Hello Friends,

I’m sending February’s letter from a hotel room near YVR (Vancouver airport). Bags are packed, Chopin is in good hands with the pet-sitters and I’m ready to catch an early morning flight to the Big City.

London

But I’m not flying to London….. not yet!

I am planning a trip to see my Dad in July and this always means a day out at the Royal Academy Summer Exhibition - the oldest and largest open submission, juried exhibition in the world. Everyone can apply! Emerging artists and some of the biggest names in contemporary art and architecture get the chance to show together Salon style in a very famous establishment. My sister, Sarah egged me on and admittedly, it would by quite a coup if one of mine was on the wall next time we visit. I’ve submitted 2 of my most recent wild bird paintings, Stowaway and From across the Pond (see below). The number of entries was capped at a whopping 16,500 and 4000 will be selected for the next stage of jurying. . . . It’s a long shot, but as they say - you have to be in it to win it!

I’ll send my next letter after the short list has been released on March 20th, so you’ll be the first to know if I pass muster!

My first blogpost on the new site, The making of Stowaway is linked below in Studio Notes.

NYC

In the morning, I fly to New York!

Capilano U’s IDEA School Field Trip preparations are finally complete - hotel, museum tickets, guided tours, workshops and restaurants booked, health + safety procedures complete and in place. 21 Design and Illustration students plus me and one other chaperone are ready to blitz the New York art scene! I’ll do my best to send ‘postcards’ via my Facebook and Instagram feeds, but I’m really looking forward to guiding the required visual essay assignment (and maybe even creating my own).

Thanks Isabel for the tip on vintage shopping in Brooklyn!

Later, Vancouver!

With all the travel and teaching prep this month, there hasn’t been much activity in the studio. February seems like a great month to tidy up, take stock and make plans. I had hoped to finish one more painting before I left, for the Federation Gallery’s BLOOMS exhibition, but it took on a life of its own. I’ve added a ‘work in progress’ pic and description at the end of this letter. This one is a good size for my living room, so I’ll enjoy it while we wait for another chance to exhibit.

That’s it for now, thank you for reading, see you in March and Happy Birthday to all fellow water signs, Aquarians and Pisceans!

Zoë