Watercolor Landscape Class + 33 Artists Market

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Do you like how I paint landscapes? Would you like to learn to paint your own?

Watercolor Landscape Class starts next week on March 26th at the Corbin Art Center, 6-8 pm. Visit my.spokanecity.org to find the class and sign up! Look under “Adult Art Classes”. Or just click HERE!

If flowers are more your thing, my class on painting flowers (also at the Corbin Art Center) will start May 8th. You can sign up for it here.

Last bit of news below-the 33 Artists Market!

It’s at the Woman’s Club on Saturday March 29th, 11-5, which will hopefully be substantially less snowy than this (in fact, no snow please!). I’m fully in the spring mindset and I know I’m not alone! There’s going to be a great selection of artists there and I’d love to see you and catch up on how your winter has been!

Address:1428 W 9th Ave-on the lower South Hill. There’s free parking in the neighborhood.

See you there!

Local Color: Group Show at Art Spirit

Hello Everyone! I’m finally emerging from the creative cocoon of the studio after months of working making and framing a new series of paintings for a group show at the Art Spirit Gallery in Coeur D’Alene, Idaho. It’s called Local Color and I’m showing along Wes Hanson, LR Montgomery, and Teresa Rancourt.

Here’s a little bit about the show in the Art Spirit team’s words:

Local Color Explodes Onto the Scene at The Art Spirit Gallery

The Art Spirit Gallery is thrilled to announce the opening of its highly anticipated new exhibition, "Local Color," on Saturday, February 1st, 2025, at 11:00 AM. This vibrant collection features the works of four exceptional local artists: Wes Hanson, L.R. Montgomery, Megan Perkins, and Teresa Rancourt.

"Local Color" is more than just a title; it's a celebration of the unique hues and textures that define our region. It's the deep blue of Lake Coeur d'Alene reflecting a sun-drenched sky, the verdant greens of the surrounding forests, the earthy browns of the rolling hills, and the fiery oranges and reds of a Northwest sunset. It's the essence of place, the spirit of the region captured on canvas.

Each artist in this collection draws inspiration from the rich palette of the Inland Northwest.

  • Wes Hansons style is impressionistic, employing loose brushstrokes and transparent washes to create a sense of fluidity and movement. The colors are often subtly modulated, evoking a sense of tranquility and serenity

  • L.R. Montgomery's oil paintings are known for their bold use of color and texture, often employing a vibrant and expressive palette.

  • Megan Perkins' paintings, light and shadow play a significant role in creating mood and atmosphere.

  • Teresa Rancourt's paintings are known for their vibrant and expressive use of color, often employing a bold and saturated palette each bring their own unique perspective and artistic vision to this exploration of local color. The resulting exhibition is a captivating tapestry of styles, techniques, and interpretations of the region’s landscape and spirit.

Join us for the opening reception on February 1st to experience the vibrancy and beauty of "Local Color."

All four of us artists will be at the gallery on the 1st from 11-112 for a Q & A session.

Each of us will also be doing a painting demonstration during the show. I am up on February 22nd, 2-4 and I’d love to see you so please mark your calendars!

Finally, since you’ve been so patient to keep reading all of this self promotion, here’s some photos of the paintings I have made for the show. The Art Spirit asked for me to “go big” and while I can’t compete with L.R. for sheer scale (his works are monumental windows of color!), I pushed myself and worked bigger than I ever have before so as you look at these tiny thumbnails on your phone, please imagine them at 2 ft x 2 ft and at the largest 52” x 27”!

If you’d like to see the rest, come by the Art Spirit sometime in February. There’s always plenty to do in Coeur D’Alene even if it is chilly and there’s certainly no off-season for Dockside sundaes in my opinion! See you in February!

See you at 33 Artists Market!

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I hope to see you guys at the Woman’s Club this Saturday for Small Business Saturday! It’s my last show of the year so this is the easiest way to stock up on your art presents for Christmas! Check out the poster at the end of the email for the details. I’ll have a couple fun new things along with my puzzles and prints! For one, I’ve been playing with a GlowForge, a laser engraver to make wooden ornaments and having a delightful time.

These guys will be $15 and are signed on the back with the engraver.

Here they are on display at Garland Mercantile! I also have a design with the Garland Theater (not shown here).

