What matters most?

Concept and Creation 3'x4' by Tracy Verdugo acrylic and mixed media on canvas


Happy weekend beautiful people!

Will keep it short and sweet today as I've yet to get out to my studio and I really want to even if its just for a little tidy up!
On Friday night I had my exhibition launch at the oh so delish Cupitts Winery....wonderful friends and family joined me as well as locals wanting to sneak a peek at my works and it truly was a gorgeous evening.




....just one thing missing.....

not a sale
zilch
zip
zero

To be honest I woke up on Saturday feeling a wee bit despondent..you know its so much more fun when the red dots start appearing everywhere and usually that is what happens.....

I waited till now to blog cos' I really had to digest how I was feeling..
equating my self worth or validity with the sale of a painting?
How dumb is that??

So I did some rethinking...

Art is about growing, evolving, becoming...

My work is undergoing big changes and sometimes it takes a while for others to catch up...thats ok...


art by Tracy Verdugo

I've sold enough paintings to know that each painting is just patiently waiting for its true owner.
Obviously they couldn't make it on Friday but they'll come...eventually.

In the meantime here is what is important ♥


mi amor♥


mi familia♥


good friends♥


good wine and more friends who are also musos who like wine! :)


laughter :)



and love ♥


savouring beauty♥


and knowing when its time to stop doing....


and just relax awhile :)

much love and wishes for a wonderful week.....
Tracy xo
ps if you're still thinking about joining me for a fantastic year of creative growth
be sure to click through and tempt yourself some more!

Winners and other wondrous things :)

Hacienda Mosaico...come join me next year!!!

Helloooo gorgeous friends!
So much lovely news to share and I've fallen behind in my blogging so bear with me and I'll try not to ramble on too much!

First up a huge congratulations to Monica Downing who is the WINNER of a FREE spot in the super amazing Life Book workshop, organised by the incredible Tam at Willowing. I am so looking forward to teaching with Tam and the other awesome artists for the whole of 2012!!

If you havent yet checked it out be sure to click on the link on the left side of my blog ....you really dont want to miss out on this opportunity to grow creatively in a wonderful community with a whole diverse range of inspiring teachers for a whole year!!

I also drew out lucky winner Tami Chacon who is now the owner of my little ink/acrylic painting "The Earth Laughs in Flowers" Congratulations to both winners!

Other exciting news is that I have joined Louise Gale's HeArt Team at her lovely new website and every month I will be contributing an article based around the theme of finding your bliss and the pursuit of Happiness!

Heres a little snippet from Louise and an introduction from me:)
“your heART makes a difference” will be a new community empowering us to:

Live with Gratitude
Choose Kindness
Practice Self-care
Be creative
Spread happiness
& Energize from the heART
If you have asked yourself “What can I do to make a difference?”, I hope this new community will inspire you.

Be sure to come on over and click the follow button at Your Heart Make a Difference and also check out and sign up for this lovely swap :)
mealtime at Hacienda Mosaico
Source: Avi J.'s photostream at Flickr :)

last thing for today....I have butterflies in my tummy when I think about this and I can't share completely yet except to say that sometime in Nov or Dec 2012 you'll have the chance to join me for 5 days of Painting from your Heart at the beyond beautiful Hacienda Mosaico in Puerto Vallarta...more details to come soon!!


heartful space at Hacienda Mosaico
Source:Adventures of Joy blog :)

Hope you get to splash some paint around today
lots of love
Tracy xo

What is possible?

I've been thinking a lot about this lately.

What is possible?

Is EVERYTHING within the realms of possibility?



I watched this beautiful video with Marco and the girls last night. Marco's new passion is kite surfing and he LOVES feeling at one with the wind! These guys take it to a whole new level and just left us all speechless....I feel like they are truly dancing on the edge of possibility but also in some way opening the boundaries just that little bit wider for all of us......

I'm really interested to hear back from you all because I know that for me I have spent a lifetime

watching
observing
taking things in

and feeling a certain shift inside me when something that I thought was out of my reach suddenly comes into my vision of what is possible .......
simply because I have seen it done by someone else or felt the feeling for a brief moment of what it would be like to be doing whatever it was that I didn't previously think was possible.

