“What are your most memorable plein air painting workshop stories?” I was recently asked. There have been very few that were tough, like the year I had two students with sprains at Schoodic Point. To paraphrase Oscar Wilde, “To lose one may be regarded as a misfortune, to lose two looks like carelessness.” They bandaged up just fine.
But absurdities are not unknown. I had my group seated in a circle at Mace’s Pond. Dennis was closest to the water, and we all stared at him openmouthed while his chair slowly gave way, dumping him into the shallows. Another day, my own easel went airborne off the South Thomaston public landing. And there was the time I was lecturing during lunch and a herring gull swooped down and stole my sandwich from my hand. I resented that.
Weather or not
My group at Camden Harbor ducked into a gallery to avoid a fast-moving rainstorm. Minutes later, we ran out to see a fabulous double rainbow over the floating docks. Strolling toward us along the waterfront was my student Brad, wearing a horse’s head.
One evening I received repeated texts from students suggesting I come out to watch the sunset. I’m more of a sunrise kind of gal, but I was strongarmed. What followed was the most incredible light show I’ve ever seen, and I’ve painted all around the world.
We generally get a lot of notice when we’re expecting a nor’easter, so when one was forecasted, I extended our other days to make up for it. My students, who were mostly from away, thought they’d like to try to paint it. Each of them was curled up in the back of an SUV, except for poor Roxanne, who has a sedan. I timed it, and we lasted 46 minutes.
Dancing by the light of the moon
Nocturnes are not easy to paint. Anyways, people are a lot more tired than they expect when they get done with a full day of painting. But when the moon is full, I make the offer. Sometimes it works, and sometimes the mosquitoes win. One summer evening, a group got really into painting moonlight across Chickawaukie. I called it quits at 10 PM, but Nancy (a retired teacher) and Matt (a college student) were still painting. At 5 the next morning I found Nancy in the same spot, brush in hand. “Are you still painting?” I asked in surprise. No; she’d given herself a few hours to sleep but was right back at it in the morning light.
Things people have told me about studying painting
“When I was young, I shied away from art because I mistakenly thought that either you had talent/ability or you didn’t. Period. It didn’t occur to me that like music or writing, you can take a bit of raw talent and get better at it with lessons and practice.” (Sandy Sibley, Columbus, NC)
“A big part of the attraction of Carol’s classes and workshops are the super cool people I have met. The other part is Carol’s tenacious preparation, taking the teaching seriously and pushing her curriculum through new levels by listening to students’ needs and by Carol’s own insatiable quest for knowledge. The enthusiasm is contagious.
“The only reason I have any knowledge about art is because of Carol; I didn’t learn jack in art school.” (Beth Carr, Avon, NY)
“I have found many new and needed ways of working in watercolors, specifically the prep work… I never had lessons that included these steps, only workshops that were demos, then you were on your own, then a time of critique. Found out ideas that should have been done before I painted. So now I feel I’m on a good new track.” (Carol Durkee, Waterville, ME)
And long, but I think it’s worth reading:
“Most importantly, Carol, like any good teacher knew when to give space to a young painter like me, and allowed for the natural growth and development of a lifelong artistic expression. In the end, after two years studying at the Douglas Studios, weekends, and after school, the portfolio I prepared was accepted by all seven of the art schools I applied to, and I received a sizable merit scholarship to attend the Rhode Island School of Design, the number one art school in the country.
“When I arrived and met my classmates and began in foundations year, I realized that very few of the incoming students had had an opportunity to receive this traditional type of art training that I had with Carol. That early school work demonstrated that my drawing and color theory skills were far ahead of the curve, and I was very well equipped to deliver quality projects and work, and receive strong grades and professor reviews. Whenever anyone asks me about why and how I became a professional painter, and so successful at a young age, in the New York City art world I always tell them the incredible story of a master painter named Carol Douglas, who showed me a thing or two and then cut me loose with a paint brush and palette.” (Matthew Menzies, New York, NY)
Are you ready to learn to paint?
“Come paint with me in Rockport this October! We’ll spend the week together making art, exploring, and sharing ideas. It’s the kind of experience that changes how you see your work—and your world. Save your spot while you can.”