Some of you may have seen a long accordion style landmark painting I’ve been using to decorate my booth with at a few shows. With the encouragement of some friends and my printer, I’ve made it into a a folding accordion card/decoration. I’m think that it could be a very fancy Christmas card-one of those ones that are a present in itself. A veritable letter can be written across the back and then the recipient (or yourself, I am totally on board with buying oneself presents) can display the card in it’s full unfolded glory on their sideboard, desk, window sill, table, etc.

Here’s the test sample of the Landmark Accordion print. You can order it with either the cut silhouette (as seen above) or with the white background. It folds to roughly 5” x 7” and fits in a standard envelope (though it will need more than one stamp to send!). The video below shows me unfolding it.

See you Saturday!

Here’s a sunset from the lower meadow at our new place. I see paintings everywhere here!

Loosen Up Your Painting!

Hi there guys! This is just a quick note to say that I have a class this Saturday on loosening up your painting style, which I know is something a lot of people want to do. It’s 1-5 at the Corbin Art Center. I’ll be sharing all of my tips and tricks to loosen that death grip you have on your brush and let the paint fly with joy and verve. It’s going to be fun! You can sign up for it here: https://secure.rec1.com/WA/spokane-wa/catalog

It was entertaining to pick out example paintings that I felt were both loose but also have a fall vibe! I love fall (though not the season that approaches afterward) and I think Spokane has fabulous autumns. Currently delighting me are the changing colors of the leaves and the crisp morning air followed by the mellow warm ness of late afternoon. Oh and the onset of sweater season. I love me some soft, squishy knit sweaters! What are you loving about fall?

Finally, please read down to the end to get the deets on the 33 Artists show at the Hive-my one show for October and the second to last show I’m doing this year. It’s on the 26th. Hope to see you there!

A Tithonia (Mexican Sunflower), grown in my garden and painted BIG (17” x 17”-ish)

A pumpkin field painted at Siemer’s Farm up at Green Bluff a few years back on a beautiful autumnal evening.

A painting inspired by a drive home in early November where a rain/hailstorm lifted right about sunset and I saw this out my window and I immediately pulled over!

Oh and for those of you who read to the bottom-I’ll be at this show on the 26th at the Hive (a super cool library building on Sprague) and I’d love to see you!

Little Spokane River Show Saturday!

Hi Everyone!

I’ve been quiet here lately because I’ve been wildly busy. My husband and I bought a new house and are in the process of simultaneously settling in and trying to get our old house on the market. To everyone who has done this before-you have my sincere admiration. This has been incredibly hard work! We’re starting to make good progress and I’m so excited about the new place. It is beautiful with a year round stream and great views. I can’t wait to paint here!

In other news-my favorite show of the year-the Little Spokane River Artist Studio Tour is happening this Saturday and I am super excited! I’m at Collista’s studio, as usual-that’s the furthest north studio, on Panorama. There’s plenty of parking and the garden is always beautiful thanks to her husband’s green thumb. I will have a bunch of small unframed originals at a range of prices and I hope you’ll find something that needs to come home with you! See you there!

This is a demo from an urban sketching class at the Northwest Museum of Art and Culture. I loved the half moon deck arch and the two porthole windows below.

Back in August we made a quick trip up to rural Canada for a family reunion/funeral and, as always, I brought my sketchbook.

This is the view from up on the porch on the house seen in the above image. A lot of time was spent sitting here, drinking coffee and talking to people.

The farm is very near Lake Mara, which is a gorgeous lake with fabulous views. One evening, a group of us made a quick trip over there to wade.

The sunset that night was gorgeous! I raced to capture the light before it went. As a result, the people on the shore are blurred (my paint was not drying as fast as I needed it too and the temperatures had cooled to boot), but I really like the feeling of light and it brings back the memory of that night which is always the point of my sketchbooks!

Summer Sketching!

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Hi Guys!

I hope all of you have been bearing up under this crazy heat! I’ve been busy sketching all over the place-doing my best to stay out of the mid-day sun. Challenging, but worth it. I’m going to crack open my sketchbook below to show you what I’ve been up to, but FIRST!

A Conspiracy of Artists! I’m one of over 12 artists being hosted at the Jacklin Art Center. We’re having an opening this Saturday and there will be snacks, wine and AIR CONDITIONING! I hope to see you there.

Ok-back to the sketchbooks!

At the end of June I drove down to Boise for a family wedding. It was 8:00 pm when I sketched this and almost 90 degrees. Phew! The wedding took place at a venue that was decorated “historic western” and I really enjoyed this windmill.

