227351104062694.post-33448609926583774432017-09-02T05:24:00.001-07:002017-09-02T05:24:48.748-07:00WAITING<br />
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As I sit in Glenfinnan, waiting for several "possible" sure thing visits from people, saying they'll come buy my car, my art, etc., I realize that one thing we artists become very good at is waiting, trusting. We have to, or we'd never paint. I KNOW somehow that the person WILL arrive to buy the painting, that the car will sell, that the person who wanted to purchase a painting in September will remember, now that its September. Today though, it feels a lot like the game of chicken. These people have their own lives, and will come when they feel they can.....me though, I'm just waiting; because today is the day. Or perhaps it will be tomorrow.....<br />
<br />Gail Wendorf Studiohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02622685704468981843noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7938227351104062694.post-7105342298245375512017-08-17T02:30:00.001-07:002017-08-17T02:30:50.746-07:00CHALLENGES AND CHANGES<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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“the best laid plans of mice and men…..” I had a vision of this time in Normandy, and
as is usual in my life, if I make a plan or have expectations, I have to review
and change. <o:p></o:p></div>
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Many artists (myself included) need quiet, security, and sanctuary,
in order to open themselves up on canvas, show their inner most person to the
world (whether it’s in music, on film, on canvas, painting realism or
abstraction or something in-between). I
find that if that sanctuary is absent in my life, where I am in the moment,
that I cannot work. I found myself in
such a situation, and had to change most of the outcomes of my first month
abroad. I expected respect for the
reasons I came on this working trip to France – a small solo exhibition in a
small town, to paint in the time off from sitting in the gallery –
communicating, in an interesting conglomeration of English, Spanish, French and
charades, with people who came from as far as Holland, Spain, the UK, and
decided to step into the gallery. I found
the opposite; and had to change accommodation, and to decide ultimately if I
could even afford to stay in Normandy or to cut my losses. As a result, I can’t paint even as I write
this, and that was half of my purpose for returning to Normandy this time. Since my work has been more upmarket than
locally in Normandy for awhile now and I really can’t change the pricing,
sales, while welcome, were never the big expectation from the early conception
of this show. Life’s challenges in New
Mexico made it more important to sell….but I still held no illusions on that
front! The work here will go to other
exhibitions in the UK. <o:p></o:p></div>
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I expected to focus, to feel only my art, my creativity,
feel that rush of pure creativity….living, breathing my art….like I did before
I returned to the US, or last winter when I stopped working for others to
concentrate on my painting for the exhibition.
Life is never completely absent for sure, but it’s necessary to be able
to keep it at bay. And what I do as a
professional artist is just as committed and focused as any other career! So many people just don’t get this! As a
result, I found new digs thanks to new friends;
but no painting – although I can take photos and sketch a bit – and had to decide, with my organizers,
if I could afford to keep the show up til August 15!! We had to analyze the
fall out if I pull out half way through versus the fall out if I keep up the
show (emotional and monetary fall out).<o:p></o:p></div>
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Ultimately, through the generosity of friends new and old,
we were able to keep the exhibition open; and I’m so very glad we did! It ultimately surprised us with attendance –
each day the gallery was open I had 20-30 visitors from not only the village
and surrounding countryside, but from farther afield in France and into the
rest of Europe and the UK. I’ve made
new, lasting friendships; one painting sold; and everyone who came through
