New Year, New Priorities

Our family celebrates Christmas. As much as the lead up to and the actual holiday is exciting and fun, I really also enjoy the post-holiday time that leads to the new year.

For me, they are mellow days of quiet, calm and reflection. We’ve had snow here for most of December including another snowfall just a couple nights ago. So part of that reflection is on the coming winter and also the coming year.

Actually, I’ve been reflecting on the coming year and years beyond a good bit over the last few months.

CLASSES, TEACHING AND PAINTING

I'll turn 70 years old in February of 2027. It's a big milestone and one of those that tends to stimulate reflection on one’s life and priorities.

The coming major age milestone makes me want to prioritize time and attention on my own work. There are still things I want to accomplish in watercolor and new subjects I'd like to take on in both watercolor and other media. The additional time for painting has to come from somewhere.

Since I spend much of my non-painting time preparing for and actually teaching online classes, it’s a logical place to find that additional time. I’ve offered many classes since 2020 and my priority has always been ensuring everyone gets as much out of them as possible. It requires time and effort that I’m more than willing to invest.

But, with the my changing priorities, I’ve decided to shift time and effort away from classes in 2027. With that in mind, I’m letting everyone know that I’ve scheduled my last batch of regular online classes for this coming year. The entire 2026 class schedule is online and includes a couple interesting new offerings.

I very much enjoy teaching and will still do so in 2027 and beyond. I expect to continue offering a limited number of in-person workshops, including both overseas and occasional plein air workshops here at home. 

One of the things I enjoy most about teaching is watching everyone build skill and make progress. Beyond 2026, my online teaching will be confined to the Watercolor Mastery program - that some of you are already participating in. It will provide me a way to continue work I enjoy, while greatly reducing the amount of time spent on classes overall.