November Comes .... November Goes ...

The following sketch was done in November 2014 based on a photo that my daughter took of me out for a walk with my yellow labrador retriever "Lexie" in downtown Ottawa.

 "Lexie Walk" Art Journal sketch (graphite & water colour) Artist: Cindi Moynahan-Foreman

My November 2014 Moynahan Studio blog post also featured this lovely poem by Elizabeth Coatsworth:

Revisiting my 2014 sketch and the short-and-sweet blog post seven years later was incredibly helpful and has inspired me to change the format of my Moynahan Studio blog posts going forward.

Drawing August - Heat Warnings, Hashtags, Etc.

I had planned to spend time outdoors #DrawingAugust but instead I have retreated indoors with my sketchbook. In August, Environment Canada issued consecutive heat warnings for Ottawa and the hot and humid conditions are expected through Sunday.

"Reading Under the Willow Trees at Patterson Creek", with thanks for the photo reference: CBC climatologist Ian Black's (Link: https://twitter.com/BlacksWeather/status/1428302675196661762?s=2)

The #DrawingAugust hashtag has been around since at least 2012 and (according to Haidee-Jo Summers) originated with two artists – Jean Stevens (@jeanestevens) and Dean Lewis (@olderThanevil) who decided to set themselves a challenge by making a drawing each day throughout the month of August, and then sharing these drawings on Twitter.

Over the past few years I did the very same, however this year, one of my #DrawingAugust tweets received more attention than I could have ever imagined!

Sketchbook Sanctuary

On June 11th, 2021, when I began writing this blog post, Ontario began Step 1 of the Roadmap To Reopen . 

Today, July 13, Ontario is currently in Step 2 (moving to Step 3 this Friday) and I am fully vaccinated as are most members of my family.

Daily Sketch: Mandy Patinkin and Dog: "I love her, but the soup is mine"

Despite all of this great news, I have no idea what to expect or how things will unfold locally, nationally, globally in the coming months and I've been thinking a lot about what all of this will mean for me and my art practice going forward.

Update For Email Subscribers

In April, 2021 Google announced that the Feedburner service (that has been automatically generating emails about this blog) would be discontinued in July 2021.

I have been researching alternatives to FeedBurner and reviewing the two options that would be best for my subscribers: migrate all current subscribers OR request that subscribers sign up all over again?

I have chosen the email subscription service offered by follow.it. I chose follow.it because:

• it is committed to no email SPAM
  
• the basic level of subscription is 100% free for both emails and RSS readers
  
• it's a mature operation and not a start-up
  
• it takes the EU GDPR seriously - unclear about applicability for Canadian privacy/data protection
  
• it offers choice to the follower re what their preference is for how they want to follow
• N.B. above points originally appeared on blog Making A Mark  along with several other recommendations

If you were a previous subscriber, 

please subscribe again using the 

"Follow by email" form on the right.

 Please let me know if you have any problems and thank you for your patience

March 2021: Online Art Workshops

March 2021, for me, was more about taking art in and incubating ideas rather than creating finshed pieces of art. I participated in an unusually large number of online workshops, webinars and art demonstrations.

It was so great to listen to other artists and learn about their processes. Particularly while we find ourselves still living with COVID 19 lockdown restrictions.

Online Webinars and Demos

I participated in three excellent online webinars and demos in March

February: The Border Between Winter and Spring

Anyone who follows my art knows that I am completely obsessed with farm life (especially in Ireland and the UK) and if, as Terri Guillemet says, “February is the border between winter and spring.",  that can mean only one thing .... more sheep and sheepdogs showing up in my sketchbook! 

Beautiful, smart sheep dogs like James Rebanks’ (@herdyshepherd1) clever fell dog “Tosh” below.

If you want to see why Tosh made it to my sketchbook, watch this video.

New Year - New Directions 2021

There's an old Woody Allen quote that goes something like this, 'If you want to make God laugh, tell him you've made plans'.

Looking back on my blog post "New Year -New Directions 2020", I imagine God was having a good chuckle at my 2020 art goals: a new art website; teaching more workshops; organizing monthly urban sketching events and amping up my life drawing.

May 2020 photo of my yellow lab "Lexie" in front of Ottawa's Oldest Tavern in the Byward Market, Ottawa. (Artwork by Marc Adornato “It’s going to be OK. We’ll be back.”)

We kept telling ourselves and each other that it was okay and that "We'll be back" but today, January 31, 2021, we are still in a lockdown in Ontario, Canada as are many places around the world.

