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Woody's Blog
October 2008
woodyduncan@comcast.net
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Click Here To See Where Woody's Watercolors Are On  Exhibit in 2008
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October 2008 Blog:
        I've been adding to this blog for over a year now. The subjects will vary with the changing interests of this old retired middle school art teacher. I hope you continue reading my blog and will send me any comments you have via e-mail to: woodyduncan@comcast.net
if you want to inquire about me doing workshops for art teachers
click here
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Watercolors
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Notecards
All Hallows Eve (10/31):
          We are ready for evening visits by all those gools and goblins. We tried to estimate our candy supply so it would last. Of course I'm putting the snickers bars at the bottom of the bowl in hope that there will be a few treats left for Frani and I.

Latest Watercolor Finished:
          This morning I finished my watercolor of the five regular solids. The complementary color scheme (blue and orange) is my favorite. I'll mat it and take it for critique tomorrow morning. That's after I drive to Placitas to take down my exhibit.



click on watercolor for a larger image
Three Kansas Jack-O-Lanterns (10/29):
          Yesterday I received this wonderful pic of three scary pumpkin faces carved by three young artists back in Kansas. It's holidays like this that make it really fun to be young or even young at heart. Grandma and I have a big bowl of candy bars ready for trick or treat this Friday.



click on the pumpkins for pics from the last time we saw the artists

Sound of a Roadrunner:
          As we walk the neighborhood, we keep our eyes open to possibly spot a roadrunner. We failed to see one yesterday, but we did hear the call of a roadrunner. Click Here to hear a roadrunner - whoops !! That was the cartoon roadrunner. Click Here to hear the real roadrunner that lives in New Mexico. That is the sound we heard while walking yesterday - but we never saw the actual roadrunner.


1925 - 2008
Tony Hillerman (10/28):
          More than any other person, Tony Hillerman made so many of us fall in love with the Southwest. I've read every mystery he has written. I even played the audio stories in my car as I drove the 15 hours from Kansas City to Taos to paint each June. I always checked out the unabridged versions so I'd be able to hear his descriptions of the landforms of the west. Abridged versions would keep the plot but edit out the beautiful descriptions of the land I'd come to love.
         It was sad to read of the passing of this giant of Southwest writing. 
Tony Hillerman will be missed and almost impossible to replace. Jim Bleshaw wrote about his friend in this mornings Albuquerque Journal. His column tells us about the man more that the famous author. I knew Tony loved to eat at the Frontier Restaurant on Nob Hill. I knew he liked living in a city few people could spell. From Jim's article, now I know much more from a close friend of Tony's.
         It seems like these major icons (RC Gordon, Johnny Cash, Tim Russert, George Carlin, etc.) leave us more often each passing year. I realize, it's mostly because I'm getting older. Here is a link to a bio on Hillerman, it even has large type for us old folks - of course. Looking around, I even found a great comment on the Drudge Retort about Hillerman. He was a very common man with an uncommon ability to tell a great story. If for some reason you have not read any of Hillerman's mysterys - here is a list at Amazon.com. Get one and cuddle up by the fire and just enjoy.


Last Novel


George Carlin once said: "The rich make a LOT of money, and pay NONE of the taxes; the middle class makes a LITTLE bit of money, and pays ALL of the taxes; and, the poor are just there to scare the (crap) out the middle class, and keep them going to those jobs."
October Roses (10/27):
          Four days after we had our first freeze - I've gotten beautiful new roses. It got down to 29 degrees just four days ago - but, today I found some beautiful new yellow roses blooming in our back yard. Roses love the cool nights and warm days here in Albuquerque.


Woody's Roses - October 27th, 2008
four days after a freeze
Voter Suppression:
          With all the reports about voters being removed from the rolls for various reasons like slight differences in your name on different data bases or mail being returned, etc. I put this question to the Bernalillo County Clerks office. Would we ever know if our ballot was challenged. The answer that came back which said that any voters whose ballots are challenged or not accepted will be notified. I checked the Bernalillo County Clerks web site and found out that our ballots were received on October 15th.
Roadrunner



as we walk the
neighborhood
we often spot a
roadrunner darting
across the yards

facts about the
roadrunner











For Only "Five" Electoral Votes (10/26):

          New Mexico's votes are being sought after by both candidates. Early yesterday morning, John McCain spoke to *1,500 supporters at the NM Fair Grounds. Then, last night Barrack Obama excited *45,000 supporters at Jonson Field on the UNM campus.

