EXCELLENCE IN ARTS TEACHING, MAYOR'S GALA

Awards Night

Quite a while ago some of Hidden Talent Artists submitted my name for the Excellence in Arts Teaching award to be presented at the Mayors Gala this spring. Pearl Der organized the entry and Wendy Pfeifer and Sylvie Fergusson wrote letters of recommendation. To say the least. I was humbled and excited that my students would honor me with this nomination. Truly, the nomination was the reward!!

Wendy, Laura, Michelle and Joan.

Missing: Jeannette, Barb and Jeanne

Pearl, Donna, Sandy, Marla, Laura

On March 19 some of the Hidden Talent Artists and myself were all gussied up and had a pre award celebration at The Cajun House- What a fun and supportive group! I vamoosed early to attend the Mayor’s Private Champagne reception with my biggest fan, my husband Ed. We met other nominees and dignitaries and talked to past winners of the arts awards.  I had very stiff competition- Joan Bilau, Vocal Instructor        and Darrell Marko, Dance Instructor.

We later met up with the Hidden Talent Artists at the Reception and I saw many faces I haven’t seen in a long time…so wonderful to be able to gather the St. Albert arts community in one place!

Our evening was one of entertainment! And it was exceptional! There was a dance theater co production, a one act play, Jazz Trio, Ballroom dancing and the rock band Tupelo Honey. All of them with strong ties to our community.

I  was very relieved that we didn’t have to wait long- the Excellence in Arts Teaching was the second award of the evening, so after that we could all relax…Much to our surprise and delight… I WON!!! Many many thanks to all of you for your support and friendship!! I was beyond thankful for such recognition!

My Excellence In Arts Teaching Award

Thanks Jeanne!!

The Art of Hanging Art

Laura Watmough explaining how to hang art in your home.

The lovely Susan Jones and  gifted Photographer April from the St. Albert Gazette come by the studio to interview me on how to hang art work. I have many  gallery shows a year and my husband Ed hangs art in my clients homes, so I was happy to help out.

Here is the article:

The Art of hanging Art

Gallery hanging:

Now, homes are very different than galleries. There are times that I have to hang Hidden Talent Art SALOON STYLE- which means art from top to bottom on a wall. This method was used extensively in the French Academy of Art in order to exhibit all the art that was submitted for awards. This can still be seen in some museums  ( Louve) and private art collections.

The ideal situation would be that each artwork would have enough space around it to separate it from the others and show it off to its best advantage. In retail galleries, wall space is expensive and artworks from a popular artist would have the most prominent position.

When I hang student shows I try to have a theme or a dominant color- ex. animal art in a grouping or a bit of red in each area of the gallery. This helps with the “visual flow” and leads the viewer through the gallery on a hopefully very pleasant visual experience.

HIDDEN TALENT ARTISTS IN THE NEWPAPER!!

St. Albert Gazette Article 
March 2013

Hidden Talent Orchid Art Show Ribbon Winners!

 
Orchids mean prizes for St. Albert art school
The students at Hidden Talent Fine Art School are strangers neither to flowers nor to winning. At Edmonton’s annual orchid show, the representatives from St. Albert took home 14 ribbons, including four first places, in eight categories.
Instructor Laura Watmough is always thrilled to see her students excel in their lessons. To have them do well in competitions such as this is simply icing on the cake.
“We’re getting a lot more participation and we’re getting a lot more attention,” she said, explaining why more and more of her students are being recognized at the show. The overall quality of the group’s efforts is excellent, she said.
She added that it’s a natural fit for her to use orchids as teaching tools because they lend themselves to great art for numerous reasons.
“You can be very simple to very complex. They’re very easy to separate into petals … and there’s a huge variety from minuscule to very large so you can do an awful lot with your colour.”
Watmough isn’t surprised to see first-timers, even some of her youngest students, see such strong results so early on in their artistic careers.
“I think what happens is they start to discover the process of painting,” she said. “Once they get that, they get very excited and they can tackle any subject. The world of art opens to them.”
Hidden Talent’s students accounted for two first places, one second, and four thirds in the children’s categories, while the adults brought home two firsts and five seconds.