Please Pardon The Interruption

It has been over two hundred days since my last blog post. Two hundred and six days to be exact. Please pardon the interruption.

Spring, summer and fall have all come and gone. This morning, when I walked Lexie (my yellow Labrador retriever), there was a light dusting of snow on the ground.

Lexington (a.k.a. "Lexie") in Centretown  Oct. 28, 2020

With winter approaching, I wanted to share some of the inspiration that has been carrying me through these crazy times we are living in.

Art Connects Us

It has been twenty-three days since I returned from New York City with my daughter and entered into a period of self-isolation and physical distancing from others.

What I have witnessed in the past few weeks is that art can connect us to one another .... especially in hard times.

Le Vrai Paris, Montmarte (Paris) sketch (Fluid Hot :Press watercolor paper 140 lb)

Declare These Days An Artist Residency

In this surreal moment of crisis ....andrew simonet ( the founder and Director of The Artists U) suggests that we ought to declare these weeks of COVID-19 separation and isolation as an artist residency ..... because artists’ skills are sorely needed .....

"Blessed Are The Weird People" by Cindi Moynahan Foreman

Sketching While Traveling

In this photo below, its March (2013) in Manhattan and the snow hasn't quite left Washington Square and my daughter and I sat down on a bench because there was a young man playing a piano ("Claire de Lune" by Claude Debussy). I pulled out my pocket sketchbook and did a quick sketch of the scene.

Sketching in Washington Square, Manhattan, N.Y. in March 2013

New Year - New Directions

My first sketch of 2020 was inspired by a tree that I spotted on my early morning dog walk along Metcalfe St. on January 1st.

My first sketch of 2020

Sketching As A Mediation

Tomorrow, December 6, is the National Day of Remembrance and Action on Violence Against Women here in Canada. It is commemorated on the anniversary of the 1989 The École Polytechnique massacre in Montreal, Quebec

The vigil at Minto Park takes place at a monument known as "The Enclave" and that monument (and two other Ottawa monuments) is the subject of this post.

The Enclave, Minto Park, Ottawa

Royal Agricultural Winter Fair 2019

It was so great to be back at the Royal Agricultural Winter Fair again this year. I attended on Thursday November 7, 2019 and was fortunate to return again on the last day November 10.

There are always LOTS of sketchers at the Royal Agricultural Winter Fair

August Art Update

"Your life is already artful - waiting, just waiting, for you to make it art." Toni Morrison (1931-2019)

R.I.P. Toni Morrison (1931-2019)
by Cindi Moynahan-Foreman

Effective and Expressive Urban Sketching Workshop

On July 21, I attended a workshop with Tomas Pajdlhauser (aka Captain Tom) called: “Effective and Expressive Urban Sketching” and this blog post is about what I learned.

This was the ad for the first workshop offered by Captain Tom - demand was so great, he added another on July 20, 2019!

Our July 21 workshop group

The Dog Days of Summer

Here are a few of my sketches and activities from the dog days of summer so far. 

Daily Sketch: My dog Lexie pausing on the cool grass at Ottawa City Hall

My June Update Is Overdue But I Can Explain

I have just returned from three weeks of travel and I have been spending this past week finishing off the participant kits for next week’s “Sketching Portage-du-Fort (Quebec)” workshop.

I am happy with my handout (sneak peak of the first two pages below) and I hope the workshop inspires the participants to develop a daily sketching practice 😊 and become part of the urban sketching community !

My April - May Update in Photographs

April and May have been incredibly busy and there has been little time for posting on my blogs so here is a brief summary using just photos of some of my art activities and adventures.

Sketching on May 11th at the Canada Agriculture and Food Museum (photo courtesy of Diane Duford)

Ottawa Urban Sketchers Featured “Drawing Attention”

I am delighted  to report that the Ottawa Urban Sketchers are featured in the

April 2019 issue of “Drawing Attention”

Drawing Attention April 2019 https://issuu.com/urbansketchers7/docs/drawing_attention_april_2019/

Drawing Attention, the official monthly zine of the Urban Sketchers organization, 

communicates and promotes official USk workshops, symposiums, sketchcrawls, news and events; shares news about USk chapters ...

Testing New Papers

I am in between sketchbooks at present and I have had trouble choosing a new one so instead I have been trying out various "new-to-me" papers.

1. Bee Creative Watercolour paper
2. Fabriano Watercolour Paper

Bee Creative Watercolour Paper 

Happy New Year and Happy New Directions!

