2024

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 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!