News from the Atelier - April 2025

Vol 1 Issue 4

Author

Phil Jourdeuil
May 07, 2025 • Estimated Reading Time: 6 minutes

Table of Contents

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April 2025 Goings on

Hi! This month has been busy with a number of conflicting priorities. Working in the garden, Easter, applying for summer plain air festivals, painting and sketching. Easter was a busy time, with our kids together for the weekend. Our daughter was in from Kingston and our son visited daily during the long weekend. Everyone left on Tuesday morning which made for a hectic stretch.

With the size of our property spring is busy in the garden. Tending beds, preparing others and starting our veggies for the season. This reduces the time available for painting. I did get some sketching in, although not as much as I usually do. I sketched with the Halifax Urban Sketchers at Cole Harbour Place, and again at a sensory accessible concert at the Halifax Central Library on April sixth producing 3 sketches. I also sketched a friend’s birdhouse. I also joined Julienne Sinclair’s #ipaintedthat group in the final week of the month.

April sketches. Birdhouse 4 April, Court 2 and Trophy hall at CHP and concert sketch at Central Library on 6 April and finished “Daytime/Nighttime”, two views of the same Kingston House on the same day for my daughter’s birthday.

I submitted my application for Paint Peggy’s Cove and was accepted. I am excited to join the other artists on site for three days to paint in the cove. https://peggyscoveareafestivalofthearts.com/festival-events/paint-peggys-cove/participating-artists/

Come see me paint at Peggy’s Cove during the Paint Peggy’s Cove plain air event 11-13 July 2025

I also did a lot of work to get ready for a craft market. Updating my profiles on Brush.bio and VANS. Selecting what paintings to bring, getting setup to receive payments and generally thinking and planning for how to display my art to advantage as well as deciding on what else I could offer at a lower price to get my name out. I did select and order a first postcard print run and will see how it goes. I am planning on doing a live painting while I am at the market so that people can see me work.

Exhibitions

My exhibition schedule is shaping up for the summer. It concentrates around the Pelion air festivals that I am attending.

  • Sunday June 22nd Parsboro International Plein Air Festival 2-4 pm

  • 11-13 July Paint Peggy’s Cove Yurt

  • 17 - 23 Aug Scott Manor Palettes and Pigments (art show and sale) TBC

Major Works

Here is where I am on Peggy’s Light logging some 20 hours on the painting, mostly in the late evening. This month the focus was on working the foreground rock formation, some work on the sky and getting the detail on the top of the lighthouse done. I probably have another 20 hours left on this one to finalize the details.

Peggy’s Light at the beginning of April

Peggy’s Light at the end of April

Growing in 2025

Some more stretching this month. I sketch as often as I can, joining the Halifax Urban Sketchers some Sundays, and I am planning on joining the plain air group starting in May. I am continuing with classes and workshops.

I continued to dive into colour theory with Tracy Holmes at https://www.breakthroughcolour.com/. As the BTC 125 was coming to a close, she held a series of interactive online workshops to continue to explain the system and answer questions from interested parties. Both workshops I attended were great and it was lovely to actually interact on Zoom with Tracy and the other participants.

I also applied to attend my first ever craft fair in April and was confirmed to attend. The Spring Market at the Highbury on May 6th is an ideal venue for a soft dip into the craft market experience. It is my father in law’s building and I know a number of people there. I recognize that it is likely a bit of a stretch as most people in independent living apartments have already severely pared down their belongings, but it will also be a gauge of whether my area is salable outside of family and friends.

I am working on two large projects - Finishing Peggy’s Light and starting my painting my Garage Door probably in June - Want to know more about that project? Come back then! Also if you or anyone you know has with experience with spray paint I’d love to hear from them as the garage door project is likely going to be a mix of spray paint and standard acrylics.

I have decided to attend the:

See you in May!

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