Art Immersion / Workshop

Do you wish you painted better? Are you looking to hone your skills as an artist?

How about an Art Immersion!

What is that specifically? 

It is plunging yourself fully into a week of art. It's more than a workshop. It's a personalized educational experience. An educational experience that is designed uniquely for you and addresses your own art improvement needs.

Where are you in your art journey? Are you a beginner? Have you been painting for awhile, selling, but still strive to improve your work? Are you blocked? Do you feel like you keep working at it, but nothing's really changing? Nothing is improving? Are you an advanced painter who desires a week away, to a new environment, that offers instructional benefits? If so, this Art Immersion is for you!

What would an Art Immersion look like?

Consider spending a week living with an artist. Conversations evolve around art all day long. You paint all week as though you were on a painting vacation. A painting vacation that includes instructions to help you through whatever is blocking you from achieving the results you desire.

If you don't know me yet, I'm Susan Roux. I own the largest art gallery in Portland Maine (3000 sq. ft.). I teach 5 classes a week at the gallery, from raw beginners to advanced students. I've been teaching for over 20 years and still love helping people improve their skills. I have a great eye. I can help you see what your work is missing. Together let's change your work to the "wow" you desire!

This is what the Art Immersion package at Roux & Cyr International Fine Art Gallery looks like.

It's Monday. You arrive in Portland, ME where I will meet you and take you to my home in Poland Spring. You will have a private room for the week and share my home including use of my kitchen. Tuesday through Saturday we travel to the gallery during my usual work hours. Once there you will set yourself up and begin painting. You have the option to set up in the studio space or at the front windows of the gallery. I am available to discuss your art, your desires towards your art and be your personal teacher and advisor for the week.

I will also be doing my usual gallery duties, so learning how the in's and out's of the gallery world works is available information to you. You catch it all. Where art is created, displayed and sold. You will be there during my 5 weekly classes, with the option to share our studio space or paint separately at the front window. You may choose to try both.

My hours are long. The gallery is located in the center of Portland, which is a lovely walking city known for it's amazing food. Since this is a unique educational experience designed specifically for you, you choose how that experience develops. Maybe you want to do some plein air painting? Maybe you want to take in a photo shoot? Maybe you want to take the ferry to the islands in Casco Bay. Maybe you want to enjoy some quiet time on the rooftop patio overlooking the city and ocean? Whatever works to inspire you during this immersion is acceptable. You get to design what your experience will be like.

You leave on Sunday. I'll take you to the Portland airport or bus/train station. You can choose to fly out on Saturday evening if you'd prefer. I am available to bring you to the airport after 5:00.

A little about your host... Susan Roux

You need to know I have a humorous personality. I'm smart and serious when need be but have no problems being silly and funny. I'm very comfortable hosting people and you will be made to feel at home right from the start. My gallery is warm, inviting and uplifting. It is a welcoming environment to work in, not one that is unapproachable. My students love me and I love them too. You will enter into that part of my life. Be prepared to learn and laugh. I laugh a lot at the gallery.

Drinking wine is acceptable, sometimes encouraged, as I find it helps many students relax enough to tap into their creative side. For some it helps them find courage to try something new, something scary, something that's holding them back.

I am neat and clean, but not to a fault.

Daily hours includes traveling time:
(leaving and arriving from and to my Poland Spring home)

Tuesday: 9:30-9:30
Wednesday: 9:30-9:30
Thursday: 9:30-9:30
Friday: 9:30-6:00
Saturday: 9:30-6:00

Cost for one week Art Immersion: $1000

This includes room, use of home kitchen, art education, travel pick up and delivery in Portland, ME.

Please call to make arrangements. 207-576-7787 As part of the uniqueness of this program, you can select a week that suits your schedule.

Let's get you Immersed In Art!

Deadline for Submissions - Saturday!!!

Call to Artists deadline for submission is fast approaching. 

Click here to enter the juried exhibition to be held in Portland Maine at 

Roux & Cyr International Fine Art Gallery. 

Best of luck!

It's been a full week here at the gallery. Stas Borodin, our Russian artist, has been visiting for the past two weeks. He's been busy painting plein air every day. It's the only way he paints. We opened his exhibition on Friday. It was very well attended. The gallery was packed all night!

