Just for a refresher, I took part in Konstanting Sterkhov Watercolor workshop - love learning from masters!
Lots of new ideas, fresh look at the old ones, overall new energy and inspiration.

What a love inspiring carefree beautiful vacation I just had - mid North Coast NSW, Camden Head - my new and forever love!
A week of just walking, swimming, painting, reading, meditating and sleeping - and not a worry in a word:) I just tried to forget everything work and home related, take it all out of my head, and just feel myself in the world, in an air, in the water, in the rain and fog, in the coach, in the music, in the bed:)) - just pure me as I am now. Magnificent experience, sort of a soft solo artist retreat I organisied for myself:)

(It's surprisingly hard to keep the blog up to date - especially when there are few of them in different languages:) But I'm really happy to tell here that my pastel featured in the previous entry, the one from Port Arthur, Tas - was selected as a Finalist in the Art of Sydney exhibition, the annual Australia Day even in Australian Maritime Museum in Darling Harbour. 
Also on the few other events - I took part in Ku Ring Gai AS exhibition in St Ives - and even sold a few works there, that was very timely I should say, just before the total lockdown. Also few my works are currently on display in Multicultural Art Society exhibition in Prince of Wales hospital in Randwick. So, lots of things currently happening despite the quarantine and all that Covid 19 related things. I also moved the house (Imagine that! just when all this COVID started, and I could not even ask friends to help, had to manage all by myself, quite a challenge I have to admit - but survived and settling happily now in the new place). Hope to breath out and start painting again in no time!:)
(I also went to couple of great workshops, pastels and watercolor, I'll tell everything about it in the next entry - below my work from the Pastels one, "The Big Ships"

Patels somehow have taken my attention lately, love the vibrant colors and this magic in different appearance under different light. On the other side, gosh they are fragile! I finished and was framing this coastline bushes, and with one wrong move of my hand I've smudged the good chunk of painting! Had to redo that, luckily all the color were still on the plate so I managed doing that clean! I don't like the fixatives as they altering the colors, so just trying to put the works away accurately as fast as possible when they're done. And now all framed and ready to October Ku Ring Gai Art Society Exhibition.

That was a bit of a rough journey  since the 2019 started - on a personal level. A lot to remember and to learn again, turned out I really suck in all that separating/single living business. Trying to remember now how it feels to be an independent and if not happy but at elast not too unhappy everyday. To become suddenly unloved is quite a challenge for someone who used to be loved for many years unconditionally. And I must say art is a great healer for a broken heart. Regualr drawing in Royal Art Society, organising art events and planning a lot for our Multicultural Art Society (MARS) (btw marsart.com.au - check it up!) - so much to concentrate on and to think about. Also the parcel from Jackson's art (there was a sale for Schminkes!) - my nesessities restocked, with all those cobalt and french ultra blues, lapis lasuli - just need to sit myself onto the chair, put on Tom Waits on Spotify and do more sails! And more. And some. And then the spring eventually comes and everything will be better than now.  

Happy New Year 2019!
I"ve spent almost entire month of January travelling across Australia, from cloudy banks of Huon river, Tasmania to the tropical Queensland parks near Rockhampton, from sophisticated labyrinths of MOMA museum in Hobart to the very top of Sandy Point, Fraser Island. 
Was painting and drawing and sketching all the way, some of my travel sketches are  now in the Sketches link here on my site. This time it was not a dedicated painting trip, and I rarely had enough time to properly set up and to spend a few hours of plein-airing (also the sandflies, marshflies and moscitoes have no respect at all to focused artist!). But what an inspiration, all the fresh ideas and colors and air and expressions to digest and think of and translate into art for the upcoming weeks!) Starting my year all inspired and recharged!​Analytics@benchplatform.com

The Mission to Seafarers 2018 exgibition is almost over, no prizes this time - but I sure will participate in the future! In the meanwhile, the live pastel drawing classes in RAS got to Term 4 - and that's the best night of the week for me now, The Drawing Tuesday - not only to practice live drawing, but more importantly, talk to people, discuss recent art events, chat about art and artists  and everything. Just love it! 
Also I made a birthday present for myself and ordered the new big set of pastels from Jackson's. Senellier 80 half-sticks, very soft and vibrant, working together with Schminke beautifully, what more to wish!

OMG OMG Oh My God!
So excited, my watercolor Whaling Morgan (just a post below) been selected by a panel to the Final of ANL Seafarers Art Prize in Melbourne! So happy for that ship, my weak attempt to celebrate the magnificence of her sails and shape and overall perfect beauty will be shown to people! The exhibition will be in Melbourne, 717 Flinders Street, from 6 to 17 of October, there are many many great maritime artworks, I'm really thrilled to be amongst them!

Just so happens, I was off work for a week, had some time to relax, reflect and paint/draw without time restriction. Oh what a life! I wish I could live like that! Had a few attempts to plein air with pastels, quite unhappy with the result to be honest - but I think I will continue, pastel is easier thing for outside - or I just love the novelty feeling)) After the second completely frustrating try to do outdoor I just let myself to relax and made a postcard-style landscape, I am usually not a big fan of this things, but it was just nesessary to have some relative success to overcome the frustration of a few recent attempts:)
And finally, I've put some of my works on BlueThumb online gallery, just in case - not like I have high hopes to live off my art)) 
And another useful thing I've done duringthis lazy week - finished off Josef Zbukvic's book on watercolor. Enourmous amount of great advice, it all is sinking in now, but sure I'll apply lots of ideas from there.