First off – I’m crafty not artsy.

I like making things like quilts, baskets, beads, yarn and such, and I’m good with process and not perfection.

Speaking of process…

Last weekend, our friends Jess and Angelo came to visit. It was grand. We laughed, ate good food, and since it was the annual Art Crawl on the coast, we poked around several studios looking at art. It was great, but the  best part of their visit was that they gave Ken and I a watercolour painting lesson! Check this out.

Call me Van Goof! Painting is magic to me. The ability to create art on a sheet of paper is right up there with singing all the correct notes in a song.  Some people can do this, not me though – I think it is pure magic!

Sure, I can create stuff — but, my creations are crafty and never technically true or masterful.

Jess and Angelo were so good in helping us create a lovely work of art. They made it seem pretty darn simple and the final result, in my opinion was good enough to frame!

I was inspired. Ken and I thought painting would be something we could do together on road trips. When we found a nice camp sight, we could pull out our watercolours and create something fun. So, we bought some art supplies and everyday since Jess and Angelo left, I’ve tried in vain to replicate the lesson.

Sigh… instead of creating the masterpiece I see in my head — my artwork looks a bit childish, and my hope for claiming a place on the refrigerator is slim.

Practice, practice, practice. Yeah, yeah, yeah. I know all this. And yet… Van Goof.

When we were out at the Coast Art Crawl, we saw some interesting art work. I’m drawn to artwork that looks like something. I like realistic paintings; a beach or mountain scene. I’m not much for abstract art. One show we saw was all drippings and sprackle. Having Jess along to explain that actually it took more skill to dribble paint on the canvas (in just the right places), than I thought it did, was interesting.

I don’t know art — but I know what I like… ?

Anyway – back to the kitchen table in our house. It’s now covered with art supplies, as I practice and practice. Painting a leaf is friggen hard. I’m having a lot more fun, and it is much easier, and quite a bit faster, to just dribble and sprackle paint all over a sheet of paper, than to deal with the process and details of the lesson given.

Never the less, I persist.

I know what it takes to learn anything. It takes lessons and practice and time. Lessons, lessons, practice, practice… time.

Still, just once, I’d like to find something creative that comes easy to me. Something I’m a natural at. First time greatness! Is that too much to ask?