Borodin travels all over the world painting, much like olden day artists such as Monet and the other Impressionist who found families to host them while they painted distant landscapes. From China to Israel to France, Cuba, Germany and the United States, he paints and exhibits everywhere he goes. He lives the true life of a traveling artist. And rest assured he has stories to boot! He has been staying in my guest room while painting Maine. Luckily the weather has been favorable, at least until now.

He leaves for Rhode Island on Friday, but only after he completes a portrait of a darling little two year old named Abby. He plans to sit her in front of a movie so she can be still for a duration. It should be an interesting undertaking. You know how energetic two year old's can be..! I wish I could be present, but I will be at the gallery teaching during that time.

I want to wish Stas Borodin safe travels and hope he returns again next year.

Happy painting everyone! Don't forget to enter the juried show. It will be our October exhibition!

Call to Artists

I know I've been away from Blogger for a long time, but with good reason... As some of you may remember, I opened an art gallery in Portland, ME in 2014. This endeavor is going very well and I'm finally finding a bit of time to resume blogging. I want to say, I'm thrilled to be back!

I'd love to tell you all about the gallery and the exciting things we are doing, but there is a special opportunity that I want to share with you right away.

We are hosting our first Juried Exhibition! 

The deadline for submission is coming right up on September 9.

 I wanted to inform you before it was too late. 

It's very simple. I want to help as many people as possible, especially artists. Artists like you! 

Call to Artists

Passionate Color

I don't want to get into all the details here, so a simple click on the above link will put you in the right place for that! 

Here are a few basics:

• Deadline for submission is Sept 9
• Juried process is done by images only, no need to ship art at this time
• Size restriction: 12x16" or smaller
• Paintings in some form of realistic interpretation
• Cost is $25 for 3 images

I really hope you'll consider applying. Roux & Cyr International Fine Art Gallery is hoping to make this a yearly event. With your help and the success of this juried exhibition, we can make it happen.

Best of luck and I look forward to hanging your lovely paintings in my gallery!

Color Workshop

Whoops!

Original oil painting  20x16"

by Susan Roux

Are you ready to use color freely? Would you like to be confident enough to use color freely? Are you caught in a cycle where you paint mostly with local color? Let's change that.

Sign up for a color workshop now!

October 13, 14 and 15

Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday

9:30-4:30

$200

Roux & Cyr International Fine Art Gallery

48 Free Street

Portland, Maine

207-576-7787

Join in the fun as we explore color and arm you with the tools necessary to use color creatively. Color is emotion in a painting and you can learn to manipulate the emotion your paintings emit. Don't be satisfied by just capturing the essence of your subject, learn to be in control of how your painting "feels". 

Take a look in the shadows of her dress. So much excitement and interest can be captured with the creative use of color. Be in control of color harmony in your paintings. 

Play with color. Let it explode on canvas while still capturing your forms. You'll have so much fun letting your brush dip into all those pretty colors on your palette. Aren't you ready for a color party? Aren't your paintings ready for a color party?

Sign up now. Limited space available. Contact me soon before it's all booked up!

Website

Sea Angel  

Original oil painting  24x18"

by Susan Roux

Things here are very exciting as the opening of Roux & Cyr International Fine Art Gallery nears. We have a wonderful body of 25 artists, representing 6 countries. You can see them all on our website. Come view the beautiful work that will be adorning our gallery walls!

Our Grand Opening is: 

Memorial Day Weekend

 Saturday, May 24, 2014 

You are all invited to attend. If you can't make it but find yourself in Portland Maine at some point, please stop in! We are at 48 Free Street, across the street from the Civic Center in the Arts District. I'd be very happy to show you around!

We will not be a typical art gallery. We have a lot going on and are working to be community friendly and an inviting place for people to come see art, talk about art, learn about art, create art and last but not least buy art! I'll be busy in our back studio continuing to teach weekly courses to beginners and intermediates. We will also be offering workshops from our very talented artists, so keep an eye out for anyone you'd like to learn from. You can also contact me with a request and I'll urge that artist to set up a workshop. Our first scheduled workshop is a 2-day workshop by artist Sandra Leinonen Dunn on August 7-8, 2014. It is at a very reasonable cost of $200. Please contact me if you'd like to attend. 

