"Oceans of fun at the artist retreat"

M.V. Frances Barkley, built in 1958

I thought we were going on the Lady Rose but in fact we sailed on the M.V. Frances Barkley. We left at 8:30 am Saturday January 24th from Port Alberni and arrived at the Bamfield Marine Sciences Centre dock around 11:30. We had a great boat trip -about halfway we left the bad weather behind and could see clear skies and sunshine ahead. We had good weather the whole time away; the last night we were there it snowed while we were sleeping and we awoke to a few inches of snow on the ground. It didn't rain once while we were there.

This is one of the first glimpses of West Bamfield -straight across from the Marine Sciences Centre. I will be posting more about the trip.

I am off to the "Oceans of art" - artist retreat

This afternoon I am heading off to Port Alberni where I will stay overnight. Tomorrow morning our art group will be on the 8:00 am ferry the Lady Rose. The follwing images are from their website.

24th - 27th Jan 2009 Oceans of Art - Artist's Retreat

The following is from the events calendar for the Bamfield Marine Sciences centre:

"A group of 36 artists from the Federation of Canadian Artists will participate in the 2nd Oceans of Art retreat from January 24-27, 2009. Building on the success of the inaugural Oceans of Art in 2005 organized by Kat Peace, the event is designed to be a fundraiser for the Public Education Program at BMSC. Artists will donate a piece of work created from the retreat and proceeds will continue to build a bursary fund to help support school fieldtrips to the Bamfield Marine Sciences Centre. Artwork will be available for viewing and sale at the Nanaimo Art Gallery from June 11-29, 2009.

Throughout the retreat, artists will be exposed to the variety of stunning landscapes and seascapes around Bamfield. A trip to Brady¹s and Pachena Beach, a boat trip to the Deer Group Islands and some time to reflect in the classroom (turned art studio) are but a few of the events during the retreat. The retreat will be kicked off by a marine life painting demonstration by Tofino artist Mark Hobson. Members of the local art community are encouraged to attend and become acquainted with Mark¹s work as well as the other artists in attendance."

Art Kit for "Oceans of Art Retreat" at Bamfield

Sketchbook

I made the decision to work entirely in a sketchbook while on my “Oceans of Art Retreat” to Bamfield. I made the sketchbook using directions from Teesha Moore’swebsite; instead of canvas boards I used mat boards in order to make the book more flexible to hold and to work in.

Preparation: I have given several of the pages a background: white, black and gold gesso; Gloss medium; heavy white gesso with texture impressed into it; blue wash, Quinacridone Gold wash, various stamping techinques etc.

Paper

I used Strathmore Aquarius II Watercolor Paper for the signatures in the sketchbook. Strathmore describes this Paper: “Strathmore Aquarius II is made with an innovative combination of cotton and synthetic fibers that work beautifully with all watercolor techniques. This lightweight 80 lb (170 gsm) sheet was created to reduce the buckling and swelling found in other sheets of the same weight.”

I have used this paper for my mixed media work with acrylics and various drawing mediums. It lays flat and takes a lot of abuse. I just love this paper.

I am also taking a mini sketchbook – 3”X4” and a Moleskine 5” X 8”

Paints

Acrylics: I bought little paint pots from Michael’s to hold my favourite Golden Acrylic paints:

Hansa yellow medium, Yellow ochre, Quinacridone Magenta, Napthol Red, Phthalo Blue (green shade), Phthalo Green (blue shade), Zinc white. These particular colours are part of the GOLDEN Principal 8 Color Mixing System

Mediums: I filled other pots with acrylic gloss and matte medium, white and black gesso and soft gel medium.

Watercolours: I have a little mini watercolour kit that I got as a gift years ago, I fill up the wells with my Winsor Newton watercolours. This time I am taking two triads:

Rose Madder, Alizarin, Cobalt Blue and Aureolin Yellow;

Cadmium Red, New Gamboge, French Ultramarine and Hookers Green.

In the picture above you can see two watercolor discs – a stacking kit made in China on sale at a local art store for $3.99. I have no idea how these will work but given how small they are I threw them in and will give them a try.

Gouache: Black, white and Holbein Jaune Brilliant #2 

Pens, Pencils and Brushes

I have included a variety of pens. My favourite is a Rotring Art Pen in “F” nib size. This takes a water soluble ink (do not use an india ink) I love this pen and one of the things I like best is that I can give the drawing a wash of water to add values where I need them. I am including a variety of graphite pencils ranging from 2B to 6B and 2H, a mechanical pencil, a few watercolour graphite pencils. I also have a set of 4 PITT artist pens in a sanguine colour. I have chosen a variety of water color pencilsand a few of my favourite brushes - Gold Sable, Series 800.

Miscellaneous

I have a mini strippable palette, UHU glue stick, paper towels, small jar for water, small spray bottle, a couple of plastic credit cards for scraping and mark-making, two corks and an Exacto knife to carve into them to make a stamp.

"Oceans of Art Weekend Retreat"

I am going to be participating in the "Oceans of Art Weekend Retreat" at the Bamfield Marine Sciences Centre

I will be travelling with a group of about 48 artists between January 23-27.

Bamfield, British Columbia is located on the west coast of Vancouver Island in a protected inlet on the south shore of Barkley Sound. Bamfield is surrounded by the traditional territories of the Huu-ay-aht First Nation, Crown Land and portions of the Pacific Rim National Park Reserve.

Bamfield Marine Sciences Centre - photo from BMSC website

Google map of region

Photo by Charles Seaborn and Rich Palmer

View slide show of BMSC and activities

Throughout the retreat, a marine seabird/mammal still life studio will be available as well as studio space. We have the option of participating in several field trips for example:

1. Plein-air painting on the sandy shores and rocky sea stacks at Brady's Beach. BMSC staff will be on hand to guide, talk and answer questions. Seaweed will be collected for creating 'algal art' later in the lab. Now this is a curiosity to me and I look forward to learning about algal art so I will keep you posted on what it is and I will post examples of this work once I get home.  
2. Ocean Explorations and Island Cruising on BMSC Research Vessels. Exploring what's under the waves on the bottom of Barkley Sound - the knowledgeable staff will bring some examples of sea life from the bottom to the surface to view.
3. Exploring the coastal biodiversity of Bamfield and Grapplers Inlets. Plankton will be collected during the trip for later microscopic observations in the lab.
4. Visits to the Lab for marine botanical inspiration and the creation of algal art from the seaweed collected of the beach. Microscopic examination of plankton samples with the introduction to "The Big World of Small Things".
5. On our last afternoon there will be a trip to the open coast and sandy shores of Pachina Bay. Here you can hike the start of the west Coast Trail, paint on the beach or, weather permitting, kick back around a driftwood fire and watch the sun go down.

I will be participating in "Oceans of Art" a fundraising exhibit for BMSC to be held 11 - 29 June 2009, at the Nanaimo Art Gallery, 150 Commercial St. Nanaimo, BC, 250-754 1750