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| Evening Glow, acrylic, 18" x 24", CAN $550 |
Blog 17
I started the year 2015 with a Creativity Challenge. I enjoyed the possibilities of sharing my passion and continuously learned something new when I prepared my classes. However, I was not happy with the low number of artworks of the previous year. With the additional work of writing my blogs and newsletters, advertising for events and courses, I had created most of my paintings during my two great painting trips. I decided to challenge myself to create art every day during January to establish a new creative routine.
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| Creativity Challenge 2015 |
By mid-January, my painting and drawing classes for the City of Ottawa started again. I also continued to work with private German and art students. I also taught Creativity & Me workshops from my studio to help clients experiment with different mediums and techniques.
February did not start too well. While doing some work on my website, I realized that all the blogs I had published between January and September 2014 were gone. In a panic, I asked my husband, who created all our backups, for help. He could retrieve all the blogs from mid-April to the last backup but all the blogs from the first quarter were gone - swallowed by a software bug that just cut off any content after a certain length. Luckily, I still had the text for them on my computer. I was frustrated and set up a new blog site at http://kerstinpeterspaintingblog.blogspot.ca/ with the help of my son, Dominic, who helped me with the layout.
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| Breaking The Ice, acrylic, 14" x 18" NFS |
On the positive side, my painting “Breaking The Ice” was accepted into the Arteast juried show “Mosaic” at the Trinity Gallery at the Shenkman Fine Arts Centre from February to March. Out of 165 paintings, the jurors picked less than 60 for the exhibition.
In March, I took the opportunity to exhibit some of my art at the beautiful Bean Town Ranch that offered weekend brunches during the sugar shack season. Unfortunately, the visitors were only interested in the fabulous food and not in the art.
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| Invitation 25 Years Plein Air Ensemble |
For months, my friend Helene and I prepared the silver jubilee of the Plein Air Ensemble. The most important event was the 25 Year Plein Air Ensemble exhibition at Wall Space Gallery in Orleans at the end of March. This exhibition celebrated the accomplishments of the artists of the group during the last quarter of a century. We were fortunate that two of the founders were among the participants of the exhibition. As Helene got sick, I had to hold the opening speech in front of a big crowd of visitors, which made me very nervous. Among them were MP Royal Galipeau, MPP Marie-France Lalonde, Councillor Jody Mitic, and Councillor Bob Monette. We received certificates from Premier Stephen Harper, MPP Galipeau, MPP Lalonde, and Ottawa Mayor Jim Watson commemorating the Plein Air Ensemble’s 25th anniversary.
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| Parc des Amoureux, oil, 8" x 10" CAN $250 |
At the beginning of April was the next Plein Air Ensemble trip. This time, we went to Val David, which was my first spring trip with the group in years. I had never been to Val David and could hardly wait to get together with the group to paint.
Shortly after the trip, I took part in the Navan Fine Art Exhibition and Sale. I enjoy exhibiting with this group of artists because we all work together to plan and organize the event. It is a smaller group which makes the shows much more personal than any other weekend show I joined.
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| The Buseater, oil, 11" x 14", CAN $375 |
In the middle of May, my friend Janis and I enjoyed a week at the cottage without family obligations. While we had a lot of rain, we still managed to paint. In the evenings, we sat on the beach watching the light ripples of the moving water, listened to the birds and watched the occasional squirrel or chipmunk rush past our chairs. We also used the opportunity to scout out new accommodations for the Plein Air Ensemble in the beautiful areas of Clear Lake and Golden Lake. It was the perfect break ahead of two crazy months of soccer games, dance recitals, and graduation celebrations.
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| Spring Greens, oil, 10" x 8", CAN $250 |
My daughter’s health had finally improved after a specialist at the children’s hospital asked her to take some high-dose vitamins instead of additional pain medications. Even though she was already full-time in high school since February, she officially graduated from grade 8 in the second half of June. We were all happy that the transition had worked so well. It was quite an accomplishment to finish grade 8 and 9 in one year!
The following day, we had the big garden party before Dominic’s prom. The custom of elaborate celebrations in formal wear has a long tradition in Canada and the US. However, in Germany, the “Abiball” is relatively new.
It is customary for young people in their mid-teens to go to a dance school to learn at least basic ballroom dancing. At the end of the course, the dancers go to a ball, but having a prom at school is a recent trend that came from America. I could not find information about the first prom-like celebration in Germany. However, the photos that I found online were from after 2010. My Abitur celebration in the eighties was only very low-key. In the morning, we received our certificates in the school auditorium in front of our parents and siblings. Most students wore business casual for the occasion. In the evening, the students and teachers got together for a barbeque-style event with food from the cafeteria. Everyone, including the teachers, wore casual clothes.
The German school system is a topic in itself. The Abitur is the highest German school certificate for students who pass their exams after 12/13 years of school to study at universities.
For my parents, Christine and I, the prom was a new experience. My husband and I even met with the other parents and young adults of my son’s group of friends before the actual garden party to take photos in the park. Most of them had a date for the party. The colour of the dresses and ties matched for each pair. It was quite the production. I have to admit that it was a feast for the eyes.
Two days later followed the Commencement Ceremony. We were all so proud of my son’s graduation and his path that lead him to university and a move away from home. First, however, we would enjoy one last summer together.
As my children spread their wings, it looked promising for my career activities. Join me next week to read the sequence of my journey.
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