I've got a new print going. Truthfully, I've been carving on it for a couple of weeks, and I've been kind of dreading dealing with the figures and not quite sure how it would go, so I've been doing a bunch of oils as well. I had proofed the underneath aqua block a couple of days ago, and yesterday I finally took a deep breath and carved the women fully and proofed the whole thing. There are definitely some things to fix, and I'm pondering a few white highlights on the statues (very thin) and a bit of light coming into the hedge (cutting down to the aqua block below in bits, especially up high). Since once you cut, you can't go back, I think I'll paint both options first on top of a proof and see if I really want that. But I'm feeling very relieved and happy about the way this one is going, and I'm so grateful about that.

Here's the original watercolor, done on site, sitting in gravel on site, and the underneath aqua block with it. I had to try to keep careful track of where the water spray bits were going so they would line up between the two blocks and show through to the white of the paper. There's a bit of room for movement in that kind of thing, but most of it worked nicely, which made me happy.

And here's a close up of the darker block as I was carving it last night. I've got a little way to go on this, but it's nice to be close.

I've been working hard on oils on paper and prints since I got home from Paris and only sketching occasionally, so it felt great to take a few days' vacation from the studio work and sketch a bunch instead.

And of course I spent some time sketching in Tower Grove Park as well, one of my longtime muses.

The next day was the Shaw Art Fair, which I'd been wanting to check out for several years. Thanks to Carol for the shout out to come visit for it, and also to her and Larry for joining me and hanging out at the fair a bit. I was there latish on Sunday to hear the band Cave States, which did a fun, much more modern music show with a great mix of instruments.

are based on either freestanding watercolors or journal sketches from the summer.

This middle piece was a process photo I took partway through today's session. I'll do a bit more work on the top one tomorrow. The bottom one is now finished.

I'm also enjoying the oil on paper experience. It's smaller and more intimate (at least on the scale I'm working -- Frieda Hamm does them enormous), and I can keep the transparent aspects of watercolor (the sun and cloud trail below are simply the paper showing through) while build up with the lusher colors in the places where I want to do that. It feels like the best of both worlds at the moment. Plus these are much faster than the really intricate print I'm laboring away at, so it's nice to have something that's a little more immediate gratification to balance that project.

I will have two calendars this year, and they're being set up by the printer right now. I'll have some at my fall shows (Paris watercolors at Playhouse on the Square in November/December, at the Pink Palace Crafts fair, and at my open studio show with Melissa Bridgman Dec. 10-11), but I don't order too many extras. If you know for sure you'd like one, your best option is to pre-order online through my Square store so yours gets included in the order to my printer. They're 8.5x11" and $18, just like last year. You can order for shipping or to pick up, but please only use the pick up option if you're planning to come get one at one of my shows or in midtown Memphis. Orders are open right now and will affect how many I order to be printed.

Here is the full set of images (all new and all done on site ) from this year's My Memphis Calendar:

And here are all the Paris images, again all done this year sitting on the sidewalk, or, when I was very lucky, at a cafe table with a little tea.

I also did a quick sketch at Sunday lunch. It's very, very rapid, but I wanted to mark the occasion and remember the good company. Just a fast sketch in my art journal will bring back good memories later on.

At the top is my batch of color proofs from today. I always hang them up on the door of my print shop to stare at and get some distance from. The middle photo is the first proof I pulled yesterday, and at bottom you can  see the bottom layer plus the second block and the journal sketch I was working from.

I tend to say hello to places by sketching them. This is the door where Vincent van Gogh lived with his brother Theo near my "regular" neighborhood in Montmartre. I buy my meusli across the street and always say hello. I went by while I was up in the area and felt the need to sketch it again. This time a sweet older man came out of the door just as I was finishing up. There are always tour groups stopping outside, and the residents must be unbelievably sick of it, but he came to see my sketch and asked if he could take a photo. Then he asked if I'd ever been inside and if I would want to. He so kindly backtracked, opened that magic blue door, and ushered me into the courtyard beyond. It leads to a small alley between two walled gardens, and there are several more buildings that back up together in there. It's this lovely, quiet, secret spot.

We turned around to see the back of the house, and he pointed out Vincent's third floor window with the closed shutters. I wanted to sketch in there too but didn't feel I could ask. It was so kind of him to offer this to one more tourist camped outside his door. I was really touched.

I've been continuing the self portraits here, in a range of ways. Above are my feet as I sit and play banjo, feet propped on the balcony and watching the world below.

That one made me want to paint my banjo spot too, just for happiness.

Hands down the best quote of the trip has been the startled guy at the bus stop after I materialized next to him in my completely silent boots. He blurted out, "You could be BATMAN!" I had to do a sketch to commemorate that moment. Who doesn't want to be batman?

I am still chasing stars this trip, and I happened to be walking past St. Chappelle when it was five minutes from opening and the line was quite manageable, so I went in on impulse. I had seen it three years ago when it was still being restored, so one whole side was blocked off. It was gorgeous to see the full array of windows open to the light. They even had chairs, so I could sit and paint comfortably. A luxury.

I love the floor tiles as much as the windows, and in one magic moment magic moment, I looked down at one floor tile and saw my beloved first dog Dougal. He was the most utterly joyful dog I have ever known, and if I was down, I would take him to the park and watch him frolic with butterflies. He was a long, lean, red Doberman shelter guy, completely unscarred by his precious life. I always called him my angel because he taught me to notice and appreciate the everyday delight. I absolutely love that there was a Dougal in Medieval times as well. Maybe he really was an angel.

I was a little drawn out by then, but I also loved the whimsical carved animals on the west door portals. What a stunning place in so many beautiful details. (Not to mention a stunning rose window based on Revelation, which always sparks my artistic imagination.)