ORCHID ART SHOW WINNERS!

Hannah and Cole- Orchid Art Show winners!

This year was the first time Jr. Davincis ( ages 6-12) entered the Orchid Art Show which is held in Edmonton . How wonderful that we had ribbon winners in the youth category!

Rose W2^nd, Hannah B 1^st  Cole B 3^rd

Sydney's wonderful watercolor

Ava 3^rd, Sydney V 3^rd Jenna 3^rd.  

More winners!

Special mention to Bernadette Neumann and her son FRANK who were double winners. Frank took first and mom took 2 seconds. There is a lot of talent in this family!

Hidden Talent artist a wee bit older (!) also brought home more ribbons for spectacular artwork.

Michelle's winning art!

First place winners were Michelle Sawatsky and Joan Rever( Black and white entry!). Multi winner Yoon Joo Kim received second on three of her entries this year. Yoon Joo is an avid orchid grower and Michelle has joined the Orchid Society and helps the rest of us identify and pronounce the names of the orchids.

Joan took first with a beautiful black and white Orchid

We hope these artists have inspired more to submit their artwork next year. Current information says the Orchid Show will be held in early April, 2014. Enough time to get a few painting ready??

THE POWER OF ART

Life is a work of art.

Art has been a powerful force in my life! It has given me a vocation: the opportunity to teach some absolutely wonder people who have become my friends and who I look forward to seeing every week.

Art has given me the means to meditate and still be productive ( you know, when time either stands still of flies by so fast that you lose track of it. This adds years to my life)).

Art has been a driving force to keep myself educated, current and innovative.

Art allows me to pursue my dreams....owning my own business, traveling and exploring, meeting new people.

And now art and some very good friends have seen to it that I have been nominated for the Excellence in Art Teaching award presented at the Mayor Gala in mid March!

First of all, my deepest thanks to my friends who made this happen- Wendy Pfeifer, Sylvie Fergusson and of course, that wonderful Pearl Der! They nominated me and sent letters of support along with a detailed resume, life story and reason for nomination. I am truly humbled and honored!!

As part of the process, I had to tell Pearl how I came to be an art teacher and the long and very windy road that entailed!!! Reexamining your life is a weird thing. I had forgotten many things, even important ones, so it was interesting to revisit my artistic past! I'm not exactly sure when I took the path less traveled and decided that sharing the wonders of art was as important as producing it. What I do know is it was without a doubt the right path and it has made my life richer and fuller than I ever imagined.

So, to all Hidden Talent alumni and present students/ friends/artists THANK YOU!!!!!

GRATITUDE IS AN ATTUTUDE

Granddaughters!

It is funny how all those annoying and petty irritations suddenly disappear when the REAL IMPORTANT things in your life are turned upside down.
This year there has been a rash of car accidents- Jeanne, Terese, Michelle, Janet and (Sylvie/Brock) (Lisa/ Chris) and a few more. The good news is all are ok and Brock and Chris are recuperating, not fast, but getting better everyday.
Cancer has made an appearance this year, (students, friends and loved ones as well). Quality time takes on a whole new meaning and gets priority. The idea that we are fragile is hard to face, but it makes the bonds between us stronger. Health is everything! Focus is important! Family and friends are our strength! Gratitude is acknowledging we are only human and are thankful for the many blessing in our lives.
Now let's go and live our 'best life' in 2013!