I believe that we have these pivotal moments...little epiphanies....like the night 25 years ago when Marco and I went on our first romantic holiday to San Jose del Cabo and bought our very first artwork together, a beautiful woodblock print titled "Exprisionera" that hangs in our kitchen today, a symbol of breaking free, going beyond the boundaries, a sign of things to come?



like the day I bought a fabulous book by Dory Kanter called Art Escapes in 2008, opened it up and discovered that it was possible to not only be an artist but to travel around the world to exotic locations teaching others!

I remember saying to Marco, "I'm going to do that one day"

Like the time I created my vision board around my dream of travelling and teaching, including a picture of the oh so talented Flora Bowley teaching and then within a year Flora was here,

in my home,
sharing dinner and wine
and her stories,
teaching a workshop which I organised,

opening my vision of what is possible even FURTHER.....



Fast forward to this moment and I find myself planning an unbelievable adventure in which I am the artist travelling to amazing locations to share the things I have learnt along my painting journey and to help someone else believe in new possibilities!

This time next year I'll be flying around the beautiful U.S meeting many of you that have become my friends here. I am so grateful for everyone that has offered to help and for all of the love and inspiration ♥♥

Keep believing in possibilities
love Tracy xox

This is my itinerary so far...can you believe it!

Sept 19-24 2012 Petaluma California Art Is retreat

http://www.art-is-you.com/mysitecaddy/site3/events/auto_events.htm

Sept 30-31st 2012 Orange County, California Tracy Verdugo Wholehearted workshop . For more info contact the wonderful Christy Nimeh through my Magically Mixed Art Community on FB.


Oct 3-9 2012 Danbury Connecticut Art Is Retreat

http://www.art-is-you.com/mysitecaddy/site3/events/auto_events.htm

Oct 12-16 (TBC) Excelsior Springs, Missouri Sweet Freedom Retreat!

http://sweetfreedomretreat.blogspot.com/p/about-retreat.html

Oct 19-21 (TBC) Tracy Verdugo Wholehearted Workshop Texas.

Contact Selah Gay ♥

Oct 26-29 (TBC) Tracy Verdugo Wholehearted Workshop Florida
possibly with E'Layne Koenisberg

November possible workshops in Claremont Botanic Gardens LA, San Francisco, Portland, Seattle, BC, Canada....still working out the details on these.

Dec will be in California for Christmas with family

January Todos Santos, Baja California...anyone want to fly down and paint with me in this beautiful village?

Late Jan (TBC)Honolulu Hawaii Tracy Verdugo Wholehearted Workshop at the beautiful studio of Susan Conrad Risse

Feb ( home to Australia...that is unless we decide to stay longer ;p)

There is the possibility of adding other week day workshops amongst these so let me know if you would like me to try to visit your area. Its going to be amazing to connect with you all!! ♥

ps dont forget to read the post before this one...you might be the lucky winner of a free spot in the upcoming Life Book workshop....

Click here to view more details

Life Book giveaway!!!!

Hi sweet friends! Guess what? Not only do I get to be one of the teachers on the fantabulous Life Book workshop, I just found out I also get to give away one spot to someone super lucky who will get to be a part of this year long art adventure for FREE!!!

If you'd like to enter this wonderful giveaway all you need to do is click through the link here:
Let me be a Life Book WINNER!

and then come back and leave me a comment.

I spent today thinking about my component of the Life Book course and I'm going to be sharing with you some lusciously playful painting techniques and a journey to our hearts by way of a gratitude pilgrimage and a personal shrine...I soooo cant wait! !♥





For a second entry, I would be super appreciative if you could promote this post, either on your blog, facebook, twitter,pinterest etc and spread the word amongst friends and families about what an amazing time we are all going to have!! Make sure you come back and leave a comment letting me know so I can pop you in the draw :)

(please only comment once, but make sure you let me know how many place you promoted so I can give you the right amount of entries.)

