Day 28 - April 29, 2007

I'm in Chicago waiting for my final flight home. I managed to make it through several goodbyes without becoming a total sap. We left at 9 am this morning for the Lynchburg Airport. Anthony and Janice drove Sara and I to the airport and after lots of hugs and some tears Sara and I got on the same plane to Charlotte. What a nice way to leave, a send-off and a friend to fly part way home with. Sara and I parted ways in Charlotte, she heading for NY on her way to Cape Cod and me to Chicago.

My fellowship at the Virginia Center For The Creative Arts was an awesome experience. I think that what I produced there in 4 weeks would have taken me 4 to 5 months in my studio. I have come away from there feeling very validated as a professional visual artist and with lots of new knowledge and information. The best part were the connections that I made with creative people from many areas of the world. Yesterday, with the help of my dear artist friends I managed to remove my canvases from the studio walls, roll and wrap them. Everything is well packaged and waiting in the studio for UPS to pick them up on Tuesday, May 1st. They will arrive in Vancouver on May 10th so if I'm looking stressed in the next 10 days you'll understand why. I feel like I've wrapped my babies in cardboard and put them on a bus! I've really appreciated all of the emails with good wishes that many of you have sent. Thanks for the support. A lot of you have said that you are anxious to see my new paintings. I just want to warn you that it may be awhile before this happens, they will be in transit and then they are too large to put on display in my current studio unless I do some major clearing. It will take me some time to figure out what to do with them and how to go about photographing them. My hope is to continue this coastal series and to secure an exhibit for them.

I'm sure that it will take me a few days to rest up and digest this experience. I'll see some of you after that. Thanks for the support.
Cheers,
Cheryl

Day 26 - April 27, 2007

I'm feeling sad today, doing a lot of things for the final time. I'm in my studio but finding it difficult to work and of course I have the laptop so have been online for quite awhile.

I'm so excited about coming home but really sad to be leaving. It will be tough to take my paintings off of the walls tomorrow. Here are some more photos from my open studio yesterday.

Day 25 - April 26, 2007

It was much cooler when I woke this morning and a good thing it was as Anthony and I went for a run. I'm a poor runner when it is hot and humid.

Today I am working on my paintings on paper and clearing the studio a bit for my open studio this afternoon. I've made space so that people can get back from the work, two of my paintings are quite large, the diptych covering an entire wall. Cora and Dorothy stopped by at lunch as they leave early. Cora looks after the studios and makes sure that we have all necessary equipment and Dorothy makes our rooms clean and comfortable. They are lovely and I'm going to miss them as well as everyone else who work here. The VCCA employees make life easy for us so that we are able to fully immerse ourselves in our creative endeavours. I haven't cooked a meal for 5 weeks!

This evening Richard Wollman will read some of his poetry and Ann LeClair will read from her book Silence. My day in a nutshell; paint until early afternoon, host an open studio with wine and snacks, followed by dinner with great company and readings afterward.

Day 24 - April 25, 2007

I was up early and went for a swim with Bobbie. By 8:15am when we left Sweet Briar it was a lovely temperature but it was rising quickly. It was the beginning of a hot and humid day with a forecast for thundershowers. My canvas was on the wall prepped and staring at me when I entered the studio. I had no vision of what should be on its surface. I turned on the air onditioning and lay on the bed enjoying my completed paintings and reading Gary's poems. (Each studio has a bed and there are 3 kitchens in the studio barn as well as a few showers so you can work around the clock or be anti-social if that is what you prefer.) I decided that I needed to do something washy and loose and by the end of the day had completed 2 paintings on watercolour paper, was part way through 2 more and had done some sketches of the trees on the VCCA property. Not bad for an off day! In my Vancouver studio I alternate between acrylic on canvas and watercolour on paper and I think that I've been missing the feel of the paper. It was perfect thing to do.

I am starting to mentally prepare myself for my return to the real world. That might explain why I am reluctant to start a major piece. I've always found it difficult to get back to a painting after leaving it for a period of time and it will take some time for my paintings to find their way to Vancouver.

I've talked to several of the people here about their experiences saying goodbye, leaving and returning to their regular lives. Most of them feel that it takes awhile for them to decompress, to be around people again and to talk about their experience.

Day 23 - April 24, 2007

Today was another perfect day that started with a run at Sweet Briar College after which I completed my moody painting, stretched a new canvas and which ended with a very social evening.

After dinner we gathered in the living room for champagne and chocolates while listening to Christina Askounis read from the novel that she is currently writing. It was very intriguing and I'll anxiously await its completion eager to find out what will happen next.

Poet Gary Short read several of his beautiful poems, 2 of them new and some from his published books "10 Moons and 13 Horses" and "Flying Over Sonny Liston". I am very moved by his work.