MacTaggart Sanctuary

9x12 Oil on Board
We had a wonderful morning for paint out. Warm air, good company,the place to ourselves! It was the first paintout in awhile so lots of borrowing of paints, sweaters, etc. There was not a whiff of wind until just before I packed up and I thought my Guerilla box was going to become a parachute. It nearly took off and that would be a feat based on the weight of it. But this is Edmonton so as fast as it came up, it was gone. Not a bird in sight though probably due to the fires burning just outside of town.

Austin Highlights

These boots were made for walking. We had an evening and a day in Austin to jam everything in so we didn't waste a minute. We had a "don't miss" list and Allens Boots was on the list. They have a huge stock of the most amazing boots. We had a yummy dinner at Vespaio's and finished with good music at a patio bar down the street. The next morning we headed to Laguna Gloria to check out the Art School where Laurel teaches. What a treasure that site is! You can self tour the house and walk the grounds which I highly recommend. These peacocks looked for all the world like they were saying "What the heck are they doing today, where's our lunch?
We'd taken our suits for a swim at Barton Springs but hadn't thought about needing a lock... next time. Next on the list, Carol Marine's paintings at the Wally Workman Gallery. It was great to see Carol's painting "in real life" and we got the bonus of seeing Fatima Ronquillo's show. Then we crossed the street to the Russell Collection Fine Art and caught an amazing Impressionist show that was due to open soon. Many paintings, all from one private collection. We had a great dinner across the street at Z's which is snuggled into the treetops and then back to San Antonio to fly home the next morning. The whole trip was full of lucky bits of serendipity and tons of good memories. Thanks for listening while I shared them!

Fredricksburg Poppies

5x7 Oil on Canvas $75.00

This was the spectacular view I came upon as I turned a corner outside of Fredricksburg. The entire field was just a scarlet blaze. The ditches were filled with either bluebonnets or strawflowers. Hard to keep your eyes on the road! Thank goodness there is a pullout at most every driveway so people can pick up their mail from the boxes.

Our plan was originally to do a circle drive from San Antonio through the Hill Country to Austin where we were heading for a few nights after the conference. As best laid plans go, they often need adjustment. Turned out I was on my own for the day. Would it be worth the drive by myself? It would mean driving there and back to San Antonio by dinner time. It was well worth the drive, I'm so glad I went. Actually I went about 30 miles beyond Fredricksburg to see the fields of wild flowers I'd heard about.

San Antonio Fun

As I’m looking out the window, it’s snowing like crazy in Edmonton. I tell myself the farmers will be thrilled and if we were still in Vancouver it would be pelting down rain. But still, it makes it so easy to slip back into my memories of our little trip last week to warm, sunny Texas. The week before we left was so busy stocking up the larder for the boys and getting organized to go that when we landed in San Antonio it felt a bit like hitting paradise! What a great city with gracious people, the River Walk and such wonderful food! Good thing the city is so walkable.
The highlights of San Antonio for me were the afternoon I spent at the McNay Art Museum to see their Impressionist exhibit and the Greenhouse Gallery around the corner to see the Salon International 2010 show. My blogpal Laurel Daniel had her painting Lake Road accepted so I wanted to see that live, so to speak. The exhibit was 392 paintings and it astounded me, It rivaled exhibits of many large city galleries and I can’t imagine how long it took them to hang it!

McNay Art Museum /Greenhouse Gallery

We had a glass of wine with friends on the patio at the Hotel Contessa and a wonderful anniversary dinner at Las Canarias where the chef specializes in using Hill Country game and the setting is a beautiful old college building. Both restaurants are on the Riverwalk so the ambience is such a part of the experience. The last night of our stay we walked down to Rosario’s on S. Alamo for a fantastic Mexican dinner and walked back in a warm evening breeze. Am I repeating myself? Get the picture? It was a great town for a romantic or restful time. It felt like I was in another world but the flight wasn’t overwhelming and the language and currency are easy.
More about Austin in a couple of days and I promise I won’t turn this into a travel blog but please just indulge me for a few days of Art travel.