I will be drawing the winner on Fri Oct 21st so make sure you click through here now to be a possible winner! xox
Yes I'd really love to win!

ps as an extra bonus you will also be in the draw to win my little watercolour at the top of this page which will be drawn at the end of the month....big excitable hugs all around

Love Tracy xoxoxox

Wanna know a secret?

Hi beautiful friends!

Just want to let you know that I've been BURSTING with EXCITEMENT about a little secret...and THIS little secret is about a HUGE event, possibly the BIGGEST online mixed media event planned for 2012 AND I have been asked to be a part of it!!!! Woohoo!!!

That's right! Did you hear me scream a couple of days ago when I got the email from the gorgeous Tam?

I will be joining the team of super amazing artists to be part of Tamara Laportes Year long online workshop honouring and celebrating the self ~ "Life Book"
I would sooooo love you to join me on a year long arty journey with 14 other inspiring teachers to create a gorgeous visual record of your creative unfolding loveliness throughout 2012...there will be videos galore (including one from me!), worksheets, personal support and the company of the wonderful Willowing community and ALL of this for less than $100..you owe this to yourself! ♥

AND just because I cant contain my excitement, if you click through on the link below and sign up make sure you come back and leave a comment to let me know and your name will go in the draw to win my little watercolour at the top of the page titled The Earth Laughs in Flowers! Good luck...will draw in about a month!

Click here for more wonderful details



registration is now open so come and join in the fun!
Come on over! You know you deserve it ♥

love and hugs
Tracy ♥♥♥

I think that I shall never see......

Blogtoberfest Day 7 :)

Hi gorgeous friends.....just a quick one this evening as I'm a little weary. Had a lovely day painting in the street outside a gallery that shows my work...chatted with lots of friendly people and then decided on the way home to stop and have lunch with a magnificent Fig tree that I have driven past hundreds of times but never stopped to connect with.

I'm so glad I did ♥


Trees are poems that earth writes upon the sky,
We fell them down and turn them into paper,
That we may record our emptiness.
~Kahlil Gibran


I hear the wind among the trees
Playing the celestial symphonies;
I see the branches downward bent,
Like keys of some great instrument.
~Henry Wadsworth Longfellow


For in the true nature of things, if we rightly consider, every green tree is far more glorious than if it were made of gold and silver. ~Martin Luther


Trees are the earth's endless effort to speak to the listening heaven. ~Rabindranath Tagore, Fireflies, 1928

Good night...sleep tight....see you in the morning
love Tracy xo

7 gorgeous kids inspired by Jesse Reno and Jean Michel Basquiat!!

Day 6 Blogtoberfest

Most school holidays I try to offer an all day kids workshop exploring as many different approaches to art as I possibly can. This time around I decided to go with an Outsider Art theme so the kids and I looked at the paintings of the renowned artist Jean Michel Basquiat and prolific Portland painter Jesse Reno whose spontaneous, intuitive, almost tribal works I love!!

Recently Jesse and I have been emailing back and forth to plan a trip Downunder to run some workshops which at this stage looks like early 2013.



The kids and I watched Jesse at work on Youtube and concocted crazy creatures in our imagination coming up with combo animals like a cat/dolphin/scorpion...sketching and doodling and then attacking our canvases with sloshes of paint, stamps, spray paint, oil pastels and pencils...scratching through the layers with bamboo skewers...all day long!!! It was sooooo much fun and I'm totally exhausted but in a GOOD way!

Here's some pics of our day..I'm off for a bubble bath.....hope all is lovely with all of my beautiful blogger friends!
love and hugs Tracy ♥♥

ps yesterday I had some amazing news that I'm bursting to share!!! Hopefully very soon!!!









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Oh what a day!!

9.14pm here in Aussie land... 2 glasses of calm me down red wine and OMG I havent written my "committed too" Blogtoberfest blog!!!~should be sitting with Marco watching TV!

No art today my friends..instead a day of running around, rug needs dry cleaning, Dr and dentist appt's, pick up some spray paint for tomorrows kids workshop, wash, fold, clean out the various experiments growing in the fridge! You know the kind of day I'm talking about!!!

Funniest part is this~

I get home and there's really not much in the fridge! (bad mum-not organised-too focused on my own stuff-my words-no-one elses).
Sienna is heading next door to stay with vacation best friend Lily but Santana is home after 3 days away with new flame.