Sketching in the Joel E Ferris Perennial Garden at Manito in the morning before it got too hot! This is a class demo and was a lot of fun!

For the 4th of July, I made my annual pilgrimage to my aunt and uncle’s place up at Priest Lake. I’ve been coming here my whole life and that era may be coming to a close which makes these sketches all the more precious.

The lake house, looking back from the dock.

I recently scooted all the way over to Edmonds to participate in Sketcherfest-the USA’s first International Sketchbook Festival. I went last year but didn’t manage to secure a spot in a workshop (They sold out SO FAST). This year I was lucky to to take “Sketching the Whole Story” taught by Genine Carvalheira with a friend.

The learning goals for the this class are to arrange a variety of elements on the page to tell a story/create a timeline, leave white space (a big challenge for me!), and incorporate text.

I always have to remind myself when I take a class that I’m not here to make a good painting. I’m here to learn a new thing and in the process of trying something new, I’m going to make a mess. It’s a tough reminder but good for me as a teacher to be back in the student seat!

Little snippets. Not a good composition, but filled with delightful memories of the weekend!

Hoping you all are staying cool and having a fabulous summer!

London Part 3 + Summer Classes

This is the last of my posts about my trip to London! It’s been really fun re-living the trip with you guys!

This is a Thai restaurant where we had lunch toward the end of the trip.

I “collected” people on the Tube. I drew in the seat structures first and then I waited to see who sat down in front of me. This drawing was created over about 3 rides on the Tube and it was very fun-so many interesting characters! Almost everyone is on their phone and that goodness because that keeps them from spotting me (most of the time) even though I am just 3 or 4 feet from them!

The left side of the page here are a couple quick sketches from when we were at Kew Gardens-a giant Cyprus tree and a dragon guardian on their pagoda. On the right was the tableware at the Delaunay-an absolutely fabulous restaurant across from the theater where we saw “Tina Turner: The Musical”.

The stage curtain had Tina’s eyes (and hair) screen printed onto it. Very graphic and an interesting contrast with the green and gold baroque theater.

Mom sent over this photo she took from the 2nd floor of our flat of me sketching the Michelin Building. Can you see me?

I’m across the street from the frontage of the building on the steps under the red awning!

Here’s how one of those sketches came out!

I brought home Tunnock’s Tea cakes for my husband. Milk chocolate with marshmallow inside, they are too sweet for me!

Made it safely home! This is the view from my studio. Everything had grown in the 12 days I’d been gone-including the weeds and grass all over our gravel driveway. Still, it was good to be home and back in my studio. Hope all of you had a fabulous 4th of July!

London Pt 2 + June Shows!

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Hello everyone!

I had a great time at Manito Art Festival and it was so lovely to see all of you!

Before I get back to my London trip-here’s two cool shows here in town that include a painting of mine. First the 2nd Inland Northwest Juried Landscape Art Exhibition at the Jundt Art Gallery which runs until mid July.

“Jack Rabbit At Maryhill” is hanging in the glass fronted entryway of the Jundt Museum-last on the left side.

“Boating Bounty” is at the Spokane Art School for their Faculty and Student Show which runs until the 28th!

Our one jaunt out of London proper on this trip was a driving tour of the Cotswolds-a very picturesque section of countryside. The above sketch was done sitting in the large van we traveled in, just working in my lap.

We visited multiple towns, but never had more than 1.5 hours in each one so I did small sketches of elements that I thought were characteristic-rivers with swans, wisteria vines on honey colored limestone buildings, and fields edged with hedges and stone fences. The stone wall were dry stacked and had an interesting “cock & hen cap” meant to keep chickens from escaping.

I loved all the Queen Anne’s Lace blooming along the roads and among the stone fences. We got to the van about 10 minutes early so I managed to get this drawn out and then painted it later. A theme on this trip-getting things down in pencil and then running out of time and having to paint them later back at the flat (thank goodness they provided two tables!).

The GIANT Natural History Museum was in walking distance of our flat along with the Victoria and Albert. I did this drawing while sitting on the steps of row houses on the opposite side of the street.

St. Paul’s Cathedral Dome, sketched from a plaza after we stopped for lunch from nearby food carts.