loved the focus of the exhibition on the coastline and kept talking about how “strong”
the paintings are. I am so very grateful
for the chance to have met wonderful people, to show and talk about my work,
and to spend time in a very quiet, lovely part of France. <o:p></o:p></div>
Gail Wendorf Studiohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02622685704468981843noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7938227351104062694.post-38346815692862931372017-07-16T10:45:00.001-07:002017-07-16T10:45:31.615-07:00Saint Aubin sur Mer, Normandy, France<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
Since leaving the USA on 4 July, it’s been non-stop. It never easy to put on your own show; even
more so in a foreign country. Even
though arrangements began to be made more than 2 years ago, and posters and
cards printed and sent, there is always a lot of catch up work to be done. My show is in an historical building across
from the Mairi (Mayor’s) in St. Aubin Sur Mer, Normandy. They have devised an ingenious system of
fencing – wired together for strength – and hooks to protect not only the
historic walls, but I’m sure, the hammer and nails!!- Its effective
though! <o:p></o:p></div>
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Since arriving in Dieppe on the Newhaven-Dieppe ferry on
7 July, my friend Madelyn and I have raced about putting up more posters (in
addition to the ones I sent from the USA a month ago), finding someone to print
more (in Paris), etc., etc. There’s a
music festival on (Pete the Monkey), and its meant more visitors than expected
to my little gallery space on opening day; Bastille Day. The village began to celebrate last night
with a fette that involved copious amounts of wine, moules (mussels), French
fries, and dancing for the children (at least until I finally hit the wall at
about 930/10 pm). I walked home in the waning light – sunset at 10:15!,
listening to two different sound tracks…..the more traditional one at the
fette, and Pete the Monkey electronic sounds down the road. I’ve also tasted home-made calvados (liquor),
that was as powerful and strong as a very good single malt whiskey or cognac,
had more dinners out (hysterically trying to speak French when for some reason
unfathomable to me, I’ve only been able to speak Spanish…and better than I’d
done years ago). I’ve been trying –
sometimes more successfully than others over the years – to learn French; and
the closer I get to understanding people, the harder it gets to speak!<o:p></o:p></div>
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Even better, I’ve found a new spot to paint from. I’m here in Normandy until 15 August, then
after a brief trip to Brittany to visit the spot where my beloved mare, Dancer,
has been buried, and check on my friends there, it’s on to Scotland to
reconnect myself with that bonnie place after being away 2 years.<o:p></o:p></div>
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Gail Wendorf Studiohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02622685704468981843noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7938227351104062694.post-76156590080293494412017-04-01T15:52:00.003-07:002017-04-01T15:52:57.574-07:00NEVER GIVE UP!<br />
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<span style="font-size: xx-small;">Vuelettes Sur Mer, Normandy, France</span></div>
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I asked myself this week if perhaps I should give in, give up... my head is bloody from hitting it against the walls! All artists have to deal with these feelings...well most of us! That feeling that you're hitting your head against the wall so much that it's bloody, and you can't seem to soar over those walls or off those cliffs the same way you used to. It's hard to remember the good times, when you're struggling with day to day things like finances, credit ratings, paying rent, buying food, looking for the dosh to get you over the next hump and into a decent (your own) studio - as well as to your next exhibition! Unexpected expenses seem to be insurmountable; and don't tell us about a savings account for such eventualities! I wish! Sigh.<br />
