Whim Plantation

We had a VERY BREEZY, beautiful morning yesterday when we painted on the extensive grounds of historic Whim Plantation. The Palletteers were in rare form capturing all the wonderful and varied painting subjects with our paints. Those set up outside the Greathouse were delighted to have their creative juices amplified by the magical musical notes coming from a pianist practicing on the piano inside. The twinkling notes could even be heard far afield near the sugarmill, where I painted. For Show and Tell, our artwork was spread all over the Greathouse steps. What a show! Along with some "how'd you do that's" I could hear lots of "oohs and ahs".
Remember, the Palletteers is an open plein air group, welcoming any artist who'd like to paint with us, so our membership is fluctuating and varied. Our skill level ranges from beginner to accomplished artist. We paint every Friday morning and each artist brings whatever she/he needs to do a painting: art supplies, chairs, tables, easels, etc. We arrive at the pre-determined painting site around 9AM (some even later), spend time deciding what to paint, set up our "tools", and paint until noon. Since we are painting plein air, we have to deal with whatever elements nature (Mother & human) presents: strong wind, excessive heat and humidity, unexpected rain showers, accidents (such as spilled turps, missing brushes, paints left home by mistake), insects, shifting shadows, and well-meaning interruptions by visitors. Even though these very same challenges help make painting plein air so much fun, I still have to give my fellow Palletteers kudos for how much they accomplish in such a short amount of time!
Alma announced the latest news on our upcoming art show and there were lots of laughs as some interesting outfits (thanks to Laura) were modeled by Elizabeth and an unsuspecting Elwin. It was a morning of camaraderie, welcome, and delight and such a good memory to take to the states with me. A good time was definitely had by all!
If you'd like to paint with us, please know that you would be very welcome. Just email us at palletteers@gmail.com and we'll let you know where we'll be painting next.
Ginger

Gentle Winds

Due to unexpected circumstances I'd found myself back on St. Croix for a few weeks so it was especially delightful that I had a chance to paint with the Palletteers on the grounds of one of the islands' lovely north shore condos as guests of Peter De Bono! As we painted we were hit with a sweet combination of sensory overload: the pungent saltiness of the sea air, the rhythmic sound of the waves crashing onto the shore, the gentle splashing of the swimmers in the pool, the crisp blues and greens of the sea and lawns, the warmth of the sandy beach, and the background noise of ongoing conversations between residents at the snack bar. What a great morning!




















Ginger