St. Albert Gazette Article

Local artist takes teaching to the television airwaves

Laura Watmough's one-minute lessons coming soon to CTV2

By: Scott Hayes   |  Posted: Wednesday, Dec 19, 2012 06:00 am

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Laura Watmough has taught many, many students the painting techniques of the old masters through Hidden Talent, her Campbell Business Park art school.
Her classroom is about to expand electronically into the living rooms of thousands of Albertans.
Watmough spent a day last week with a CTV2 film crew shooting several one-minute connectors, educational commercials that run between longer programs. There are several categories of connectors, according to former St. Albertan Dean Hooke, the writer-producer in charge of the project.
“We do a whole bunch of different styles of connectors. We do career connectors, campus connectors, learning connectors, which is what Laura’s doing,” Hooke said.
Watmough was approached to offer the art lessons after the provincial cable-only educational channel started inquiring about people who could offer brief tutorials about painting. The channel used to be known as Access before it was bought out by the national network. Much of its original purpose, however, remains the same.
“They have a mandate to do educational segments. They approached the Alberta Society of Artists, who approached me,” she said. “They asked if I would be willing to do that. Because I teach on an ongoing basis, I said sure. Teaching is what I do.”
Watmough wrote her own scripts, which were then vetted by well-known arts-focused elementary teacher Andrea Daly. Watmough hosted Hooke and cameraman Bruce Wiggins from the network. They filmed the segments on various aspects of learning to paint, including temperatures of light, negative space, creating depth and seeing in black and white.
“For every one of the five segments I had props or examples and I had to demonstrate some of the different concepts through art. The whole thing was to try and have a broad audience for this, so not just elementary school and not just retirees but to give a general education to as many people as we could.”
She was impressed by the production team’s smooth work ethic.
“They ran like a well-oiled machine and they included me as part of their team. It is amazing how many times you have to say the same thing over and over again.”
All of this should be old hat since it wasn’t her first time on television.
“I think I had one little segment way, way back,” she said, referring to a newscast that interviewed some local painters who had moved their studio space into Grandin Park Plaza.
“That was exciting back then but this was pretty intense,” Watmough said.
“The setup was quite elaborate. They had lots of equipment there. It was terrifying!”
Watmough’s connectors will likely start being broadcast in the first few weeks of the new year, Hooke said. They will also be available for viewing online at http://connectedtoeducation.ca/connectors.
“It’s wonderful to get art out to the community and just show them that anyone can be an artist. It’s all about learning to see through an artist’s eyes,” Watmough said, ending with what she called her tagline.
“Learning to see like an artist is the first step to becoming an artist. Start your artistic journey today.”

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I'M IN A GALLERY!!!!!!

Linda's perfect palette cookies!!!

Yes, it is that time again! Hidden Talent is featuring student artworks in our Spot Light Gallery....for some this is the first official gallery showing and are they ever excited! We have florals, landscapes, portraits, still lives and a wonderful variety of colorful and vibrant children's art!
This year we have a full roster of great volunteers whom I would like to thank in advance. It gets crazy busy and sometimes they sneak away before I can properly thank them. They are the decorators, greeters, refreshment ladies and  sales people in the new art store. (THINK ARTISTS CHRISTMAS GIFTS!)This awesome 20th Annual Student Art Show would never happen without them!
Sat Dec 8, Sun Dec 9 from 1:00-4:00 at #107, 25 Chisholm Ave, St. Albert. 780-419-2055 We will also be taking registration for the Winter 2013 Session. See you there!

JEANNETTE SOMMERS NEW WORKS

Jeannette Sommers with her new  watercolor Totem Pole series.

Jeannette is combining personal totem poles with representations of the animals sacred to native peoples. Her work is wonderfully colorful and authentic. This was her first outing with watercolors and they were very well received! Congrats on a great start to your series! ( Jeannette paints out of Hidden Talent!)

TOO YOUNG FOR AN ART SHOW! NO!

Tom, Kristie and Scarlett enjoying the fantastic colors of the art at CAVA!

Rose, 6 yrs. old has many favorites. Sue and Dave enjoy exposing Rose to the art world

Anthony is only a few months and already Sarah and Cam have him going on the art circuit!

I was glad to see the young families at my art show this November. I remember bribing my 3 sons with ' there is great desserts at the art show' and having them tell me which was their favorite painting. It must have rubbed off because they came and enjoyed my latest experimental art! 

FUN AT THE ART SHOW!

