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There is really too much to say about my week in Albuquerque. I suppose I could write a whole book about it, to be honest. There were months of preparation leading up to it, for my business and the work I did volunteering for the organization. There was my mom, who came with me and the people at home who I missed. There were the artists that I came to know a bit and the small interactions with ones I wish I’d spent more time with. There were a indelible moments and crazy frustrating ones.
There were tender moments and big audious ones. There was the beauty and warmth of the New Mexico landscape and the fragrant flowers that adorned the hotel grounds. So much happened! Moments of love, joy and bliss. There were also moments that weren’t so grand, but they don’t really stick out too much. They were out-shined.
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| Joe Baker and I after the buffet on Thursday evening. |
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| Albert and Jeanine making some moves! |
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| On a break during my demo |
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| I was honored to have Albert stop in on my demo! |
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| Alain Picard’s and crew |
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| Mine and crew |
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| Tony Allain and crew |
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| Terri Ford and crew |
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| Stan Sperlack and crew |
A highlight was the Paint Around. Being a part of the kick-off event of the convention along with Tony Allain, Stan Sperlack, Terri Ford and Alain Picard was certainly an honor and a blast! We were all a little nervous waiting to go on stage in the hot kitchen. Stan, ever the showman, teased the audience by ordering five shots of (iced tea) that we toasted before we began. As soon as the pastels were in our hands, we were fine! We each brought our own reference and had 10 minutes to start with our own piece. We then moved to our left and were supposed to have ten minutes on each artist’s piece, but our group was comprised of five very fast painters and I was later told that each time we moved they actually reduced the time so by the time we got back to our own piece they gave us only about 6 minutes to finish! Wow!
Later that evening I managed to get Albert Handell out on the dance floor! I won’t forget that soon!
Meeting such pastel luminaries and getting to know them as more than names and paintings was a real joy.
My presentations were fun, allowing me to connect with folks and share my experiences as an artist is very rich for me. Spending time with my mom and sharing a bit of my work with her is great. I think she enjoyed herself. She explored a bit of the Albuquerque book scene on her own while I was attending to my volunteer duties.
I woke each day and made my way to outside to drink in the blue, blue sky and the quiet before everyone started bustling. I needed just a few moments alone to gather my thoughts. I was usually greeted by either Mack the facilities volunteer or Joe who was helping out on every conceivable front or Susan who was Liz’s right hand person. These folks were wonderful to work with and never lost the smiles on their faces!
Spending time with so many people that are excited about pastel and it’s potential made me want to come home and dig a little deeper in to the medium that I consider “home”.
I hope I get to attend the next convention in 2017!
4 Responses
Thanks so much for everything you did Marla! Thanks for being so gracious and helpful. I was a bit overwhelmed at times but energized. An amazing experience.
The paint around looked like fun! Great work!
Thanks for sharing this. I didn't get to attend this year so I've been soaking up everyone's posts.
Wow, looks like an amazing event! Glad you enjoyed yourself, you've had a very busy schedule these past few months learning how to use technology to promote your incredible talent.