Thoughts & Musings

Have had a very fun summer working with 14 people on the Art Mentoring Programme in my Studio in the UK. Most of them have never lifted a paintbrush before and the standard of work they are producing is mind boggling. We are holding an exhibition of their work on the 30th September in Dry… read more

Back in the UK until March for family health reasons. Getting used to freezing temperatures and icy conditions and dressing accordingly. A good time to focus on getting the book I have been working on over the last year brought to publication stage. The book is on Art and In-Tuition and I am very excited… read more

Classes in Play with Paint are up and running again here in the UK from May 2023. I can accommodate up to 6 people in my barn studio or up to 10 if you already have a venue you can use and I can come to you. contact Chrissie if you are interested in a… read more

Its been a while since I posted but I have ben busy. We finally got back to our home in the States in November after spending lockdowns and things with family in the UK. Just prior to leaving I gave up my studio in the UK and then was asked to hang an exhibition at… read more

Beyond proud of the 6 students I have been working one to one with over the summer. We held a joint exhibition of their work last weekend. It was amazing to see how far each of them have come on their individual journeys. Lovely to have them all meet together finally and they are wanting… read more

Enjoying working with people on the 12 hour mentoring programme. Sunny has completed the process. Claire and Emma are working on their final large paintings. Anni is about to do her 3 small canvases. Gaby did her 3 small ones last week and we are off to the galleries next session. Another Claire will be… read more

Busy week teaching ahead. Liz began things off with a great Play with Paint session followed by Emma today who began her mentoring programme. She produced this beautiful piece on her palette paper. Exquisite surprise for us both. Welcoming Claire for her first three mentoring sessions today and tomorrow. Excited to be working with her… read more

Had so much fun yesterday running 3 x 1 hour sessions on Play with Paint. Here are two very happy participants with their works of art. Did lots of colour mixing and then created these lovely small pieces of framed art to take home. If anyone would like to do taster sessions on colour please… read more

Wonderful afternoon spent with friends at my brother in law Justin Hawkes show at The Saffron Walden Gallery. Beautiful paintings that ‘pop’ off the wall. Well worth a visit and Bill, the owner is a delight.

So today my lovely friend Janie has had her new Splashback installed which is of my painting ‘Turquoise with Lyrics’ Thank you Splashbacksuk for another beautiful piece of glass. It looks amazing and Janie loves it. ❤️

Love this quote by Georgia O’Keefe that came up on my FB feed today. Love her and her inspiration to do and be and let the rest take care of itself. Click on this post to see the quote xx

Wonderful start to the month of May. Spent the day with another of my grandsons in the studio. He painted a dozen or so works. We framed one and added it to the wall in the gallery, We played football, had hot chocolate with marshmallows and thank you June for working with him to make… read more

Met a new student yesterday who I will be working with one to one over the next couple of months. Love it when you connect to another person the way we did on a bench in the freezing cold. Came home with a very warm heart and cannot wait to begin working with her.

Sunny day at the studio. Working on two commission pieces and enjoying the beautiful weather outside when I take a break. Beautiful shadows on the blue painting that are giving me ideas of what to do next on that one.  

This is how the painting for my Mum turned out. She is 90 today and has knitted and done crochet for as long as I can remember. Took me a while to get this but pleased when it came together. This is as representational as this girl gets. Thanks to Deb in the studio next… read more

Excited. Deb from the next door studio stopped by and asked me what I was working on. My Mum is 90 on April 2nd and I wanted to celebrate her being an amazing knitter. I was working on a paint and crayon picture. Deb’s first comment was, ‘Chrissie, that is not you’…. lots of paint… read more

Series of 6 in progress This is the second of my 40 by 40 inch series of six. A friend stopped by the studio yesterday and named it ‘Mermaid’. Very different colours for me but they came from the same palette as the first one (below) in this series. Amazing what colours can come from… read more

Thank you so much to Debbie of https://www.firstsnowimages.com for coming out and photographing my work yesterday. I need certain size images to submit two paintings into the Royal Academy Summer Show, which will be in September this year. Doing a great job on them.

Oooooh so excited. Got this today and cannot wait to delve into it. Looking forward to this helping my students in the future. Cannot wait to get going on intuitive workshops…

So I came into the studio today thinking I would play some more with the turquoise paintings I began the other day. Added some orange…mmmm, not so sure. Go to the studio notes in the menu on this site for a video of where I am now! All good, these are the troughs amongst the… read more

Watched this wonderful film this morning about the Cornwall artist David Mankin. It shows his process of creating a painting commissioned for English Heritage for their handbook. Wonderful way to get immersed in some art before you start your day. Enjoy. https://youtu.be/iv3vlEadTB0  

Got this in an email from David and Karin from the Artify team. If you want to save money on art supplies AND bring together a more cohesive, professional palette in your work, you need to learn to mix your own paints! Mix warm with warm and cool with cool. When in doubt, make color… read more

Love a couple of blank canvas….❤️ Begun an online course with Joy Kinna https://www.thisisartify.com/joy-ig Lots of water and paint and multiple canvas and paper. Loving it xxx