Dot Courson Fine Art Blog

I'm headed to Gadsden Alabama to the Southeastern Plein Air Invitational all next week. This is my third year and I'm so happy to go back. This is really beautiful country. Here is a painting I did of a scene from there that is on the cover of my book, Small Places: Landscapes of the South. : We paint out all week and the public is invited to come to the Gadsden Museum to buy these works on Friday night. I have blogged about it before here  and also here . Here is what I'm packing as far as frames and canvas. Words are included in the photos, but you get the idea anyway: And what I'm leaving behind as I go on this trip:  here below with Jackie, is my dog Cane that we adopted from there two years ago. He's saying home with Daddy and won't be coming back to Alabama anytime soon! 

Just got home from the SE Plein Air Invitational. Here are some photos: "Sweet Home Alabama" - my favorite painting  that I did this week...  But....Blessed to be awarded winner of the Quick Draw this week. Craig Reynolds of Alabama won 2nd place with this beautiful painting!  My friend Millie Gosch from Georgia won 3rd place with this wonderful loose painting. All the winners did the SAME house!!  Weird, huh??? I did not get his photo image, but here is my little painting of artist Ralph Parker (from Texas) painting.  "Blue Skies Return" was done the day after the devastating storms.  "Evening Song".12x9, Oil. Sold.  One evening I did the above image of "Evening Song" (sorry iPhone image was not too good!)  from 5-6 PM after a full day of painting, This was just prior to a lovely reception held in a beautiful  private home... It was painted outside on the grounds of this home up on the...

The Gadsden Museum of Art is blogging about the Southeast Plein Air Invitational.  I hope you will check out all their blogs, but do check out the nice article   they wrote on Monday.  And here is a painting that I did on Tuesday...  I named it,  Sweet Home Alabama ! Sweet Home Alabama- 12 x 36 by Dot Courson Note: Please keep Alabama in your prayers as we sadly had tornadoes in this state today... 

"All Creatures Great and Small..." 24x36 Oil - ©Dot Courson Here was today at Dot Courson Fine Art:  I'm in the middle of working on two events that I'm organizing: #1 An upcoming painting workshop with John Pototschnik #2 A traveling show I'm co- chairing and organizing for the Mississippi Oil Painters Association (MOPA). ** I also have a "real" life!  My husband helps me to host workshops for artists.  The instructors are artists and are wonderful teachers- and usually American Master Artists, and people that I want to work/study with myself.  I have Texas artist John Pototschnik here teaching to a sold-out group in less than a week. He and his wife Marcia will be here on Tuesday and will stay with us in our home - and I'm looking forward to that visit! Today I spent time "readying" ...aka: "cleaning" ... my home for over 20 of the artists to who we will host here for a dinner/cookout here at our home one evening...