Jill Segal's Canadian Artist's Newsletter

Winter 2007

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Dear Friends & Visitors,

I recently returned from a wonderful trip to Peru and I’d like to share this experience with you. I was accompanied by 26 artists and photographers, from Canada, USA, South Africa and Israel and as per usual it was exciting, inspirational, awe inspiring and life changing for many of the participants.   This was my fifth visit to the Peruvian Andes, including Machu Picchu, the city of Cusco, The Sacred Valley of the Incas and surrounding areas.

We stayed at a Garden Guest House called Willka T’ika, owned by Carol Cumes. It is an exquisite “Garden of Eden” tucked away in the heart of the fertile, pastoral, Sacred Valley of the Incas. We experienced a great sense of joy and peace as we sat meditating, painting or photographing in the seven sacred gardens, teaming with life force and Mother Nature’s (Pachamamma's) abundant gifts.

Each day brought another adventure, as we set out at dawn and visited ancient Incan sites, villages, temples and colourful markets. We enjoyed interacting with the beautiful, gentle, Quechuan people and had opportunities to learn about their local traditions and cosmology. We also participated in intriguing ceremonies with local healers.

One of the highlights was a visit to a school in a remote mountain community. We had collected art supplies for the children and I organized, with the other artists to do different art, photography, dance and soccer activities with each of the six classes. It was quite an adventure getting to the school as the mountain road was under construction and literally had to be built as the bus was approaching.

Our 2 hour journey turned into a four hour event and it was a truly emotional experience when we finally arrived there and were greeted by 250 smiling faces. I was overcome by emotion, trying hard to quell the torrent of tears as my heart opened. So many beautiful children with smiling faces and all, dressed in their finest, colourful traditional clothing, shaking our hands, reaching out to touch us and singing a welcome song. The teachers hugged us and welcomed us with extreme gratitude.

Machu Picchu, “The Lost City of the Incas” never ceases to amaze me. I am always overwhelmed and intrigued by the awe inspiring grandeur of the mysterious, mystical mountains and city. How did the Incas build this terraced city, perched between two soaring mountain peaks?

We all returned to Toronto with so many wonderful experiences and so much creative inspiration. I am looking forward to seeing how all these new experiences will be translated into paintings.

I’m sure I will be drawn back again to Willka T’ika and Machu Picchu and I look forward to continuing to contribute in some way to Carol’s “Children’s Fund”.

I hope you will join me on a future magical journey to Peru. I will keep you posted.

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Fall Classes & Workshops

The fall classes were well attended and we all had a great deal of fun. The emphasis for this term was on colour and learning about the use of complementary and analogous colour schemes.

“Colours are forces, radiant energies that affect us positively or negatively whether we are aware of it or not”
Johannes Itten

“The principles of colour interaction I use are quite simple. They are those which can make a colour sing, make a colour (or 2colours) look their jazziest best.”
Robert Keyser

Other painters talk of “bounce or zing”, but we are all after the same thing, colours that come together with a magical rightness.

Analogous Colours

Analogous colour schemes are always harmonious, because analogous colours are adjacent to each other on the colour wheel, enhancing each other beautifully through subtle gradations from one colour to the next.

Colour mixtures of three or four analogous colours are bright and clear; the colour mixtures darken as they move toward a complementary relationship.

With an analogous colour scheme you can create a strong suggestion of illumination using gradual changes in value and intensity.

Reference: Exploring Colour by Nita Leland

Complementary Colours

Colour is sparked by an attraction of opposites:

Warm to cool,
Light to dark,
Dull to bright

Complementary hues, i.e. two colours that are opposite on the colour wheel are the most dynamic partners.

Complementary colours and near complementary colours in their pure state look brighter side by side, but they neutralize each other when mixed.

Basic complementary colours are:

Red and green
Orange and blue,
Yellow and violet.

I encourage you to play and experiment with various colour schemes and see what you come up with.

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WINTER WORKSHOPS & CLASSES

The following Classes & Workshops
can also be viewed by clicking here

I am going to be away in Victoria from January 27 –February 23 2007.  So there will only be 2 classes in January, and the classes will resume for the Spring session in March.

CREATIVE EXPLORATIONS WITH WATERMEDIA
(ADVANCED)

In this course we will explore creative expression, using watercolour and or acrylic and mixed media (watercolour crayons, oil pastels and collage). Teaching by demonstration, discussion, individual attention and critique. Creativity, fun, uniqueness and personal expression will be emphasized.

You will have the opportunity to continue working on your project of choice in the afternoon.

WINTER SESSION
Dates: January 11 & January 18
Times: Thursdays 9:30am - 3:30pm (There is the option to come for the morning session only)
Fee: $120 (Morning only $60)
Location: Jill's Studio, Thornhill, Ontario
Signup: Call (905) 731-3834 or email jill@jillsegal.com

SPRING SESSION
Dates: March 8 - April 27, 2007 (7 classes)
Times: Thursdays 9:30am - 1:00pm
Fee: $210
Location: Jill's Studio, Thornhill, Ontario
Signup: Call (905) 731-3834 or email jill@jillsegal.com

SUMMER WORKSHOPS

3-Day Studio Workshop - June 2007
Dates to be confirmed. (Let me know if you would be interested in this)

WATERCOLOUR- EXPLORING ALTERNATE TECNIQUES
July 2-6 2007
Haliburton School of the Arts
(705) 457-1680
www.HaliburtonSchoolofTheArts.ca

FLUID ACRYLICS, COLLAGE & MIXED MEDIA
August, 19- 24 2007
Bridgewater Retreat Tweed
(613)478-5502
www.bridgewaterretreat.ca

I wish you a Very Happy New Year

Jill Segal

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