......

          Hillary Clinton was also in New Mexico yesterday stumping for Obama. Hillary spoke in Sunland Park on behalf of Obama. If that's not enough to show the importance of New Mexico's votes - Michelle Obama is scheduled to speak in Las Vegas, New Mexico on Tuesday.
*Crowd estimates from the Albuquerque Journal, Sunday Oct. 26, 2008


Blue and Orange:
          The complements of blue and Orange have always been my favorite color scheme. I'm making progress on my new version of the five "Regular Platonic Solids" in watercolor. Now I need to brighten the blues and begin adding the shadows.
Cheap Gas (10/25):
          I really didn't need much gas in my Olds yesterday - but it was so cheap, I just couldn't help nyself but to stop and fill up. At $2.39 a gallon it seems like a real steal. With my stocks in the toilet, I want to spend what money I have left wisely. As the temperature dips to freezing each morning - we still have not turned on the furnace, we just get out our sweats and sweaters. I wonder if we could leave the heat off all winter ?

<<<  Where Are Your Stocks ?
Starting Over:
          This morning I started over on my watercolor of those "Five Platonic Solids" I constructed out of tagboard. Time will tell is the painting is a success, but I've just got to get it out of my head and down on paper. I was painting with my friends at the La Mesa Church not far from where John McCain held his rally on the New Mexico Fair Grounds. The traffic was light so McCain's turnout must have been low.
Newsletter Finished (10/24):
          I'm fighting with that Adobe Pagemaker software as I tried to put together the November Issue of the NMWS newsletter. It's called "Brushstrokes" and I'm the editor this year. Well anyway, it's finished and off to the publishing company now. Perhaps the problem is that the software only works on Frani's PC. If it worked on my mac, I bet it wouldn't give me any trouble at all. I wanted to include the images of the top four prize winners in the NMWS Fall Exhibition. But, for whatever reason, the software would not except Peter Krusko's painting. It took the other three images fine. Sorry Peter - I left the "Best in Show" out.



Best in Show
Peter Krusko - "Rio Grande near White Rock"
Voter Intimidation is Real:
          Keeping legal voters from the polls, it's not just paranoia - it's real - right here in New Mexico. The state Republican party won't comment on their investigators actions according to an article in the Albuquerque Journal this morning. One lady's mother was told she could not vote because they could not match her Social Security number with the drivers license records. The lady in question became a US citizen last year and does not drive. Her daughter said they had her mother in tears after being told she was not able to vote. Why anyone has access to Social Security numbers is another issue. How cruel can some people be ? I always thought it was a political parties responsibility to remind it's members to vote. Why get mean and waste time and energy trying to persuade or deny others the ballot ?

Get Out The Vote
rather than
Suppress The Vote

Old Folks Converting to Digital TV (10/23):
           Perhaps because I'm old, a friend in Georgia sent me this video. As luck would have it - we are on cable so we will not have to struggle with that conversion box. 


First Freeze in Albuquerque:

          This morning it was 29 degrees when I got up. I did notice a few ice crystals on my roses - so they may not survive much longer. Our puppy, Blossom did not want to get out of her warm bed. Not that I blame her because we have yet to turn the heat on. Our bed is heated and the morning sun will take the chill off the house soon enough. In this economy, why waste the money or the energy.

Are Women Going to Support Her ?














Frani Fixing
Apricot Bread Pudding
Playing Around (10/22):
          I've got to stop fooling around and finish the November issue of the NMWS Brushstrokes. It needs to go to the printer ASAP. The pic on the left was taken with that little camera above my i-mac screen. They must have updated the software because it takes a much larger image than before.