A nearby church and one of the interior apses in St. Paul’s Cathedral. At the bottom is a person playing an organ with a black iron gate behind it and glass mosaics of Jesus on the cross. This was drawn, but not painted in the church.

This pub had interesting little private booth nooks with gorgeous stain glass which was a nice change from the usual endless wood paneling of traditional British pubs.

These drawings were both sketched while standing up, waiting in line-first to go for a ride on the Uber Boat (we went right under the Tower Bridge) and below-small elements from the incredibly elaborate front of Westminster Abbey.

I had a lot of fun wandering the local grocery stores (Sainsbury mostly) and looking for unique items. My friend Devin suggested this a Tunnock’s Tea Cakes are apparently what get put on your pillow if you stay in a hotel in Scotland. Milk chocolates with marshmallow insides-far too sweet for me, but I brought them home to my husband who promptly ate them all.

Part three of the London trip to come!

See me at the Perry Farmer's Market!

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Hi guys!

Since I designed the poster for the Perry Street Farmer’s Market, I’ve been invited to have my work at the market this Thursday (tomorrow). I’ll be there 3-7. I’d love to see you!


Keep your eyes peeled. I’ll be sending an email update about my trip to London and all the sketching I did there soon!

Love,

Megan

Oregon Coast Painting Adventures

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I recently returned from a trip to one of my favorite places on earth-the Oregon Coast! This particular visit started in a town that I have been visiting for longer than I can remember-Gearhart.

Tillamook Head, hazy in the brilliant light on the beach.

We stayed at a house that was a short walk to the beach.This walk, through tall tawny grasses towards the embankment behind which the ocean awaits, never fails to make my heart ring like a bell with the many memories of the times I’ve walked here and all the people I’ve loved who have been here with me over the years.

After the long drive across the state of Washington, down, the Gorge, through Portland to Gearhart, it is such a relief to be out of the car with the sand between my toes, looking over the wide expanse of the sea, my eyes traveling for miles and the wind in my hair. Upon arriving at the coast, it is essential to go and greet the sea as soon as possible! Don’t you agree?

The dune embankment at the beach, hiding all but the highest houses from view when you are on the beach. I like to watch the clouds drift by, absent any distraction.

The house we stayed in was in walking distance of the beach but had no ocean view unless you count this sliver of beach, seen from the “tower room”. Along with the big sky and sliver of water, I also enjoyed the expanse of silvery roofs and siding-nothing weathers wood like living along the sea!

After spending four days with friends in Gearhart, I took off south with a companion-stopping at every viewpoint between Cannon Beach and Rockaway Bay as instructed my my aunt. We had ice cream and cheese samples at the Tillamook Factory (my first time visiting!) and then continued down to Depoe Bay (home of the world’s smallest harbor!) to stay. The following day we made the jaunt down to Yaquina Head Lighthouse-utterly charming and right near “Cobblestone Beach” which is covered in polished basalt rocks that clack in the waves. We arrived when the tide was out, revealing amazing tide pools and seals lounging on rocks in the distance. Yaquina Head is the furthest south I’ve ever made it on the coast and it was really fun to see so many towns and beautiful beaches that I’d never visited before.

Take a Class with Me!

Loosen Up Your Painting

May 18th 1-5 pm

Feeling like your paintings are stiff or too tight? Want to embrace the flow of watercolor paint and loosen up? This is the class for you! Megan will demonstrate how to make your paintings full of energy and freshness, giving you quick and easy exercises to uncramp your style!

Sign up here!

Color Class & 33 Artists

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Hi guys!

Just popping in quick to let you know about two things I’m up to this month.

There’s still some spaces available in my two session class about color with the Spokane Art School if you’d like to come paint with me and my first market of the year is on the 23rd at the Wonder Building if you’d like to come do some shopping. I’ll have prints of many of the paintings that I had on display at my Terrain Group Show-Listening for an Echo for the first time!

Running errands around town yesterday, I ran into construction on 4 streets, all in different neighborhoods-so I guess it’s spring!

Color Beyond the Color Wheel-Spokane Art School

For students 14 years old and up

$48

Wednesdays, March 20 & 27, 2024

6 – 8 p.m.

Learn practical color theory-how do you mix colors to warm, cool, dull or brighten your painting? Learn about working your way around the color wheel to make color decisions as well as how to pick a unified color scheme and modify it intuitively on the fly.

This is one of the references we’ll be painting from for the color class!