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Enough moaning. I KNOW that this is temporary, and only has any power over me if I choose to give it power. This isn't the first time I've been here! Not, my first rodeo! But, giving up is SOOO seductive! This is what I'm writing about today. NOT GIVING UP in the face of seemingly insurmountable odds. I talked about this very briefly in an interview with Artist's Web (my website host) in 2014. I'd forgotten what I said.... and by accident, read it again this past week, just in time. I was asked what was the most important advice I had to impart to other artists....? My answer was very quick and to the point... TO NEVER GIVE UP. This is where we separate ourselves from the rest of the world. We do what we do because we must. I MUST paint, and explore to do so! It is part of my path in this life. It has given me such an incredible life, such incredible insight into the human condition, and most importantly, such incredible insight into myself. Gail Wendorf Studiohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02622685704468981843noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7938227351104062694.post-84670834918234317562017-02-25T16:01:00.000-08:002017-02-25T16:01:09.426-08:00Solidity with the Easel and Brushes<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDZXODVKAamUdNOeQqFdwHZHfuZlDUBfF6CK5B8apnz6coeWay3tl-StDAGqoxi1H36W3oXDsJSQXXx30jZt3pNGhHtgDjski3L0AcuI54M6zanClaBizc44MgnJbBt_iHmr-3j2LfN6Q/s1600/Sotteville+to+Veules+les+Roses%252C+La+Grand+Maree%252C+11+x+14+in.%252C+oil+on+board%252C++%25C2%25A31%252C000.00+%2528%25241%252C600.00%2529.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="248" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDZXODVKAamUdNOeQqFdwHZHfuZlDUBfF6CK5B8apnz6coeWay3tl-StDAGqoxi1H36W3oXDsJSQXXx30jZt3pNGhHtgDjski3L0AcuI54M6zanClaBizc44MgnJbBt_iHmr-3j2LfN6Q/s320/Sotteville+to+Veules+les+Roses%252C+La+Grand+Maree%252C+11+x+14+in.%252C+oil+on+board%252C++%25C2%25A31%252C000.00+%2528%25241%252C600.00%2529.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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I had to stop working on my house/studio in Taos, NM in January for a variety of reasons. Foremost being that I have an exhibition in Normandy, France opening July 14, 2017 for a month. I had to start painting, despite the fact that my house was by then 3 months behind schedule - winter building. It took all of 3 days from walking into my temporary studio north of Taos and only a mile from the room I rent to putting paint to canvas (or board as it happens). I was absolutely right when I thought that all the focus of working on my house/studio would translate directly to the easel! The work has to be finished by mid-March, and dry by the end of the month so that I can ship it to my framer in preparation for this wonderful little show in the village of Le Bourg Dun, not far from Dieppe. I have spent nearly every day in the studio - not wanting to tear myself away, even to check on the house and make sure it still is in one piece. And yes, it (the house) does now have a roof; and has almost completely dried out after spending most of December and January dripping water like a grotto (see my last post!)</div>
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I'm still not in my house, but my go fund me campaign is helping, as are people who step up to offer some thing I need, or some free help. I feel the love! There are still lots of things I can do before I have to pay for something....but for the moment, my studio has my focus. I am content!</div>
Gail Wendorf Studiohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02622685704468981843noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7938227351104062694.post-72960565398233851052016-12-28T12:04:00.000-08:002017-01-07T13:40:06.924-08:00WILL SHE MAKE IT?!!! OF COURSE!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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I'm soon to begin painting again! Whew! I need to do new work from the Normandy coast in France for an exhibition in the village of Le Bourg Dun...opening mid-July. So the clock has begun ticking. I still am not in my house/studio in Taos, NM . It sounds like a cold grotto when I open the door, from the snow melting through the dirt ceilings. The roofers, plumbers, electricians are madly trying to get things sorted so the roof can go on, and I'm sweating to get it all done, before my walls melt and I run out of cash!!! <br />