<<<   click on me to see every wrinkle



Five Regular Platonic Solids
ready for my workshop in
Glorieta, New Mexico

Six Days in a Row (10/21):
          It's hard to believe, but Frani and I have walked our 3.2 miles for each of six days straight. I don't think we have lost much weight yet. Of course, that stop at Dunkin Donuts this morning for coffee and a large apple fritter probably didn't help me a bit. I pass Dunkin Donuts on the way to the museum. I don't seem to have the will power to take a different route. We had second graders this morning. It was a really sharp group. One little girl spoke up to tell me what 3-D meant. She says, (while making gesters with her hands) "it means the art has height, width and depth."
         As we walk through our neighborhood it's good to see so many Obama / Biden signs. I feel that the Democrats will carry New Mexico. Tom Udall will win the open Senate seat and his old house seat (Taos and Santa Fe) is easy pickings for the Democrats. Our house seat, here in Albuquerque, will be close but I don't think the seat in the Southern Half of the state will go Democratic. When Pete Domenic resigned everything was up for grabs. All three members in congress decided to run for the open senate seat leaving their old seats open. On November 4th we will know for sure.


Octahedron
(correct)
Five Solids Corrected (10/20):
           After I discovered my error in constructing the Octahedron - I build a new (correct) one and photographed the results along with the other four regular platonic solids.

click on photo for larger image   >>>

pics with blue borders are hot links to larger images



take time
to
smell the flowers
Mc Cain



Stirring the Pot
Spreading the Wealth and Other Such Nonsense:
          I'm really disappointed with much of the press for not pointing out many things when certain issues are raised. For one, "Obama is in favor of redistribution of wealth" - Few people have bothered to point out that it was the massive Bush tax cuts that have already redistributed the wealth - just in the wrong direction. Our progressive tax structure has always been a method of spreading the wealth, or the burden of taxes to different Americans depending upon their ability to pay. Over the last eight years those with the greatest ability to pay have gotten the greatest benefit from changes in the tax laws. Now - we need to return to some degree of fairness.

        Another issue is this crap about ACORN and it's voter registration efforts. Loud and nasty claims by McClain that ACORN "is now on the verge of maybe perpetrating one of the greatest frauds in voter history in this country, maybe destroying the fabric of democracy." 
Few news organizations have pointed out that ACORN is required by law to turn in all voter registrations - even those of Micky Mouse. I applaud the Albuquerque Journal for stating that ACORN had, as required by law, identified 1400 fraudulent requests for registration - flagged them and turned them it separately for investigation. When a community group hires desperately poor people to secure these registrations then a few people will cheat. The cheating is obvious and ACORN flags those and gives them to the county clerk as required by law. You know, if the government registered every citizen to vote we would not have this problem. 

         Voter suppression tactics like "vote caging" continues to be a Republican tactic. In vote caging, letters marked "Do Not Forward" are sent to selected voters, usually in minority communities. When letters are returned it is assumed that the voter no longer lives at the address, and the voter is either removed from the voting rolls, or is challenged if the voter arrives at a polling place on election day.
Ultimately, caging works by dissuading a voter from casting a ballot, or by ensuring that they cast a provisional ballot, which is less likely to be counted. High foreclosure rates in the current poor economic climate is the newest twist. Voters on foreclosure lists are mailed letters which if returned as undeliverable then these voters are challenged. Or, if a voter is serving overseas or away at college - when the letter is returned their right to vote is challenged. My ballot could be challenged because their is a "Jr." on my name on the registration lists - but not on my tax returns. These tactics are totally despicable. Why don't we hear more about this in the news reports.

        My final gripe is the "stirring of the pot" at Republican rallys. When the crowd is whipped up to the point that a few kooks shout "terrorist", "off with his head" or "kill him" - why don't they stop and speak to their supporters about the danger of this sort of behavior. The first day Frani and I moved to Albuquerque, July four years ago - we attended a rally for Kerry at the Hispanic Cultural Center. Over 10,000 were there to hear Kerry, Edwards and both of their wives speak. Some organized protesters were up front waving their flip flops and shouting something. The Kerry supporters began to Boo the protesters. Kerry quickly silenced the crowd and explained that "this was America and the protesters had a right to be their." This stuck with me as a wonderful example of how unnecessary behavior from a crowd should be handled. I've heard Obama silence the boo's when he says McCain's name. He often says - "don't boo, go out and vote instead. When one speaks to a group of 80 or even 20,000, you have a obligation to try and control the crowds behavior. But, perhaps the Republicans are doing just that - we all should be better than that.
Triplets Ready For Halloween (10/19):
Tess                                     Tim                                    Tiff
Back to Walking & Painting (10/18):
          With the economy in the slump, we have decided to walk each day. Hey, it's free and good for us. This is the third day in a row that we have walked our 3 miles. We plan to keep it up so we can lose pounds - not quite as fast as wall street loses our money - but every pound lost is good.
         This morning, I started painting those five regular platonic solids. It's really different, but it's worth a try. Doing something different is how one learns and this is really different. As I was painting, this morning, I felt something was wrong. It took a while, but I finally came to understand that the Octahedron I built had only six surfaces. An Octahedron should have eight equal surfaces - so now I'm constructing one correctly.

