"New Discovery"

This is a stream of consciousness post, not formal writing. Keep reading to experience what my brain is like. There will be grammar problems and I don’t care. 

This weekend I went to a watercolor class by Marcia Hodges at Forstall Art Center in downtown Birmingham. I found out about the class because one of my fabulous mentors, Sandra Ray, posted it on facebook. When I saw her post, I immediately bought tickets to the class just so I could paint in the company of my dear friend, Sandra. I also hoped to learn some more info about watercolor portraits as I have been practicing them nonstop lately. 

When I arrived to the class I immediately saw Sandra. My heart was so elated because I totally forgot that she was going to be there. We chatted as we unpacked our art supplies. In that moment I remembered feeling grateful, at peace, and I felt belonging. 

Before the class started, all 8 of us introduced ourselves to each other. I was the youngest in the room, which is often the case for me. It’s actually where I feel the most comfortable, I mean did I mention that my partner is 25 years older than me?? Anyway, we introduced ourselves and then the owner of Forstall came to tell us that he cooked a vegetarian meal that we could share for lunch. I immediately got anxious because of all my food restrictions, but I also felt so warm. This person has us inside their business, learning a skill, and cooking food for us?? Oh, and cleaning our dishes.. What?! This is humanity, I thought. Turns out I could eat it and it was wonderful. Thank you Phillip!

The most incredible discovery from the class was a type of paper Marcia brought for us to experiment with. It is called Yupo paper. I had heard of it before, but it was much before I had been practicing watercolor portraits consistently. This time when I played with the Yupo paper, I was FASCINATED. It gave me the abstract feel I’ve been going for all along while still looking like a figure. I immediately went downstairs and bought some Yupo paper with Andy’s help. I took it upstairs and somehow created this beautiful work of art that I am so in love with. 

I present to you “New Discovery,” watercolor on Yupo paper

She’s my favorite piece I’ve ever created.

I love the pooling effect that dries with hard edges. I love the lost edges on the left side of the face. I love the colors. I love that Marica helped me discover Yupo paper and I’m just so thankful I could sit and paint for hours on end. That is a privilege many people simply do not have.

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Thank you and GO CREATE SOMETHING.