Marla and Betty- artists enjoying an artistic evening out!

Laura Watmough will one of her Garden Series paintings now in the collection of Eliana and Edie!!

Linda and hubby enjoying the ambiance....

Bea and hubby at the CAVA show!

Our favorite shopper- Donna looking over the wonderful pottery at CAVA.

The French art show was a great success! Thanks to everyone who came out! There was a great variety of art. Jeannete Sommers from Hidden Talent also showed her new series. Both Laura and Jeannette will be featured in the next exhibition at CAVA- the Miniature Show which runs until January.

THE 'FABULOUS' ART STORE IS OPEN!

NEW Art supply STORE at Hidden Talent!

How exciting!! After so many requests, there will finally be an art store at the front of Hidden Talent! There will be student and professional grade watercolors and oils, brushes for all media,  sketch books, watercolor paper, canvas, gessoed panels, drawing pads, canvas carriers, palettes for water media, acrylics and gouache,T squares, grids, transfer paper, ready made framing and custom framing. special sets ideal for Christmas giving and we will offer gift certificates!! All easels will be available for special order.
Gasp! and there will be more supplies coming...
There is a permanent discount on brushes and professional oil paints as well as 2 specials. Canvas art totes are regular 22.95 are on sale for $12. A professional set of brushes ( most mediums) is regular $25 on sale for $12.50.
The store hours will be the same as the art lessons or by appointment or chance. If the light is on, the store is open!
It is very exciting to set up another business that supports artists!
We would love to have you come by for a visit!

HOW much snow???

SNOW DAY!

Waking up to a blanket of snow sounds very romantic, but shovelling the driveway three times today is the real wake up call! and thanks to the three wonderful neighbours out pushing me out of the snow drift at the bottom of my driveway. I could not get out of my crescent!
So classes were cancelled by default...most had left messages that the roads/weather was too bad to be out and about. I think I am pretty safe that no one was waiting at the door.
Tomorrow will be a challenge! It isn't likely our property management will have the parking lot cleared, so I am packing a big snow shovel in case my favorite students get stuck!! Have no fear, we'll find some kitty litter and be winter ready ( kitty litter is placed under the tires if they are spinning on ice...who knew??) We've had over 20 cm fall by 3:00...20 cm= LOTS.
I am planning to get my camera ready for tomorrow. The trees are magnificent with the heavy snow on them. That would make a mighty fine Christmas card!

A Special Invitaiton

Winter Impressions - L.Watmough

Once a year I have the privilege of exhibiting at the Centre Art Visuel D'Alberta ( CAVA for short). I have always enjoyed being a part of the francophone community, even though my language skills are dismal to say the least and this exhibition is a major part of my involvement.
Somewhere there is Impressionist blood running through my veins! My recent trip to France and subsequent visit to St.Eustache Cathedral in Paris brought home the importance of acknowledging the  profound importance of one's 'roots'. Yes, there are Artists and Artisans lurking in my genes!
With that in mind I energetically took the palette knife in my hands and  painted with the passion of a rogue impressionist intent on letting color be the main force of my painting. I painted in a near frenzy, covering the canvas with as few color strokes as I could. I upped the ante and painted 20x24, no little piddly painting for this release of expression! Color, Drama and Texture were the only thoughts! 
After a brief separation from the act of creation, I reevaluated the results with a cold, dispassionate eye looking for the connecting threads I have embraced through my journey and art education- balance, repetition, contrast, edges! I tweaked the results and I am pleased to present 8 ( at current count at least) interesting, exciting and lively painting at the Nov. 23 Opening.
Although close to my heart, these works are the beginnings of a new series ( maybe not to be ever repeated!) and will be priced considerably below my current level for realistic art. They were a joy to create and I look forward to connecting with the patron who can re-experience this joyful experience!
We will be gathering at CAVA, 9103-95 Ave in Edmonton Nov 23 from 7:00-8:30.  and afterwards in true Parisian fashion we will visit Whyte Avenue and people watch over a great cup of coffee. I hope you can join us!