My ClustrMap (10/17):
          Several readers have noticed the small world map with lots of red dots in the upper right of my blog pages. It is called a ClustrMap. It's really a counter of the number of visitors I have to my web site. But more than just count visitors - it records where each visitor resides by placing a red dot on the world map. Depending upon the size of the dot - each dot indicates the range in numbers of visitors at various locations. I added the map/counter feature to my web site about 11 months ago. So far my visitor count stands at 7,735 since November 26th of 2007. But, it's more interesting to see where the hits come from. I even noticed a red dot appear when Maggie took her teaching job in Quito, Ecuador. 



          I took a picture of my map yesterday. It is posted above. If you would like to add a ClustrMap to your blog or web site - just click on the map above to go to the companies web site. There are instructions on how to proceed.

ClustrMap 10/17/08
of
England, Scotland
and Ireland




click on map
for larger image



Quito, Ecuador
Gas at $2.75:
          I filled my Oldsmobile at $2.76 per gallon only to see a station on Fourth Street selling regular at $2.75. It's hard to believe that I would ever consider this price a bargain. A year, or so, ago I thought $1.99 was a good price. Of course perceptions change. In High School I bought gas for my 1953 Plymouth for 23 cents a gallon. Of course, back then I would often buy 50 cents worth of gas so I could drive for the weekend.

Painting of Platonic Solids:
          I'm starting a different kind of painting this week. Working from photos as well as the actual objects - I'm going to try painting the platonic solids. I like the purity of the white geometric structures and the way the light creates subtle color changes on their surfaces. Below is the drawing I'm starting with.

         


Dodecahedron

Dodecahedron Finished:

          Yesterday, I completed construction of the Dodecahedron model for my workshop in Glorieta. Teachers taking my workshop will build an Icoshaderon, but I want to have examples of all five of the Regular Platonic Solids. In order to construct the Dodecahedron, I needed to start with a pentagon. The method I used to create a pentagon is detailed on my web page how to construct a pentagon. To read more about the Five Regular Platonic Solids - CLICK HERE.

         

Five Regular Platonic Solids Finished


click on
dodecahedron
for animation


constructing
a
pentagon
step by step
Constructing a Pentagon (10/16):
          For one of my workshops at the NMAEA Fall Conference, I needed to learn how to construct a pentagon using only a compass and a straight edge. I'm doing a hands-on workshop on constructing the five platonic solids. To build a dodecahedron I needed a pentagon. Back in my Middle School no math teacher knew how to create one without a protractor. So, this time I went to the web and found several methods. I created a web page that shows the method I'm using in my workshop. Here is a link to my page on how to construct a pentagon.


my pentagon
Music & Art:
          What a wondrous combination - Harp Music and Transparent Watercolors. I owe thanks to two beautiful people. Thanks to Glenda and Michelle for sharing their talents to make our watercolor opening, on Friday night, a memorable event.

click on harps for a better view   >>>
Have You Voted Yet ? (10/15):
         We have already mailed off our ballots for this election. Even before we watch the final debate tonight. I noticed several choices on the ballot for president besides Obama / Biden and McCain / Palin. But one candidate was missing from our ballot in New Mexico. Of course one can always write in "Paris Hilton". I'm just not sure how many voters realize she is still running. So, I'm doing my public service part by posting her newest video here on my blog. Check it out - she has sound ideas and she is willing to seek out advice from experts who have served before her.
VOTE
for
Paris

She's Hot
See more Paris Hilton videos at Funny or Die
Paris for President:

        Paris Hilton is still running for the office of "Fake President". In this video, she is asking advice of another earlier "Fake President". Not only is Paris "Hot", but if you listen to her ideas - she is correct on the major issues as well.