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I know I really won't loose the walls - they'll dry out, as will the roof! I've launched a GOFundMe campaign to help finish the house, ( www.gofundme.com/help-finish-the-adobe-art-studio ) I've an exhibition in Austin at the Irish Embassy that's been extended into March, and I'll find a place that's dry and warm, to paint! Somehow, in all the chaos, I need to get quiet, and start to re-immerse myself in that magical Norman coastline. Of COURSE I'll make it....Gail Wendorf Studiohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02622685704468981843noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7938227351104062694.post-39615327310053455442016-08-22T16:27:00.003-07:002016-08-22T16:27:25.875-07:00CREATIVE DECONSTRUCTION AND ASKING FOR HELPI've not had the energy to pick up a brush at all since my last blog! I will paint again, and soon! I promise... but for now, the deconstruction of what doesn't work, is rotten, or beyond repair is heavy work!! But I find that I have found the same focus that I once had; the need to create nearly every day. And I know, without a doubt, that this old focus will translate to the easel, once I have a place to work and the heavy physical labor is over. I've had help from a couple of friends when I needed it most....more brawn than I possess was needed to get the floors started in two rooms. But mostly, I've tackled this project each day, on my own! I HATE asking for help, hate looking not strong; but it was beyond me to get the floors started. Once started, I could do it, using a bit of ingenuity figuring out the best way to conquer a physical limitation, and get the stuff up. The same was true with demolishing heavy walls separating two connected bathrooms.... it will be one bathroom, and a small utility room. <br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEigIsFp3eXOMewVidJp7g8C3C-JGRi8GQ9ISrXTohPRoHOzc_J5ZYd1qPs9ZP5ZiUnI9tmPjIgFZxkRJmY4w6II4NbH0QFbaa4jy_omKIbncXjXc41tIbFeSYThWwLJHd-OVHSnyF0_inA/s1600/DSCN7481+leaving+a+little+floor+to+get+the+debris+from+the+bathrooms+out.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEigIsFp3eXOMewVidJp7g8C3C-JGRi8GQ9ISrXTohPRoHOzc_J5ZYd1qPs9ZP5ZiUnI9tmPjIgFZxkRJmY4w6II4NbH0QFbaa4jy_omKIbncXjXc41tIbFeSYThWwLJHd-OVHSnyF0_inA/s320/DSCN7481+leaving+a+little+floor+to+get+the+debris+from+the+bathrooms+out.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Master Bedroom... one day, a set of narrow french doors in the window ahead.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgy43WvlVXw-gpa-uWH8SNQ9Bqcw_lq1CRdwLFNu1XLMUconS1bHm2adL5efXAnhoPzmPcPMIalcxweEFhCHVXDtbEwrR_3iJ24utrdwPvuueWe7Ra72mOZFguh_XbZLOlfCCj2uMJDOV8/s1600/DSCN7488.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgy43WvlVXw-gpa-uWH8SNQ9Bqcw_lq1CRdwLFNu1XLMUconS1bHm2adL5efXAnhoPzmPcPMIalcxweEFhCHVXDtbEwrR_3iJ24utrdwPvuueWe7Ra72mOZFguh_XbZLOlfCCj2uMJDOV8/s320/DSCN7488.JPG" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">the living room now... the oldest room in the house - 30 in thick walls</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">one room now, was two bathrooms of interesting construction. my master bath, utilities, and a hall and closet in to the master bedroom</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjPSb-kz8uUMycU1oxkwtlrUzOienJTrNaft-cATdUE9VzuyM1n8SBhWOj1o-NBrQjhGub9wefDJaEOqVbYFLlTsy-aZsHuZ5cxvkzq3IZzsyEKb33g4X7vuqUfr5WL-_gpuHbUgBr1y7g/s1600/DSCN7517+the+debris+pile+in+the+rain%252C+yesterday+Aug+16.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjPSb-kz8uUMycU1oxkwtlrUzOienJTrNaft-cATdUE9VzuyM1n8SBhWOj1o-NBrQjhGub9wefDJaEOqVbYFLlTsy-aZsHuZ5cxvkzq3IZzsyEKb33g4X7vuqUfr5WL-_gpuHbUgBr1y7g/s320/DSCN7517+the+debris+pile+in+the+rain%252C+yesterday+Aug+16.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">my debris pile from the bathroom alone... beyond that, the old kitchen, my bedroom, and alot of rotten wood... what a view though.</td></tr>
