My 2nd Anniversary letter! Where did the time go? When I started this endeavour, I never thought I'd have so much fun sharing with you what I've been up to each month. Also, I didn't realize I'd have so much to share!
On April 26th I attended the annual Encore Art Show and Sale in Lacombe. I started by viewing the student artwork in the foyer of the Memorial Centre. I was almost ready to enter the art show proper when a neighbour walked up and we ended up having a lovely (very long) chat. I had a delightful time looking at the different art and wished I had a million dollars and unlimited wall space so I could take a lot of it home with me! One artist said that watching me look at the art in the various booths was like watching a kid in a candy store, as my eyes widened and lit up! I bought two cards and two coasters from Linda Findstad (FamousCoffeeArtist.com) - which was neat because I've had an article about her on my table for at least 2 years as a reminder to look her up. I also bought a card with an image of a felted fawn from Vicki Sullivan (www.vickisulivanart.com) - her felted artworks were amazing!
Celebrations:
- I had blood work done on April 12th and it was "dramatically" improved from when I had it done in December! I still have a l-o-n-g way to go before I'm healthy, but at least I know I'm still heading in the right direction. After my appointment, Sheila Sandul and I visited the Viewpoint Gallery in Red Deer to see the "Craft & Care" fibre and textile exhibition. My neighbour, Margaret Blank, was one of 11 artists with work on display - Margaret had 3 quilted pieces in the show. There were amazing felted pieces and painted silks and so much more. We were not allowed to touch the items, which I totally understood, but when you have knitted pieces and textiles with great texture, it is hard to not want to touch them!
- Also on April 12th I attended my niece's school play - "Disorder in the Court" - where my niece played the character of Beulah Young.
- My Spring header image went live on the Wondercafe2 site on April 14th!
- April 27th marked 3 YEARS of DAILY sky drawings on the ipad! On April 30th I drew my 1,700th sky since April 27, 2021!
- I published two more comic strips in the paper and posted them online.
- My birthday was May 1st, and it also marked 11 (!) years since my total physical collapse. While I wish I felt healthier most days, I'm thrilled I'm doing as well as I am, and that I'm still alive to celebrate another birthday.
Recently Completed:
Since the last newsletter, I've completed...
(L-R) Watercolour play (on 9x12 mixed media paper, dip pen, stencils), MAP painting (watercolour pencils, acrylics, Inktense pencils, Posca paint pens on 9x12 mixed media paper) inspired by a process by Whitney Freya
Back in January I participated in Karen Abend's New Year Challenge - though, I used my mini collages for my creativity rather than following the provided prompts. That said, I was intrigued by the prompt from artist Charlotte Hamilton for 5-minute self-portraits (she used markers for hers). I've never painted a portrait before, and had no idea if I even could, so the thought of a quick one appealed. I recently switched my daily watercolour play (on 9x12 mixed media paper) to attempt this loose, messy style. I've included the reference photo so you can see how close I managed to get to a depiction of myself.
- I completed more mini collages on 4.5x6 mixed media paper
- I completed my 29th cartoon comic booklet and you can view it here: https://www.facebook.com/beth.richardson.10/videos/700040675467072
In Beth's Kitchen:
On May 3rd, I picked my first handful of dandelion blossoms this season and steeped them to make a quart of dandelion (ice) tea - it was rather weak as I needed more blossoms, but was still nice to have that fresh again. I made another quart on May 7th.
Jigsaw Puzzles:
Since my last letter, I completed 3 puzzles. First 2 are 1,000 piece ones and the bird puzzle was a 500 piece one.
UFO (UnFinished Object) Update:
- One of my UFO projects this past winter/spring was to read the 16-book Whiteoak Chronicles (Jalna) series of novels that were mom's favourite. I finished the last book the last week of April. While I had read most of her books through the years, I didn't touch this series before. In a way, I'm glad I read it as an adult and not a youth, as I might not have finished it.
- I added more gravel to the labyrinth path. Only working a half hour at a time, though that doesn't seem to result in much progress! I was out April 28th and May 4th (World Labyrinth Day!). My starting point is the tip of my finger and in the second photo I made it to the large black planter in the sun.