Click on Paris
What Will You Do in Retirement ? (11/14):
          My usual answer is - any damn thing I want to. But in this strange economy there are lots of folks wondering if they will ever be able to afford to retire. But for sure, when you retire - don't sit there and watch TV. Not that I don't love my recliner and my HDTV - I do. But - do something - something you enjoy. Write that book, build that cabin, catch those fish - whatever is your dream.

        My dream was to move to New Mexico and develop my watercolor skills - and I did that. Now, I'm busy doing lots of things. I got involved in the New Mexico Watercolor Society here and served a year as president. Now that I've turned that job over to Mary - I took the job as editor of the NMWS newsletter called Brushstrokes. Here's a link to the October issue. We just opened or Fall Exhibition - they get better each year. I made signature status in NMWS and even got my paintings into a couple of national shows.



        My docent duties at the Albuquerque Museum of Art and History keeps me learning about art and about my adopted state. This is my fifth year as a docent. We have training on new exhibits every Monday morning. Yesterday, I gave model tours for other docents. Every other Tuesday morning, my team gives tours for students. It sure keeps my mind working about topics that are close to my heart.

        Once in a while, I pretend to still be an art teacher by doing workshops for other art teachers. I went to NAEA in New Orleans and gave two hands-on workshops for art teachers at the national conference. I've given hands-on workshops at state conferences in Colorado and in New Mexico. I'm doing two hands-on workshops for NMAEA in Glorieta next month. I even created a web site for New Mexico art teachers to promote our state conferences. Of course, I still maintain my own taospaint web site and update my blog almost every day, which is what I'm in the process of doing at this very moment.

        When you retire - you will begin to wonder when you ever had time to work. You know - that four letter word "W-O-R-K" that I claim I haven't done for over 30 years because teaching wasn't really work. Now in my retirement mode - I still don't work. I do just about
any damn thing I want to, plus of course whatever is on Frani's Honey-Do list.
         

Election Day (11/13):
          Frani and I filled out our ballots today and mailed them off. Even though there are still 22 days to go - we feel good that our we voted early. New Mexico allows early or advanced voting by mail or at several early voting sites around town. We prefer sitting at home with our coffee and discussing our choices, in comfort and without any rush. Even back in Kansas we voted absentee even when we were not going to be away. Some of our reasons are: no lines at the polls, no shortages of ballots, and we are assured that there is a paper trail in case of any recount. Of course, now all of New Mexico uses paper ballots - no more strange machines to mess up.

Back From Taos (10/12):
           My trip to Taos was to attend the art history presentations given at the 20th annual SWAHC conference. The conference was held at the Mable Dodge Luhan compound again this year. I attended 8 of the presentations but missed the last two because I left early to get home before dark.
        There were several interesting presentations this year, many about artist and photographers in the early west. Marie Watkins, from Furman University, spoke about Joseph Henry Sharp an early Taos artist. John Sloan was the subject of Ola Robbins, CUNY Graduate Center, New York City. Sloan is remembered best for the Ash Can School back East, but he also painted in New Mexico. Another presentation, by Natasha Brandstatter, University of Denver talked about the possible collaboration between artist Sanford R. Gifford and photographer William Henry Jackson. Another photographer, Carleton Watkins was known for documenting early California Missions. Michael Komanecky, Chief Curator from the Farnsworth Art Museum in Rockland Maine discussed the importance of Watkins photos. Watkins is best known for his Stereoviews of California. The variety of topics covered was wide indeed. Another topic was New Deal architecture in New Mexico presented by Robert Leighninger's from Arizona State University. Next year's SWAHC Conference will be held from October 7th through 9th, 2009.
        Another reason to go to Taos in October is to shoot pics of the Fall foliage. But rain and all the clouds cut out most of my picture taking. I did manage to get a few photos that may turn into paintings later. Below is a photo I took of Taos Mountain this morning.