There was insufficient time to post any news to my art blog in December 2018 for good reason.
Let me explain.

So happy that my painting " The Last Portage - Heading Home" sold with all proceeds going to support CPAWS-OV

I participated in three group exhibitions at the end of 2018:

• The CPAWS Soiree at the Art Gallery of Ottawa
• The Ottawa School of Art "8x8 Fundraiser" at the Shenkman Art Centre
• The Atomic Rooster "Seven Days in Inktober" Exhibition

November 2018: A Month Honouring Great People

I was so excited to be heading to Toronto in the beginning of November to visit and sketch at the Royal Winter Fair, but when I showed up at Exhibition Place, I discovered that the International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees IATSE Local 58 stage technicians were still being locked out and I refused to cross their picket line and I sketched them instead.

They really appreciated the support and my sketch was well received on social media. 

IATSE 58 Members on the picket line at Exhibition Place, Toronto

Painting & Sketching In A World Where There Are Octobers

October is a favourite month of mine. The colours of the trees changing, birds migrating, sweaters needed and hats and mittens taken out of storage. Here is a brief summary of some of my October art encounters and activities.

Artist Talk

I love exploring new art techniques and learning about and meeting other artists. One "artist encounter" that I enjoyed in the month of October was an artist talk given by Brian Turner  at the general meeting of ArtEast in Orleans. Brian works in watercolour and he also teaches an 8 week watercolor class through the Kanata Art Club website for details (www.artforall.ca)

Brian Turner gave an artist talk on composition at the ArtEast General Meeting

The DRAW 2018 October Exhibition & November Soirée

The Dumoine River Art For Wilderness (DRAW) art retreat took place on the Dumoine River in Quebec this past August.

In October 2018, on Thanksgiving weekend, the Canadian Park and Wilderness (Ottawa Valley chapter known as CPAWS-OV). held an Exhibition (October 5-8) in Bristol, Quebec

In November 2018, art donated by the artists will be sold by silent auction at the Ottawa Art Gallery and the proceeds will be used to protect the magnificent Dumoine River in Quebec

DRAW Exhibit: October 2018

Making Art Inspired by the Dumoine River

I previously blogged about the art retreat that I had been selected to attend that was organized by the Canadian Park and Wilderness (Ottawa Valley chapter known as CPAWS-OV). The retreat is called the Dumoine River Art For Wilderness (DRAW) and it took place on the Dumoine River in Quebec this past August.

Group photo taken at the Moore Farm in Gatineau, Qc. at the June DRAW2018 Meet and Greet

Where Did August Go?

Where did the summer go?

My Summer Plein Air Painting & Sketching Adventures

I am feeling so grateful to have spent the last four weeks urban sketching and plein air painting with other local artists.

Summer 2018: 60 Minutes to Better Painting?

My quick sketch of "The Turning Point"
Block Sketching 1: Ottawa Urban Sketchers

Dumoine River Art For Wilderness Retreat 2018

I am delighted to announce that I have been selected to attend the 2nd annual Dumoine River Art For Wilderness Retreat in Quebec this August.

The Ottawa Urban Sketchers

In 2015, when I was in New York city with my daughter, I spent the day sketching with the NYC urban sketching group and after I had returned home to Ottawa, (and with the encouragement and coaching of Mark Leibowitz), I started the process of establishing an official chapter of the International Urban Sketchers group in Ottawa.

The application process began in 2015 but the Ottawa Urban Sketchers chapter became "official" in January 2016.

The Ottawa Urban Sketchers Chapter

2018: Taking Stock

With the weather in Ottawa finally warming and LOTS of new, exciting, and inspiring art events kicking off (see links below), 

I've been taking stock.

My Mexico 2017 palette recently decommissioned

ArtSpeaks 2017: "Tonight, Art Is For Everyone"

ArtSpeaks promotional card

Last night I attended the very successful "ArtSpeaks 2017" event at the Ottawa City Hall in the Jean Pigott Hall.

Sketching the Abiwin Co-Op

My Daily Sketch: Abiwin Co-Op: 267 Somerset West (Oct. 2017; Watercolour, graphite and ink)

ArtSpeaks

I received an email last week that my watercolour "All Acts of Kindness" was selected for the October 20 exhibit "ArtSpeaks".

"ArtSpeaks is a new concept in the art community, which seeks to reduce the stigma of homelessness by exhibiting the clients’ artwork alongside established artists." (Source: ArtSpeaks)

"All Acts of Kindness" (watercolour, 5x7)