Courses and Challenges (free and paid):
- Minette Riordan Mythical Makeovers - this free course looks at the characters of the Wizard of Oz as archetypes in our lives. I have completed half of the course so far. I drew the characters freehand, though they are based on colouring pages supplied in the course.
- Angela Murray's 6 week Painting Happiness (free) course - week 1 started with creating free-hand mandalas. As this is a practice I have done before, I just dove right in and didn't do any of the prep exercises. On April 28th, I completed my B&W mandala, and then decided to start another for fun.
- I completed Whitney Freya's Life Artist free masterclass (below, top) and then started on her Rise Above free masterclass - as she teaches process more than finished product, I just kept creating the layers on top of the Life Artist spread in my smashbook. I completed that course May 3rd (bottom). As I liked the image, I decided to keep it and started her Shine Your Light free masterclass on a new page.
- Amanda Sophia's free mini Divine Woman Awakening course on the Celtic Wheel of the Year - this has been an incredible course and I'm learning a LOT! We've now entered the season of Bealtaine (May 1) which is all about joy, fun, passion, and play. So, for this season, I will focus on creative explorations, doing things that light me up, getting outside in the garden, and more.
- Laura Rose's Honey Pot (embodiment) practices - breath work, self-massage techniques, and sex magic manifesting.
With the erotic dance, I've come to the realization that I am more of a playfully sexy gal than a seductive sexy gal, so after 11 weeks of practice, on April 24th, I decided to call that particular practice done and I will invest my time and energy into a different practice that I enjoy more. You can see the dance here: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1wM2brtoI5fp9w6KrI2wJ6IFIVYZm7bC2/view?usp=sharing
- I'm practicing my drum playing daily, and haven't moved onto the next lesson yet.
- Recipes, Remedies, and Rituals Ayurveda course practices: eating only my personal portion size during each meal and doing abdominal rubbing throughout the day to help with digestion/elimination and overall relaxation of the body.
Works in progress:
Currently, I'm working on...
- a 9x12 page of watercolour play
- inspired by Whitney Freya classes, I'm working on another word painting
- a 13" (?) inch round acrylic painting (from Painting Happiness course)
- a 16x20 acrylic painting
- seated forward bends! It's a good thing I have these pictures because there are weeks I have no sense of any improvement at all!
next (L-R): Mar. 11, Mar. 18, Mar. 25
next (L-R): Apr. 1, Apr. 8
Bottom (L-R): Apr. 15, Apr. 22, Apr. 29
Featured Items for Sale:
"Magical Moments in my Day Journal: for the extra special moments all around me" 6x9 lined journal (2022/2023) $15 or from Amazon https://www.amazon.ca/dp/B0CJLKZ3KB
Please contact me at thechautauqua@gmail.com or phone 403-352-3837 to make a purchase.
Upcoming Projects:
- I offer Pay-What-You-Can Distance Reiki/Energy Healing sessions. Energy healing works great from any distance and I've sent Reiki healing as far away as Queensland, Australia. Please, contact me to set up your healing session.
"I have been suffering with Long COVID for over a year and have tried every healing modality in the book to get my energy back. Beth has been gifting me with healing Reiki energy for quite some time now and I have, for the first time in over a year, started to feel like myself again. Much of my weakness has dissipated, and the dark cloud that I have been stewing under has lifted. Thank you Beth. ♥️" - Carla, Esthetician, Nova Scotia
I bought this cute little 3-D printed bee as a treat for myself on May 7th. He was created by a local gal who has a lot of neat 3-D printed creations.
Thanks for reading, and as always, feel free to share with anyone you think might enjoy it.
Beth
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Thank you so much for your support, and again, if you would like to receive this newsletter directly via email please email: thechautauqua@gmail.com and ask to be added to the mailing list. Thank you!
Back issues of this newsletter can be found here: https://thechautauquanewspaper.blogspot.com/ under the category "Artist Newsletter"
If you would like to support my artistic journey, please consider purchasing my artwork, items available in person at 4910-47 St, Mirror, AB
or by making a donation via
Mail a cheque or money order (made out to Beth Richardson – Chautauqua) to Box 261 Mirror, AB T0B 3C0
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Your support and kindness are always greatly appreciated, and I look forward to continuing to bring joy and inspiration! Thank you so much and have a marvellous day!
