Art Of Tracy Verdugo Blog

2017, a year to reflect and replenish..... so here we go my sweet creative friends and family..... Many of you know me well enough by now to know that I am not one for brief recaps.  Some of my annual recaps go on and on and on, but this year, I am resolving to put it all in a nutshell, or at least a tiny glimpse of it in a nutshell. **please read all the way to the bottom to enter my end of year giveaway. There are 10 spots in my upcoming Face Fascination class up for grabs AND an original painting!! After the intensity of last 2016 (you can catch up here ), my journey through breast cancer and subsequent treatment, I made the decision to take things way easier than I have done for the past five years. I soaked in numerous bubble baths  Spent more time playing games, even when obstacles presented themselves took myself on lots of walks to the beach  looking for love in all the right places  and...

Oh dear!! Really?? It's been three days since I was here? What to do?? Well I guess I'll just have to share a little of what I've been up to and give you all three days of gratitude in one  and briefly cos' it's 6.40pm and I'm on dinner! My homemade veggie burgers if you'd like the recipe! And besides if I don't get out to that glass of vino soon Luna may just beat me to it!  So yesterday mi amor and I sprawled out on the lounge room floor and brainstormed ALL of the possibilities for 2018 and believe me there were a LOT!!  Beautiful people all over invite me to come teach in their lovely spaces and towns and I wish I could say yes to everyone but the bottom line is I'm learning (especially this year) that sometimes I have to say no. I know that many of you have my back and I get so many messages making sure that I'm not overdoing things and that I'm practicing self care.  So here I am checking in with you...

Hey there lovebugs. Listen closely. Wanna know a secret? Creativity is a gift and I am so grateful for it. But it's not a gift just for a select few. It's our birthright, every SINGLE one of us and we are finding our way back home to it every time we choose to bring something new to the world. When we dare to try new things envision new outcomes let go of old patterns and belief systems This week has been pure delight with lots of hours in my studio, and elephants and owls flying and stampeding in and out as fast as I can paint them.  I've felt in flow in every way and for that I am truly thankful. At the end of a studio session on Wednesday evening I picked up one last piece of watercolor paper and made some different marks. The paper was not completely blank as Bella had decided, the day before, to put her little paw into some wet teal paint on my palette and go for a meander across my table....

“All the darkness in the world cannot extinguish the light of a single candle.” ~Francis of Assisi  Today I am grateful for light in all of it's incarnations. The light of a new day. The light that illuminates what is already beautiful to new heights of gorgeousness the light that stops us in our tracks and shows us things to make us smile The light that gives us strength when the darkness looms larger  The light that makes us catch our breath and see the world with new eyes and the light which makes us recognise that not only is it all around us but emanates from within us too if we allow ourselves to see it. Own your light stand in your light emanate that light to everyone you meet  so that they can own and share their own each one of us passing the torch of an unextinguishable flame of love. Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure....

“Hello, sun in my face. Hello you who made the morning and spread it over the fields...Watch, now, how I start the day in happiness, in kindness.”  ―  Mary Oliver   Hello, hello my beautiful creative friends and seekers!!  I've missed you!  Have you missed me? It seems like eons since I used to check in regularly here and I've been feeling the call to recommit to this space, to our shared experience, to our community of curious wonderment. Most of you know that last year was a big one for me,  and that this year I am taking things a little easier,  spending time taking more care of myself,  so that I can continue to do the work I value so much in the world,  taking care of the creative souls of those whose paths intertwine with mine. For those of you who may have missed my 2016 adventures it was definitely a doozy and I am soooooo grateful to be back on the path to wellness.  Here's...

Hello lovely friends and family!! Today I'm excited to share my experience  of a  thirty day painting challenge  with you all....... It started towards the end of our trip when I began to notice my dear friend Judy Wise posting raw, energetic, quirky, exploratory paintings to FB with enigmatic captions, documenting a thirty day process of painting on the same canvas, over and over with the hashtag #judyschallenge and #paintoniteverydayforthortydays The images were sooooo compelling and Judy talked about her growth as an artist through the process so I decided that once I was home and settled I would give it a whirl for myself! If you'd like to read about Judy's experience jump on right on over here but don't forget to come back. Something pretty amazing happened for me during this challenge!  I learned to let go and truly allow in a deeper way than ever before. a couple of FYI's * I did not work on this challenge every single co...