Of pastels and watercolors

 It's been a long time since I last posted and I thought I would say hello! How are you doing? 

I've been slowly getting back into artmaking after a summer of burnout. I picked pastels and watercolor. Could I pick media that are more opposite? I have been using both. And just to make my brain hurt, also completing a commission in oil. 

Forest GlowIt's been a fun time in the forests. I really thought the autumn colors we're going to blow right past us with the drought. However, here we are at October 20th, and lots of maples and oaks still looking beautiful. What a gift. 

This little watercolor was in my sketchbook and got rained on. So much so that I had to pack it up and go in. But I'm kind of digging the splotched/leather effect from the drops hitting the wet paper and pigment. 

This painting is from about 2 weeks ago. I hauled out ALL the pastel sticks, pans, and pencils. I made a big mess of it but had fun getting my brain wrapped back around this medium.  I called this one Owl's Perch because there are often barred owls calling in the area. Not far from here I had a barred that sat and called the whole time I was sketching. 

This summer was rough. I didn't feel well. I don't know what was going on. But I'm recovering a bit now. The cooler days have been really helpful. Programming and teaching continue to be weird and stressful (as anyone with kids or who is a teacher knows). Everything changes day to day, making it really hard to have "a plan". At least for my brain. "Exhausted" I think is the word for it. But hopefully recovering. 

How was your summer? Do you have anything ahead that you're excited about?

It's been a long while

A fast-moving sunset

 Hi friends, 

    It's been a looooong time since I've written. So first and foremost, hello. I hope you are doing well; as well as possible in the midst of everything going on. It's been so long, I don't really know where to start or what to say. Most days and weeks feel like a time wrap. A day feels like a week ago, and yet I'm still waiting for summer to end and here we are in November! Cruising into a "holiday season" the likes of which we've never seen before. Many of the things that we recognize and celebrate as the seasons change are gone, or at least barely recognizable. 

    As I'm sure is the case for all of us, its been a struggle. The past 8 or so months...insane. I'm grateful to be working, and be (relatively) healthy. I know that's not the case for many. For me personally the past 18 months have been hellish. My dad died suddenly in May of 2019. Shortly thereafter our beloved kitty was diagnosed with terminal cancer. While reeling from the loss of my dad, we nursed her through her last months of life, finally saying goodbye at the end of September. Our first holiday season without dad was just going through the motions, just getting through it. The realization of so much loss made coping a struggle. 

    And then the murmurs of "pandemic" began in early 2020, and all of our experiences have been greatly shifted as a result. While I was already wandering and wondering what the future would look like, I think many have joined me in this bizarre experience. Whatever version of me emerges as a result, I don't know how much it will resemble me before all this. 

    Early on I spoke with many people said something like, "all this (lockdown) time must be great for  art/painting." Well...no. And as time continues I've run into this sentiment less.

The Seer,
an imaginative watercolor

    I have painted, but creating art is an act of bravery. And magic. And everything has has shifted, work has changed from something recognizable and predictable to completely...different. (Don't get me wrong, I'm grateful to be working, but getting through this has been a marathon and it's still going.) Add copious helpings of fear and stress; everything occurring in the past 18 months has taken its toll. Art has suffered. 

    I'm feeling like a stone skipping across the water. I've stared at my easel and pochade box, unable to muster the energy to pack up my oils and go painting somewhere. I've tried new media, sometimes working furiously, sometimes not able to create anything for weeks at a time. Instead of oil painting

outdoors, I've been grabbing a small sketchbook, watercolors, and heading out my bike or on foot. Watercolors, pastels, charcoal, ink. I needed to try something completely new (and often frustrating) and the results have been hit or miss. I've needed to move away from results. In order to eventually move back toward them, if that makes sense.

Watercolor field sketch from autumn

    What I have noticed is a renewed sense of...adventure? Trying different things just because. Art venues have closed down, shows canceled, along with many of my in-person events. But for awhile I'm released from the pressure of producing "artworks for shows". This has problems, but also a bit of a silver lining. For now its ok. 