Bean Pot and Green Apple

Original oil painting  16x20"

by Sandra Leinonen Dunn

The best way to keep up with this schedule is through our Facebook page. Please come like us here. Don't forget to share us as well! It's the best place to keep up with our latest news, rotating monthly exhibits, any events and openings. You can also let me know if you'd like to be on our mailing list by emailing me. Unfortunately as you already know, my blogging time has been severely cut since I began planning this gallery a full year ago. It's no longer the most efficient way to keep up with our news.

I must admit that I miss coming here and interacting with all of you. I also miss seeing all your great art. It's so inspiring to see how committed you are and how often you post. It helped motivate me as well. 

So what happens to an artist when they decide to open a large art gallery?

Every emotion you can think of! I'm busy beyond comprehension, but doing all the work with love and passion. It's been amazing to start with a vision and step by step move it forward until eventually all the parts fall into place. Watching it all turn into reality... Paintings are beginning to pour into my home and that like none other, is making it all feel so real. The day we enter our space and begin to build wall partitions will be huge as well. 

Thank you for stopping by and do leave a comment so I'll know you came. Don't forget to like us on Facebook and email me if you'd like to join our gallery mailing list. Have a good day!

Uniting the World Through Art

Vessels

Original oil painting  18x24"

by Susan Roux

It's a very exciting time as my business partner Paul and I prepare to open a Fine Art Gallery in Portland, Maine. This past Monday we signed our lease for a nearly 3000 sq. ft. space at 48 Free Street, located in the Art's District. It's been a long road acquiring this space. Suffice it to say, many long hours have poured into our grand project!

Roux & Cyr International Fine Art Gallery 

will have their grand opening on Memorial Day Weekend 2014. 

Everyone is invited to come join us for this momentous occasion. The gallery will be Uniting the World Through Art. We are representing 25 artists from five different countries and hope to grow those numbers within our first year. We are showing mid-range to high-end representational paintings in both traditional and impressionistic styles. The collective we have gathered together should be a stunning exhibition. I can't wait to see all our great artists' work together in one place. Our place!

It's been a busy stretch with some tasks being fun while others, daunting. Some of the fun things have been purchasing antiques, hand crocheted doilies and fine china cups and saucers. I've been busy working on wood finishes and reupholstering chairs in coordinating fabrics. Our color scheme is burgundy and gold. As each piece comes to completion, the look emerging is rich and classy. 

One of my favorite aspects of the gallery is a large teaching room in the rear. It allows me to continue to teach my weekly classes. I hope to reach out to more people, going from my rural location to the center of the city. The gallery will also offer amazing workshops from our represented artists. So prepare yourselves for announcements here with regards to that. Where else can you get international workshops without leaving the country? Our high-end artists are eager to come share their talents and secrets with you.

I know I've been very absent from this blog, but I hope to be posting on a more regular basis. I'll have lots of information to share with you as well as introduce you to our roster of high achieving artists.

Thank you for stopping by and please take a moment to say hi and let me know you were here. Have a great creative day!

Color Workshop

Burning Through the Fog

Original oil painting  24x36"

by Susan Roux

This is for all of you spontaneous artists out there.

I was approached by an out-of-state artist who requested I teach a workshop at the end of this month. I've decided to honor her request. Most slots filled quickly by my current students, but there remains a few slots open. It will be an intimate/friendly workshop, held in Poland, Maine. Bring your oil paints and your sense of humor!

The focus is on color. Understanding color and using it creatively to aid in capturing your emotional response to your subject. I won't try to change your painting style, just arm you with new color-usage tools. Capture form while using color creatively. We will work with a series of exercises, a painting demo and time for artists to practice what they've learned while I assist everyone with helpful instructions. My students who took this workshop last year improved in leaps and bounds. It was so visible to all those students who hadn't participated that those who had were approaching painting with a new found fearlessness to color that translated into beautiful work. I'm positive I can help you move forward in your own artistic journey. What do you have to loose?

Dates: August 26, 27, 28. Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday.

Time: 9-4

Location: Poland, Maine

Bargain price: $100. for 3 days

Contact me if you're spontaneous and interested.