| You can only feel a negative or positive emotion/feeling/thought at a time. It’s either/or. You are the thoughts that you think. |
As of this morning, the Art Supply House is closed. With the San Juan Basin Public Health’s recommendation to stay at home – it seems like the best option (if a sad one). That recommendation is open-ended so our dates for the store are also undecided. You’ll be among the first to know when we’re back up and running!
Of course, that means that now we have time to make art! I’m excited about the opportunity for myself, and also look forward to seeing what you end up making (working under the assumption that you have some time available).
Once again, I wanted to share a friendly reminder to hop off social media and turn off the news for a bit. It’ll be there when you get back. Take a deep breath, maybe go for a walk outside for some fresh air (nature’s a big place), and definitely do something creative! How nice not to be snowed in about now (for most of us, at least!)
- This week’s artist is – Sean Cheatham – a figurative painter. I enjoyed speculating about the story behind many of the paintings. You can learn more about Sean on his website. I really enjoyed looking through his instagram and am particularly enamored of the damascus palette knife!
- I mentioned this list last week – but a list of projects for “kids of all ages” seems worth sharing again.
- There were already a lot of galleries available for viewing online. This article has a list of some more.
- I was recently reading a book to my daughter (Lily – she’s 3 months old) and thought that it would be a great time for all of us to hear that message. So if you want to hear a Dr. Seuss story – here’s a video for you. 😀
- Looking for a new board game? Here are some favorites from way back in the day.
- Here’s a fun illusion and some information about why we see it that way.
- Empty Easel has more than 500 free art tutorials. Check them out! (If you get to the bottom of the page, click on “load more” to keep going.)
- Here is a guide to learn calligraphy and free practice sheets (it includes a calligraphy guide if you don’t have special tools).
- Want to practice figure drawing? I know I’ve shared this before, but check out Sketch Daily for drawing practice images.
- Would you be interested in a virtual portrait party? I could have everyone who’s interested contact me then pair people up to draw the other’s portrait from a photo. If something like this sounds fun, reply and let me know!
- This is some pretty great parenting advice.
- Speaking of parenting – here is some homeschooling advice if you are suddenly doing so.
- Have a book inside you that wants to get out? Here’s a (temporarily) free guide to writing it.
- Want to learn some new art skills? The Virtual Instructor is offering some of their courses for free. More info here.
- Though we don’t have the store open at this time, you can still support us financially:
- We signed up as affiliates for SkillShare. If you sign up for their free 2 month trail, we get a small payment. And if you’ve been wanting to learn a new skill or piece of software – writing or business aspect, they have courses for you! I’m going to be refreshing myself on photoshop and seeing what else they have to offer. (And this isn’t new, Kristen recommended SkillShare to everyone she met for at least 6 months when she first dove into it.)
- Additionally, we’re Amazon affiliates. At the moment, they have one of the best and most operational distribution systems so they’re a good choice. During normal times, there are deals available on Amazon that we just can’t touch as a small retailer. If you start at any one of these links, anything you purchase (even if not from that link) will pass a trickle of income to the Art Supply House – and your price won’t change, you’ll just be helping us out.
- On a lighter note, apparently this is the ugliest color in the world. (How’s that for a designation!)
Ok. I think that’s what I know for now. Which is enough, at least for today. I’ll be sending more frequent emails, hopefully filled with artspiration and resources.
We’re in new circumstances and unknown times – but we have such amazing resources available to us! We can easily keep in touch with family and friends from around the globe through smart phones and video chat – the internet provides the opportunity to continue learning and working. Even if they’re a bit delayed, we can order most things and have them delivered to the comfort of our home.
One quote I spotted in the wilds of FaceBook said, “Our grandparents were called to war and we’re called to our couch – we will make it.” I hope to spend more time at the easel than the couch, but no matter where I end up, we couldn’t ask to be “stuck” home at a better time!
Cheers!
Matthew & the Art Supply House crew
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