    I've hesitated writing a blog, because what do I say? Just the thought of staring at a screen to write this in unappealing. But in thinking about this, I bet many of us are having similar struggles. And I can't talk about the art I'm making without talking about the surrounding "landscape". Art is a therapy along with being many other things to all of us. It's been a good reason to go and enjoy being outside, as well as a way to reflect and express in the studio. 

    I hope you're continuing to find ways to connect and reinvigorate. I hope that art is a part of that of that process. Take care. 

-Laurel 

    

Friday Round Up April 3, 2020

 Hello My Friends, 

I don't know about you, but lately each day feels like a week to me. I thought I'd do a round up of what I've been up to this week, in the art department.

Last weekend I began, filmed, and wrapped up this little glow bird painting of a Blackburnian warbler. I've been thinking a lot about how many of our songbirds are night migrators. I love to draw and paint birds. And i really wanted to make something that could be enjoyed after dark.

Et voila! This petite painting is of a night migrating warbler, painted roughly life size, and with a layer of glow over the background that allows the silhouette of the bird to glow for several hours after dark.

Blackburnian Glow layer

There are definitely some technical challenges to work through when creating glow art. But overall I'm pretty happy with how this concept turned into reality. Here's the video if you're curious. 

Next up and little drawing and video project for the LNC (Lowry Nature Center). With the doors of the nature center closed during our Safe At Home aka shelter-in-place requirement, we have been creating video content in order to stay in touch with our visitors. 

Mason bee house sketch

I'm getting ready for bee season, so I thought drawing a Mason bee nest box would be(e) a fun place to start as a drawing tutorial for folks to watch, or even try on their own at home. Video coming soon. 

After being cooped up in the studio (I DO enjoy my studio time, but alas, I really miss the amount of outdoor time I normally get) it was time to get outside. The sun was shining early in the week, so I packed up my easel, tripod, and oil paint. And I got to haul out the cadmium yellow! This trip was highlighted by multiple Eastern meadowlark sightings. I set up strategically not so much for the view but for the territory songs coming from the meadowlarks. 

It was SO GOOD to get outside, be warm enough, be painting and just listening to everything that was going on in nature. 

Yesterday I was on animal care at LNC. I decided to go on a hike, but wasn't feeling very energetic. So I picked a spot on a hill above a pond and tried to continue learning how to paint in gouache. Ha!

It was cloudy and windy, but still warm enough to paint outside very comfortably. 60oF is something to celebrate in MN after a loooong winter. Also, the light on cloudy days is steady, so color is more stable. Meaning I had time to really closely observe all the subtle colors of a wetland that is just beginning to come back to life in spring. 

I hope you've been staying sane and healthy. These are difficult times. I'll admit, this post is helpful just to remind me what day it is! Beyond that, I wanted to share some art that has helped me make the most of the weirdness we're in the midst of. 

I hope you are hanging in there! What are some things that have helped you get through this time of social distancing? Until next time, take care!

-Laurel 

New Nature Note

Collecting Maple Sap

Hey, something you can check out with your kids outside!

2019 Portfolio January-August

Here's a compilation of my works so far this year. This includes many of my plein air paintings and sketchbook entries from travel. Not every doodle, but quite a few of my paintings are in here. Most of my paintings are in oil, but there are a few in acrylic, casein and watercolor. 

My current work can be viewed at www.laurelsundberg.com 

Windswept

Purple Coneflower (sold)

Evening Cottonwood

Golden-winged warbler, Chickadee

5 min sketch -park bench

Blue Indigo (sold)

Lake Trail Lookout

Purgatory Creek 

Hummer Feeder

House Wren 

House Wren study

Early Spring at Carver Park

Gearing up to Garden

Waiting for Delivery (sold)

Browsing Flowers

Flower Bar

Spring Flood - Purgatory Creek

I C U -Wolsfeld Lake

Wolsfeld Lake study

Crosby lake study

Purple Martin study

Barton Creek, Austin TX

Purple Martin colony

NOPE - Golden-crwoned kinglet

Fox Sparrow

View from Angel's Landing

T

Flooded Tamaracks

Long Lake

Swallowtail (sold)

Late Winter Floods

Spring Melt

Wayzata Bay

Afternoon Light

Mason bee

Leafcutter bee

Sweat bee

Old Oak - Winter

Quiet

Carson's Bay Dock