The Show is Coming!

Well the time has finally come. Our very first member show is almost here. This week is receiving for the show. Receiving is this coming Tuesday at Reddi-Arts, 1037 Hendricks Ave., Jacksonville, FL. Paintings can be dropped off during business hours. Please make sure you have a label, see the sample above, attached to the back of your painting(s). It's going to be a great show!

More wonderful plein air day photos

We'd love to thank Linda Green for providing the above photo as well as the following photos, documenting some of her viewpoints of the wonderful day. Thanks Linda! The day was great!

A perfect day at UNF

The members of the First Coast Pastel Society certainly felt favored by Mother Nature this past Saturday. After a week of cool and raw weather, punctuated by daily rain and thunderstorms, we woke Saturday to glorious blue skies, crisp air, and sunlight. We could not have asked for a better plein air day if we had placed a weather order a year in advance!  The paint-out was held at the Nature Preserve at UNF, a lovely gem open to the public. Our destination was the small island in the middle of the lake.

About a dozen of us showed up to paint, and there was a good walking trail leading to the island, so we started off as some of us began to gather.

The bridge itself that leads to the island was worth a painting of its own, though this sign on the bridge was a bit disconcerting. As one member said later, she hoped the gators wouldn't interfere with our painting!

The island was small, which made for a perfect plein air location, as we could all find spots to set up around the island's perimeter and yet still all be close together.

There were spots were you could concentrate on the trees and vegetation.

And spots where you could set up with great views of the lake waters.

With the perfect light and perfect weather everyone was able to find a spot that appealed to them for a painting.

After a fine morning of painting we gathered for lunch at the picnic tables in the center of the island, and shared our paintings as well.

Coming up is our very first Member Show too, with paintings to be delivered to Reddi Arts at the end of this month. Stay tuned for more info.

And for our members to the south, our June paint-out will be held at Princess Place Preserve, just over the line into Flagler Country, and very easy access from I-95. If you have never been to Princess Place before you are in for a real treat, so put it on your calendar - first Saturday in June!

Plein Air Day at UNF

Where: University of North Florida Nature Center

When: Saturday, April 6, 9 AM until 2 PM

Meet: in the parking lot at the main trail entrance

Our next plein air event is coming up, but before we get to it there are a couple reminders. Please see our previous post for details about upcoming deadlines. This week we need to have entries in for our first upcoming member show, and it's also the deadline for registering for the Michael Chesley Johnson workshop before it gets opened up to the general public. We now have a link here on the blog to pay for the workshop deposit via PayPal if you would rather do it that way.

We only have a few entries in so far for our first Member Show. Remember, this is YOUR show! We want to make a good impression and show the world that the FCPS is a great asset to the art world. Please get your entries in! If you have just submitted entries this week please email us and let us know (you can use our firstcoastpastelsociety@gmail.com address) so we'll know where we stand.

In the meantime we also have our next plein air day coming up at the University of North Florida. They have a wonderful Nature Center  with hundreds of acres of preserved wetlands, and walking trails.

There is a trail that encircles the lake, and picnic grounds on the island in the middle. Please feel free to bring a picnic lunch so we can all join together for a meal after a morning of painting.

There is ample parking at the entrance to the natural preserve, and parking is free on Saturdays. So please come on out and join your fellow pastelists for a wonderful day of painting.

For those unfamiliar with UNF we have been given wonderful directions to find the place by our own Richard Lundgren. This is what you need to know to get here:

The University of North Florida is located off I-295 (9A) between Beach Blvd. and Butler Blvd. on the South side of Jacksonville.

From the North, take I-295 south to the UNF/Town Center Parkway exit and turn east toward the University. As you enter the campus the road becomes UNF Alumni Drive or UNF Drive, continue around the curve until you come to the Parking Services exit on the right. Turn in to the Parking Services area and drive past the building to the parking area. The Nature Center is on the right and there is a path leading to the island on Lake Oneida. The foot bridge leading to the island is directly across from the picnic area and the Osprey Challenge Ropes Course. We will be painting on the island.   

From the South, take I-295 north to the UNF/Town Center Parkway exit and turn east toward the University. As you enter the campus the road becomes UNF Alumni Drive or UNF Drive, continue around the curve until you come to the Parking Services exit on the right. Turn in to the Parking Services area and drive past the building to the parking area. The Nature Center is on the right and there is a path leading to the island on Lake Oneida. The foot bridge leading to the island is directly across from the picnic area and the Osprey Challenge Ropes Course. We will be painting on the island.   

Upcoming Events!

Upcoming

First Coast Pastel Society

Events!!

Please mark your calendars for the following deadlines and

events:

March 30:

Deadline for submission of application to our

first FCPS Member’s Exhibit. You can find the prospectus

on the blog at http://firstcoastpastelsociety.blogspot.com

 under FCPS Website on the upper right. 

April 6, Saturday: 

Plein Air Day at UNF

For details, check the blog soon at 

http://firstcoastpastelsociety.blogspot.com

Michael Chesley-Johnson workshop early registration

for FCPS members ends on March 30.

You will still be able to register after March 30, but Michael

will be opening the class up to his mailing list on April 1st.

Also, we have several of our FCPS members participating in

the upcoming plein air event at the Jacksonville Arboretum &

Gardens, A Brush With Nature,

March 21-23

Stop by to visit!!

www.abrushwithnature.org

March Meeting Recap

Last Saturday the First Coast Pastel Society met once again at Reddi-Arts in Jacksonville, where people arrived and signed in to have coffee, refreshments, and to meeting with fellow pastelists, and get answers to questions of interest.

There were fourteen members who attended to share news and hear news.

Our President, Lyn Asselta, was away teaching a workshop, so Vice President Richard Lundgren took the helm to lead the Q&A session we had planned.  Multiple members had submitted questions in advance that they wanted answers for regarding all sorts of aspects of pastels, and art shows .

A lively discussion followed, but members who were not able to attend the meeting are not out of luck, as we plan to post the Q&A's right here on the blog shortly, for all members to see. We also held a vote for the location of our next plein air paint-out session, which will be held at UNF. Stay tuned to this blog for further details.

Our next meeting in May will also be held at Reddi-Arts in conjunction with our first Member Show. But those of you who live in the southern part of our territory, we haven't forgotten you! We expect to hold the June paint-out in your direction, and you can look forward to the fall also.

March Meeting

Date: March 2

Time: 10 AM

Place: Reddi-Arts, Jacksonville

Join us for our next meeting this Saturday. Hear more about our upcoming member show, and the great workshop we have planned for the fall. Get to meet with your fellow pastelists. At this meeting we plan to have a Q&A session to answer specific questions you may have about pastels. Some questions were submitted ahead of time via email, but don't be afraid to bring up a new one if you have it. With lots of us there I think someone is bound to have the answer!