Taos Mountain and Pueblo Land
Gas for $2.85 (10/10):
           As I get ready for a drive to Taos - gas in Albuquerque is $2.85 per gallon.  Some stations on 4th street decided to has a gas war. So, I filled the tank. Gas is always higher in Taos so I go there with a full tank. I'll burn a little over 1/2 a tank going the 134 miles there and back.  As the economy goes into the toilet - At least I'll start with a full tank.

Taos Or Bust:
         I'm driving to Taos for SWAHC (Southwest Art History Council). This will be the 4th year I've attended. Over two days there will be 14 or so presentations, by various scholars, on topics related to art and history of the Southwest. It's good education, and an excuse to be in Taos when the leafs are turning. The conference is being held at the Mable Dodge Luhan compound. Hopefully, I'll return home with lots of pics to paint from.



Electoral Map
Maps for Political Junkies:
          I found a site that compiles polling information and updates interactive maps. It's a neat way to check on how well Obama appears to be doing in each state. They also update an interactive map of the races for the US Senate. Unfortunately, it's not how many votes a candidate receives - but where the voters live. The links are below:



Landing in Park
Watercolors and Balloons (10/9):
          Today I helped hang the NMWS Fall Exhibition - the one I was rejected from. I can handle the rejection because it's a top notch quality show. We have our official opening tomorrow night (Friday). My job Friday night is to project the winning images so our juror can talk about them.

<<<    click on balloons to see lots more

Balloons Over Our House:
         Wednesday and Thursday the hot air balloons floated over our house. Of course, it all depends upon which way the wind blows. So - today I edited the several hundred pics I took of the balloons. All the photos were taken somewhere in our neighborhood, from our backyard or in the four acre park directly behind our house. At least six balloons landed in the park, plus a few in the streets.
From Last Sunday's Paper (10/8):
        Last Sunday's Albuquerque Journal ran a nice article about the New Mexico Watercolor Society. Laurie Johnson was interviewed by the Journal for this article. For a copy of the article click here. With the article in Sunday's Art section were three watercolors from our Fall exhibit that opens Friday. The artists who had their watercolors in the paper were: Laurie Johnson, Marcela Wagner and Pat Baca. Click on the painting below to read Laurie Johnson's words.



"Taos Shadows" by Laurie Johnson



Balloon on Our Street


Mary Sweet
Busy - Busy - Busy (10/7):
          Yesterday was a busy day. We had docent training in the morning on the upcoming exhibition "Jamestown, Quebec and Santa Fe: Three North American Beginnings" the exhibit begins on October 25th. After the lecture on Jamestown, I modeled tours of a couple of objects in Biennial Southwest 08. It's a juried exhibition of contemporary art from the Southwest. I chose a couple of more traditional pieces to talk about. Two woodcut printmakers - Mary Sweet and Nicholas Naughton. Mary's is a reduction print in the Japanese tradition of printmaking. Hers is a multi-color print from a single block. The title is "Winter Snow, Gilman". Gilman, a deserted mining town in Colorado is a favorite subject of hers. The other printmaker, Nicholas Naughton, cut his plates from 4 x 8 sheets of plywood. His work is called "El Trabjador". His subjects are anonymous farm workers in the southwest.


That's Me Explaining Reduction Printmaking


Nicholas Naughton
Watercolor Demo:
         Last night, Jan Fabian Wallake showed members of the New Mexico watercolor society how to loosen up thier  watercolor paintings! Jan’s workshop is running all this week where her students are learning how to enjoy the freedom of loose, flowing glazes of color and how they will add a fresh glow to their paintings. Jan wrote the book- "Pour it On". One photo I took shows Jan's demo being projected so the audience can watch her progress.

     
Demo at Last Nights NMWS Meeting
Watching Them Grow (10/6):
          Shari and Buddy sent us new pics of the triplets. It's like watching them grow - but from far away. Timothy, Tess and Tiffanie are ten years old now. It's hard to believe that - soon they will be in those dreaded teen years. These pics were taken in the flowers next to their house way back in Kansas, Tim is holding one of their new chickens.


