Last session of classes coming up before our summer break.  It is hard to believe with this chilly weather that continues keep bulbs from rising that Spring is truly here.   The next session begins April 26th – May 24th.  All levels are welcome to join us 🙂  We will transition to Nature Journaling in June and some workshops throughout the summer…dates and times will be announced in May.

My Beacon Open Studio weekend is quickly approaching.  I have been hard at work organizing my work,  getting giclee prints made for signed archival prints and mounting small oil paintings on paper at affordable prices 😉  I am nervous and excited with fear and hope all at once.  Putting your art work out for all to see is a bit like that dream we have all had of walking into a room naked and hoping nobody notices…it’s about exposing your personal vision. Some people will love you, some people will be baffled and some people will shrug and pass by.  So I’m putting on my big girl pants and putting myself out there.  There is a reception on Saturday night from 6-9pm at the Oak Vino Wine Bar on Friday April 27th…it is open to one and all.  If you would like to attend go to this link http://www.oakvino.com  for more information.  All the artists participating in the Open Studio weekend will be attending and will display an example of their work. The exhibit will remain on display through the month of May.

If your coming to see me on Saturday or Sunday I am no.7 on the map, the address is 756 Wolcott Avenue.  I am one of first homes you will see if you come up from Cold Spring on 9b which becomes Wolcott Ave.

Please go to this link for the map and all the information about the event 🙂  http://www.beaconopenstudios.org/mapstoursevents.html

Snow Shadows will be on display at the Oak Vino Wine Bar 

It’s almost time!!!  I am looking forward to my first open studio weekend in Beacon NY.  I will be one of several artists showing a collection of works.  If you are in the area and would enjoy a day of strolling around Beacon and visiting artists of all sorts come to the Beacon Open Studio Weekend on April 27 -29 of April 🙂

Go to this link for information and to see the participating artists http://www.beaconopenstudios.org/artists-2018.html

I will be showing my work at 756 Wolcott Avenue in the home studio of Samantha Palmeri with two other artists on the 28th and 29th from noon until 6pm. There will be a new map available for download soon so you can chart your own path through the studios and see the artists the peek your interests.  The historic town of Beacon is filled with places to enjoy lunch and coffee as you chart your way through the galleries, showplaces and studios in peoples homes.

I have been working on many new pieces all inspired by the beautiful land that surrounds us.  I will be showing a collections of plein air paintings and studio paintings done during the long snowy winter :O)  My latest muse…the beautiful snow shadows.

Come and see!

Snow Shadows – Ward Pound Ridge Reserve – oil on panel 12″ x 12″

What a snow….heavy and beautiful…trees snapping as the weight of the snow lays heavy on their branches. What stunning light in the early dawn hours.

No class today…hopefully tomorrow…I will update after I hear from Lasdon and see if they have power and can have the park cleared by then.

Stay warm and safe 🙂

Andrew clearing the car at 5:45!  Off to work….

I trust everyone is warm in their homes…maybe of cabin fever setting in.  I was at the vet a few days ago and there was a whole family there with their dogs.  The mother said they decided to make a family outing of the vet visit because they were going a bit nuts after staying inside for so many days 🙂

So now to class business…  Things are changing this year.  Lasdon Arboretum can only give us one day a week because increased demand on the house.  We will be beginning our class on Thursday, January 25th from 1-4pm.  There will be three 6 week sessions.

Thursday class will include all levels of students and we may be welcoming one or two beginners into the fold 🙂

Please see “Classes” in the menu for details.

I am working on some other solutions to expand class days but as of now we will be having a more limited schedule.  Because of this limited schedule makeups will not be possible.

Warm wishes to all in the new year!!!

“Winter Walk” oil on paper

SaveSave

Time for a break this January ❄️ Classes will begin again in early February.  I will post class times in the next few weeks.  Enjoy a wintery break with friends and family and recovering from holidays and beginning the new year.

Wishing everyone all the blessings of the holiday season and a very merry Christmas 🎄

Snow Day

I have found a space for a four week session at Muscoot Farm in the month of January.  The class will take place on the four Thursdays in January from 10am-1pm.  If you are interested in taking the class please let me know so I can commit to the space.  I need a minimum of 5 students for the class to take place 🙂  Please contact me via email by Monday to let me know if you are attending.  Four Thursday classes in January $175.00. Because this class runs for only one day each week it is not a class that is useful to use your makeups classes.  Everyone is welcome to carry their makeup classes forward to future sessions where there are extra class times to choose from 🙂

Merry Christmas and Joyous Holidays to all! 🎄🎅🏻🎄

As many of you know I have picked up my oil paints after many years of leaving them behind.  Over the last year and a half I decided to revisit my once favorite medium.  I also quite madly decided to do this outside!  I love painting and painting the world that fills my day.  My center of peace is walking my dogs…it clears my head and fills my heart so it is a natural extension to paint the fields that surround me.

After years of working in watercolor and mastering the technique (always working on improvement) this is a whole new world of success and failure. Sometimes I swear I hear my paint tubes mocking me 🙃  I have learned to embrace my failures as much as my successes…they are my teachers.

I have learned that each painting is a stepping stone to the next painting…each painting teaches what not to do on the next painting 😉  If my painting works I feel happiness and if it is a mess I embrace the mess and learn from it…it will help me to be better.  I come to each blank canvas without expectation…I come to learn and to see where it takes me…it is very freeing to enjoy the effort and see where it leads.

Next week classes begin.  I hope that with these lessons I have learned from my own work to help students not to be frustrated that every painting will not be a masterpiece but that each painting gets you closer to what you hope to achieve.  Failure is a wonderful teacher…..take the lesson it offers and move forward ❤️

Hilltop Hanover Farm 

We had a wonderful week on Cape Cod….never disappoints 🙂  I hope everyone had a good summer with all it offers.  Now the beautiful crisp days of Autumn are not far away 🍂🍁🍂

Looking forward to classes at Ward Pound Ridge Reserve!  We will meet on Thursdays from 1-4pm and Saturdays from 10-1pm.  Please go to the “Classes” section for details.  Email me at  lauragould@mac.com with any questions.

Please note that there is no Wednesday class this session…classes must have a minimum of 3 students to go forward.

Start thinking about what you want to do….a series….small works….a large involved piece….sky’s the limit 🙂

See you all soon!!!!

Low tide with my family ❤️

🍁 New this Fall 🍁  Plein Air painting for beginners, offering private sessions or small groups.  Sessions are weather dependent. We will be painting in the beautiful changing season that surrounds us.  Classes will be offered on Monday and Tuesday mornings. Make your own lesson plan…three in a row, returning to your painting for three mornings or once a week for three weeks…it’s up to you. You will start at the beginning 🙂 learning how to create a composition, mix your paints, how to use your brushes and get started!

Each session is three hours.  The price varies depending on the package chosen.

Single Private Session with easel, paints and canvas supplied – $75.00

Single Private Session with your own equipment and supplies – $50.00

Private three day sessions with paints, easel and canvas supplied $175.00

Private three day sessions with your own supplies $150.00

Semi private group (2-3 people) with equipment supplied $45.00 per session or 125.00 for a group of 3 sessions.

Semi private group (2-3 people) with your own supplies $35.00 per session or $100 for a group of 3 sessions.

Please contact me with any questions:  lauragould@mac,com