easelspace.com

Posting this little article on behalf of Jax. For more info contact Jax or visit her site This little program is an ideal tool for Artist like me who tend to lose track of everything! It was designed by Artists for Artists, so they cover all the bases - From storing photographs in various sizes (for uploading to websites, ads and high resolution for print sales) to contracts needed to sell your work in galleries and check-lists for Exhibitions. Everything in one place! Easy to use and just an absolute pleasure! I discussed the importance of keeping a log book in my Painting Blog Selling in Galleries. GYST will take care of all of this in one simple program.

As this site is part of GYST's Affiliate Program, you can take advantage of this special offer to buy this program and qualify for a discount by using this code. Remember to enter it into the Affiliate code section when you buy the software online. You can access the GYST website here Your special discount number is CPNIND103

Direct link to newsletter at Caroline Jasper's website:
http://www.carolinejasper.com/index.htm

Excerpt:
COLOR CORNER - Color vs. Value:Color attracts your eye and prompts emotional response. It can also help to identify subject, interpret image, and impart overall mood or message. However, while color provides the entertainment, value does all the heavy work. Value is the essential impact factor. Value, more than color, imparts the illusion of spatial depth and form. Light and shadow differences (value contrast) define surface contours and imply volume. Our brains rely on dark/light data collected by our eyes in order to make sense of what is being seen. We see value first, color second. The absence of color in black and white photos does not confuse us, nor does the waning visibility of colors as sunlight daily fades to darkness. Value stays on the job when there is insufficient light to reflect color. In every painting's delicious recipe, value is cake itself. Color, is just the icing on top.

TIP for better skill in seeing values: Compare digital camera shots of both your reference and your painting. Accurate value representation is far more important than matching colors in the reference. If the painting is dark where needed and light where needed, it will carry the image visually. It matters less which colors are used.

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Caroline's books and DVDs contain many references, demos, and exercises pertaining to the importance of value in art.
www.carolinejasper.com

Well,  I looked over what I had written and got the feeling that by reading the 'about me' stuff you wouldn't really get a feel for what my workshops are about and what makes them special. So I've decided to toot my horn a bit and tell you what kinds of things I've done over the years that would illustrate to you what I'm about.
What I'm about is caring for people who come on my trips and trying to resolve problems that occur as soon as they occur - not days later. Here then is my list of things which should tell you what kind of environment to expect when you come on a trip of mine.
1) The one legged woman. That's right - a woman came on a workshop to France with one leg promising to me that she was perfectly able to function independently. I said "ok", why not. Well I soon discovered why not. When she got off the plane being carried by flight attendants and placed in a wheel chair I started to wonder. OK.. so what do I do? I got my dear friends from La Rochelle to find a young strapping 16 year old girl to care for this woman 24 hours a day: set up and take down her easel, etc for only $15 a day.
 2) Three people in 15 years mistakenly thought the clear liquid in the bottle next to them was water when in reality it was paint thinner. Got them to doctors in record time and saved their respective asophaguses ( check the spelling of that please).
3) Then there was the guy who's name shall go unmentioned who spilled turp on his foot and watched as his foot turned a beautiful shade of quinacridone red. Personally took him to the doctor and had him treated immediately. It was either that or put a frame around his foot and try to sell it as a painting.
4) How about the woman in Provence who had some kind of terribly frightening allergic reaction to something she ate. I accompanied her to the emergency room in the ambulance all the while telling her lousy jokes to keep her awake. She recovered just fine and later forgave me for the jokes.
6) In the bus on the way back from the Cotswolds in England to Heathrow airport for the return flight home it was raining English cats and dogs. Lo and behold the windshield wipers stopped working and we had to pull off the road and likely miss some flights. Philip and Henry Meininger to the rescue! We went to the front of the bus, located the fusebox and spare fuses and replaced them on the fly!
 7) Then there was the painter who came to France and didn't listen to my directions about taking her medications on board the plane (please don't make that mistake). Her bags were delayed several days and there she was without medications. So - what's a tour director to do? How about go into the pharmacy in Brittany with her and find the French equivalents of her American meds and set her up with those until her regular ones arrived.
 8) Then there was the painter who absolutely could not live and paint without Liquin. But there was no art supply store for miles and it was a weekend when many stores were not open. What did I do? Silly me - I took a bus 30 kilometers to the next town where I knew I could get Liquin, bought the last three bottles they had and came back without her even knowing I was gone.
9) One thing that is never in the itineraries I send out but which is something I find people really love is setting up receptions for our groups at the city halls of some of the towns where we lodge. Yes, mayors of small towns love to welcome us with newspaper articles, wine receptions and even opportunities to exhibit our paintings. I even received the key to a town as thanks for bringing 25 painters there for two weeks to paint.
10) One has to be resourceful on plein air painting workshops when the weather doesn't cooperate. What can one do? Heck - that's easy. Sometimes it means getting permission from the local priest to bring a group of 20 painters into his/her church to paint. Been there done that many times! Finding overpasses to paint under on the streets of Paris. Getting the local Hotel de Ville to let us use a room to paint in... and find a model from the local community to pose for us. Whatever it takes. It took me 15 years of organizing these workshops to share what I think is special about them. I'm glad I'm doing it now and sure hope you try me out some day soon

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This will apply to any of the workshops currently listed on my site.
This offer will be guaranteed once you're registered and have paid your deposit. If this offer is withdrawn at some point only those people already registered will have the offer honored.
If two people are coming to a workshop and lodging together, the first person pays the regular double occupancy price and the second person stays for free! * the second person pays for their own breakfasts and there could be a room supplement charge depending on the type of room reserved.
However this supplement charge will not be above $350 for the total length of the stay.
Take for example the Gregg Kreutz painting workshop in Istanbul. Cost for single or double occupancy is $2850. If two people are sharing the same room than the total cost for both will be the $2850 + $350 double room supplement charge = $3200. Divide that by two and you have a cost per person of only $1600!

Phil Levine Workshops,
Inc. 69 Bank Street #102. NY,
 NY 10014 phone: 212-414-8875 fax: 866-501-6873
 e-mail: philiplevine@earthlink.net