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Yesterday, after spending 4 hours cutting and pulling old wiring, boxes, light switches, I nearly finished the inside, but several wires defeated me...stuck between the ceiling boards and vigas....again, it will take more brawn than I possess to pull those wires with the aid of a 'wonder bar' (truly the most versatile tool in my arsenal!) to lift the ceiling boards just enough to pull the wires through. Yesterday, I sat on a step looking at the dirt floors, broken windows, and concrete slabs I still need to bust and remove (hmmm....maybe a patio???), and I wondered if I'd lost my mind! I know I've not, but I felt overwhelmed and worried that I won't get into my house before the snow starts to fly.... Its only 4 big rooms, so truly, once construction begins, it shouldn't take too long! And I'm hiring the help for the construction, bar the remudding, painting, refinishing of windows, existing floors, etc. I'm just sore and tired! I am having to learn to ask for help once again! Which I think is the point to this missive.... I can't do it all myself. There is nothing wrong with saying "Uncle!" and recognizing that I need to remember to ask for help! Gail Wendorf Studiohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02622685704468981843noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7938227351104062694.post-82604621692386849042016-07-08T14:56:00.000-07:002016-07-08T14:56:55.878-07:00FINALLY GROUNDING<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4huzvcqwBz3pcf5LoSihyphenhyphen9BxUAbWnRZjLUheY078kRb_4Vo5ZYJRfE3spmtqlhm8hio5VXoxeWNjYljReMRqYpbQFi1RNsAy-DVq3jX8mWtIEB-aHzyUJUyCUL7khVuo9ez53DffTgCo/s1600/IMG_20160114_110457.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4huzvcqwBz3pcf5LoSihyphenhyphen9BxUAbWnRZjLUheY078kRb_4Vo5ZYJRfE3spmtqlhm8hio5VXoxeWNjYljReMRqYpbQFi1RNsAy-DVq3jX8mWtIEB-aHzyUJUyCUL7khVuo9ez53DffTgCo/s320/IMG_20160114_110457.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
Well, it HAS been awhile, once again. But I am finally finding my feet. I have been talking/writing about 'floating' for what feels like years....possibly since August 2011 to be truthful; but I have purchased this little bit of New Mexico heaven this past month, AND have managed to finish all four paintings shown in the previous blog post! The above house will give me space, and a studio, and grounding so that I feel I can soar again with a rudder this time. It will be alot of work, don't get me wrong!! But this vintage 1820 adobe on the Talpa Ridge just south of Taos, NM, will be well worth it. It still has beautiful vigas, 30 in thick walls in places, and mud plaster through out the inside of the house. The ceiling has 12 in. of dirt as insulation on top of the plank ceiling above the big vigas. There is NO plumbing, the electricity has to be completely redone before they'll think of re-attaching the house to the grid, and lots of broken windows..... but its mine.<br />
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The Studio<br />
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The Torreon<br />
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The studio sits out back of the main farm house.... an old forge of the same vintage; and there is even a torreon on the property - a New Mexican version of a broch....an adobe defensive tower (once 2 stories) from about 1820 - the Comanche Wars. I miss Scotland and parts of France like I missed Taos when I lived away. I know that this base will be the first step in once again being able to keep my feet firmly soaring across the pond; painting and keeping up with the many friends around the world that I've made. Now for the adventure of restoring the house, the studio; and stabilizing the torreon. Along with making time to paint most days.....Gail Wendorf Studiohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02622685704468981843noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7938227351104062694.post-89634567741617525572016-05-01T09:17:00.000-07:002016-05-01T09:17:52.978-07:00CLIMBING OUT<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiwqqmEhN4ooWEpJfQulV08ORsD4SwktecNHZbhIHdNdbZD3KdT59b5SeHEGsiFvOZ2GBBspicRO_9EQEvMSk3i1YhpSE_lHzdHcgLzFfkinNu98bDaMSU2wcyjE6sRp7NZKeh90VWJMe4/s1600/IMG_20160402_140543.