<<<   Tess and Tiffanie
Timothy   >>>
Placitas Opening (10/5):
          I took some pics of my watercolors hanging in Placitas before the concert crowd came in. It's nice to have an audience for your efforts. The church in Placitas is a marvelous venue to showcase your art. People come for the music and the art. It's a magical combination - a little Mozart, a little Beetovhan and a little art. I was able to hang nine watercolors in the space provided. And, we got the concert as a bonus.


click on any photo to view a larger image















Hanging Art - Watching Balloons (10/4):
          Today is the first day of "Balloon Fiesta". At 7:15 am, I could see the first hot air balloons rising over the rooftops. But the wind is sending them north along the Rio Grande so they won't be floating over our house. I have to be in Placitas at 9:00 am to hang my watercolors so we can watch the balloons as we drive up I-25. The weather is perfect today for balloons - cool, clear and still. Tomorrow may not be as nice. They are predicting rain and wind - maybe it will hold off till later in the day.
         I was able to hang nine watercolors in Placitas. Four artists display each month and I only get about 21 feet of wall space. Tomorrow at 1:30 pm is the artists opening. Following the opening they have a concert at 3:00 pm. Visual Art mixed with Classical Music - I only wish our public schools understood the power of that combination. Will they ever learn ? I'll add a political comment here by providing a link to Obama's position on arts education.




Missing Painting
Empty Box (10/3):
           My shipping container came back from the national watercolor exhibition in Taos - "empty". I hope that means that my watercolor of Tiffanie at Whitesands was purchased. Or, perhaps an art thief with very good taste stole my grand daughter. If I don't get a check - then I will phone the FBI to look for Tiffanie. The empty box may have finger prints so I'll leave it for the experts in the forensics lab to do their thing. I've watched a lot of CSI so I know how efficient they are.
Sweet Printmaker (10/2):
          Yesterday, I watched Mary Sweet doing a reduction printmaking demo at the Albuquerque Museum. I knew Mary as a watercolorist. She did a painting demo for the Watercolor Society. Mary's watercolors have been juried into several shows. Now, I know she also has a passion for printmaking as well.
         I choose Marys print as one of the objects I'm doing a demo tour about
, for other docents, in the exhibit "Biennial Southwest 08". Thats an juried exhibit of contemporary art which opened at The Albuquerque Museum on Sunday, September 28. Next Monday, I'm talking about Mary's print titled "Winter Snow, Gilman" and another artist's woodblock prints. Several of us volunteered to "model" how we would approach various objects with visitors.
         The subject of "Gilman, Colorado" is a favorite of Marys. Gilman is an abandoned mining town near Leadville. I've seen several watercolors by Mary of scenes around Gilman. Every artist has their favorite subjects. But, in her demo yesterday, Mary was doing a scene which included Mount Taylor (near, Grants, New Mexico). Like Hiroshige's "36 Views of Mt. Fuji", Mary is aiming for a series of 30 views of Mount Taylor. She is working on number 20 now.



Mary Sweet Carving Plate for Next Color


Pulling Print
Watercolor Exhibit Opening Sunday:
          I'm loading up eleven paintings for my exhibit in Placitas. I should be able to hang at least eight of my watercolors depending on the space available. There are four artists selected to exhibit each month. The "Artist's Opening" is at 1:30 this Sunday before the concert at 3:00. I posted ten of the watercolors I'm taking to Placitas - See them here. That's my exhibits page - If the link does not take you straight to those ten images - go to the bottom of the page.
          All concerts take place in the acoustically superb Las Placitas Presbyterian Church on NM 165, 6.5 miles east of I-25 exit 242. Here's a link to the Placitas Artists web site. You do not have to attend the concert to come to the "Artist's Opening" at 1:30 pm this Sunday, October 5th.

                       
click for map to church   >>>
Another Painting Framed (10/1):
          Four more days till my exhibition and one more painting to finish. I made a few changes to the painting before I framed it. My friends had some good suggestions. Now, it's time to move on to another image.

click on the painting to see final image   >>>
New Mexico Art Ed Website:
          This morning, I published a new page on the New Mexico Art Education Association's web site listing the workshops and presentations at our Fall Conference in Glorieta. Click Here to see the list of presentations.

let me know what you think
woodyduncan@comcast.net
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