Whats in the fridge? Frozen pizza for Santana...embellished of course with feta, olives, tomato etc and oh my there's a pack of smoked salmon...I'll make eggs benedict!

My love comes home from a 10 hour day building and really would love some of my fried potatoes to go with that! Sienna's camp list for the weekend is sitting on the counter...I really should get to that now!

Off I head to my non favorite grocery store...end up in a fab, long conversation with a fellow artist I haven't seen for ages...watching the clock knowing that I'm not even going to get started on dinner till 7.30pm!

get out to the car park..key in the ignition..text message from Sienna....emergency...feta!!!!!

breathe..text back..I'm not going back in there!

mum..we really need feta!!!

me mistakenly thinking that Sienna has come back home for dinner to share pizza with Santana try to ring Sienna but no answer! Call Santana and go into attack mode!! "if you want me to go back in there and buy feta you better be prepared to meet me at the car, carry all the groceries in AND HELP make your own pizza!!

Santana: What are you talking about mum! Sienna is next door!! Oh.............

Turns out family next door asked Sienna to text me to get Feta......I need to go to bed!!

More art later! I know you guys can relate to this.....sweet dreams!!! xo

I think I'm in love...with coloured inks!

A Breath of Spring~ ink, acrylic and sun dye on watercolour paper by Tracy Verdugo

Blogtoberfest Day 4!!

Browsing around on Pinterest this morning I came across a beautiful image by extraordinary artist Elizabeth Terhune. Her work is exquisite whether she's working in oils or inks! I love the fluidity and transparent qualities of ink and have often used black or sepia in my sketches playing with tonal qualities through washes and experimenting with line by using different implements to make experimental marks. Occasionally I've used coloured inks for drawn lines or accents on a painting but until today I hadn't experimented with them in the same way as I had with the blacks and sepias.


An Element of Surprise~ Ink, sun dye and acrylic on paper by Tracy Verdugo

Not having a huge range of colours I pulled out some sun dyes and a pthalo turquoise golden fluid acrylic as well and began to play! Oh how much fun did I have!


This Quiet Path~ ink, sun dye and acrylic on paper by Tracy Verdugo

There are some tricks to this and not everything was a keeper but the beauty of working on paper is that you can find the parts that are working, crop in on them and discard the rest!


The Earth Laughs in Flowers Ink, sun dye and acrylic on paper by Tracy Verdugo

Thanks to Elizabeth for the inspiration to pull out my inks and spend some time exploring...hope this post inspires all of you to do the same xox
love Tracy ♥♥♥

Frida is flying to Belgium!

Just a quick one today as I really need to get out to my studio and start work on a happy Buddha commission...

The big news is that my blog has finally reached 200 followers and the lucky winner of my Frida painting is Vanessa Colant from Pretty Days Studio Yay!!!! Congratulations Vanessa...send me your address so I can book Frida on a flight to Belgium!!

Oh and just in case you hadn't heard something pretty special is going on over here and its all FREE!!
See you later alligators!

Much love and hugs
Tracy ♥

Exciting news and a painting giveaway

Hi everyone!
Its a cold, wet day here in Southern NSW.
One of those days that make you wonder if the first giddy taste of Spring was all just a big tease!

I've been making the most of it though....
a morning in the studio,
a little nap...

and now getting ready to make some spinach and feta gozleme for dinner.

I'm having fun exploring other wonderful blogs through Blogtoberfest and in the Spirit of things I will be having a few giveaways over the month to come....

first up is this little mixed media painting of Frida Kahlo which I will be drawing as soon as my blog hits 200 followers. make sure you click the little follow button on the right to be in the draw!


Also just wanted to share that I'm very excited to be launching a solo exhibition at the very plush and highly awarded Cupitts Winery in Ulladulla on Oct 28th.

I know it might be a bit far for some of you to come but I wish you all could be there! Hope the sun is shining wherever you are...sending out love and hugs!
Hasta manana!!

Tracy ♥♥♥


You're all invited!


Sneak peek just for you...work in progress :)