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiwqqmEhN4ooWEpJfQulV08ORsD4SwktecNHZbhIHdNdbZD3KdT59b5SeHEGsiFvOZ2GBBspicRO_9EQEvMSk3i1YhpSE_lHzdHcgLzFfkinNu98bDaMSU2wcyjE6sRp7NZKeh90VWJMe4/s320/IMG_20160402_140543.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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I am posting this photo of my current studio, in the SMU at Taos, Ft. Burgwin Art Barn. I'm proving to you all and myself that I am actually working....four started, yet unfinished paintings. Loss affects us all differently. and it seems that for me, it affects my ability to let out the images inside me. Yes, my creativity flows from the inside out, even if its an image in front of me....and grief and loss seem to block that for me. But SOMETHING's leaking out, or even these four paintings wouldn't be there. Doesn't matter that two of them were begun a year ago....the images are still there, lurking until I can find a way to dynamite the dam holding it all in. This dam is definitely cracking...I can feel it. I just wanted to let you all know I'm still here. Still looking at the world through my painter's eyes....Gail Wendorf Studiohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02622685704468981843noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7938227351104062694.post-71310524238924925112015-11-19T14:10:00.001-08:002015-11-19T14:10:31.781-08:00HEALING, SOLACE, and a RUNNING BUDDY!<div class="PadderBetweenControlandBody">
<span style="font-family: "Californian FB",serif; font-size: 14.0pt;">It’s been months since I’ve felt I could write about
events in my life and how they relate to my journey as an artist. The challenges of ending a relationship,
changing countries, changing states, re-examining goals, the illness and
ultimate loss of my Dad, the need to find a new market for my work here in the USA,
proved finally too much for this artist.
Floating, anchorless, I have spent months on the road, dealing with
duties and travelling to ‘reboot’ my inner body. Artists can sometimes use their art to help
get their emotional bodies through times of great stress, but for me, it has
been a time of deep meditation, reconnecting with beloved ones left behind in
Scotland and France, finding myself re-inspired by landscapes dear to me – even
if I couldn’t paint them yet; and ultimately, finding the final ability to lift
myself up out of the hole, and heal from the inside out through training a very
special dog (Normally this part of my healing has been helped by my horse and companion of 26 years, Dancer, currently
enjoying an extended holiday in Brittany, France). Within a few weeks of working and running
with this dog, I was able to go sit in my new studio, sketch, and begin
finally, to paint (for the first time since mid-January!). Now that I’m working again, I can use the
work to further heal my heart. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Californian FB",serif; font-size: 14.0pt;">I’m
now in Taos, New Mexico – working in a studio provided for the winter by
friends at Ft. Burgwin, the research center and SMU satellite campus that my
Father founded the year I was born. It’s
snowing…the first big snow of the year they say, and I’m beginning to think
ahead. I’m still floating, but it’s a
meditative floating….that will produce work.
The first piece out of this new, temporary studio is the final painting
for the commission that I began last year (fingers crossed!).<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhKs7Nbw9YiSXDiIYwbUdTBvKFwJiOdFQb2PQF3o4fv1HhVkQ9zrznOGfWwdqogc3yZ5MuSVhkzGcdhclv4rXO9JMg97WivejfwnIhX94IB-RyhcnEpqDo0APKd0eFMGEyf8jxeHKpiEwQ/s1600/Cliff+Dwellers+Canoeing+on+the+Brazos%252C++24+x+18+in.%252C+oil+on+canvas%252C+sold.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhKs7Nbw9YiSXDiIYwbUdTBvKFwJiOdFQb2PQF3o4fv1HhVkQ9zrznOGfWwdqogc3yZ5MuSVhkzGcdhclv4rXO9JMg97WivejfwnIhX94IB-RyhcnEpqDo0APKd0eFMGEyf8jxeHKpiEwQ/s320/Cliff+Dwellers+Canoeing+on+the+Brazos%252C++24+x+18+in.%252C+oil+on+canvas%252C+sold.JPG" width="242" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: 13.3333px;">Cliff Dwellers Canoeing on the Brazos, 24 x 18 in., oil on canvas, sold</span></div>
<o:p></o:p>Gail Wendorf Studiohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02622685704468981843noreply@blogger.com0