Art Here, There & Everywhere

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I’ve been cozied up in my studio for all of February, staying warm and dry and painting away. This time of year is quieter for me and I relish the chance to catch up on inspiration from past years’s adventures. Below are a selection of paintings inspired by trip to the west side of the state (where I grew up).

A few years back a friend and I hiked Naches Trail on Mt. Rainier during the wildflower season and it blew our minds. The day started out misty and ominous but ended with gorgeous blue skies. The wildflowers were incredible!

When I visited the tulip fields up in Skagit a few years back with my parents, it was an absolutely frigid day with lots of wind, but the gorgeous color of the tulips made it worth it. That and going to get soup in a bread bowl in La Conner afterward!

Ferries are a big part of life on the Puget Sound. My parents’s house has a view of the Sound and my childhood is full of memories of seeing the moon shine above the dark water as ferries and cargo containers sail by.

Incredible sunsets are another memory of childhood. Someday I’d like to live on the water.

I’ve got paintings hanging in galleries all over the place currently. This painting is up at Trail’s End Gallery in Chewelah for a couple more weeks.

“Boating Bounty” will be up with a bevy of glorious art at Barrister Winery for the month of March. The opening is today for First Friday! Stop by and check it out. Barrister on a First Friday is always a great time.

“Heaven’s Icy Splendor” went on a long drive with me to Twisp, WA to the Confluence Gallery where it will be until mid-April. The show info is below and looks amazing! Have any of you been to Twisp? It’s a cute town and the whole Methow Valley is beautiful.

I'm on PBS's NW Profiles!

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Hi Everyone!

I’m just popping in to say that you can catch my NW Profiles feature on PBS this Thursday (the 25th) at 7 pm and again on the following Sunday at 3 pm. If you miss it, you can always go to the NW Profiles section of the PBS website because they’ll post the episode there after it goes live.

Watching the KSPS crew calibrate their very fancy cameras in my studio before filming.

Here’s a little snippet of the “B-Roll” (fancy filming terms-so fun!) from filming with the crew. We filmed in my studio and at two different locations in Spokane. I can hardly believe that it took SIX HOURS of filming to get my full NW Profiles feature completed. The film crew certainly works hard!

Megan Perkins B Roll Film1 PBS NW Profiles

In other news, my group show “Listening for the Echo” is still open until the 27th, so if you haven’t made your way down there you still have a chance They are open Thursday-Saturday, 4-7 pm and it is the Terrain Gallery on Monroe next to Birdie’s Pie Shop!

And in February I’ll have two pieces up at the Trail’s End Gallery in Chewelah, a first for me! I’ll be up there for First Thursday.

See you around friends!

Merry Christmas!

This season as you travel in darkness, literal or metaphorical, may luminous skies dance above you, kindling wonder at this numinous world. May there be starlight singing in the night, moonshine dancing on the snow, and sleigh bells ringing in the sky guiding you safely all the way home.

Making light in the darkness & wishing you the same,

Megan

Off the WaitList, Into BRRRZAAR!

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Yes! Terrain decided to expand Brrrzaar to an extra room at River Park Square so I am off the waitlist and going to be at Brrzaar 10-8 THIS SATURDAY! Here’s the trick though-I and about 10 other artists are all going to be tucked away in the Kress Gallery. That name may sound familiar and that’s because it is the room just past the food court next to the bathroom on the 3rd floor so we’re definitely a bit out of the way. Still, I’m staying positive-people always need to use the bathroom so there should be steady traffic! This will be my last holiday show (FOR REAL this time!) of the year so if you’re looking to get puzzles, prints, calendars or art directly from me, now is the time! See you Saturday!

I’ve also been busy working on paintings for my group show “Listening for an Echo” at the Terrain Gallery-the theme is farming and rural subjects. Above is a just finished barn interior. Below is a study of a neighbor’s corral at sunset.

Put Friday, January 5th at the Terrain Gallery on your calendar to come see this show-there will be two painters (myself and Karen Mobley) and two photographers who I have only recently met: Abigail Evans and Pam Deutschman. I can’t wait to see what the other women have made!

Thankful For You!

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Thank you to all of you on the other end of this email, cheering me on! You mean so much to me-it is still so amazing that so many people like my work and I’ve met so many wonderful people on this art journey that I am glad to have in my life so thank you!

Wishing you and yours all the best this holiday season!

Happy Turkey Day!