Dear readers,

I never know how these gremlins get hold of my April issue and make mischief with it...something to do with April Fools' Day, I guess. However, I like the sentiment expressed by "the most interesting man in the world" in the last issue.

In this issue:

Newsbytes and calendar
Tidbits
National Museum of Wildlife Art "Wild 100"
Showing in London
Readers Respond

* Does this email look wonky? See the issue online.

Newsbytes / calendar -- WORKSHOPS IN 2014 and 2015 -- I have retitled my workshops to "The Art of Seeing Animals" - a better description of our focus in these events. KALISPELL, MT (Triple D Game Farm) - Sept. 26-29, 2014. This workshop is now FULL and there is a waitlist. WIMBERLEY, TX (Creekhaven Inn) - Feb. 2-5, 2015. An intensive experience in the beautiful comfort of Creekhaven Inn in Wimberley, an hour outside of Austin in the lovely Texas hill country. Call Bill Appleman at 800-827-1913 or visit the workshop website. WHITEFISH, MT - June 29, Summer Art Social: I am absolutely delighted to be invited back to this event for a third year! This year the event will include a silent (wall) auction and a live auction of a finished piece, accompanied by a small study painted during the event. My silent auction scratchboard, "Cool", is shown right. CALGARY, ALBERTA - July 10, Stampede Art Auction: I have a painting in the auction (see right) and I will be having a small show hosted by Daren M., the collector profiled in my April Artzine. Watch the June Artzine for more details! CHEYENNE, WY- July 17, Cheyenne Frontier Days Western Art Show: I'm participating again this year; more details and images in the June Artzine. In this issue National Museum of Wildlife Art's "Wild 100" Showing in London	Cool 16 x 20 scratchboard To be auctioned at the Whitefish Summer Art Social Those of you who have been reading these Artzines for some years may recall the "drippy bear" oils with which I had so much fun. I wanted to try the same subject matter in scratchboard, with the challenge of creating a sense of wet fur and water sheeting off the bear. Freedom 24 x 24 oil on gallery-wrap canvas This painting will be auctioned at the Calgary Stampede Western Art Auction on July 10. This is one of those pieces I would happily have kept!

Tidbits - on achievement "An achievement is a bondage. It obliges one to a higher achievement." - Albert Camus "Any artistic achievement that is tailored to conform to social demands rather than to the real, uninhibited feelings of its creator, is destined not to reach the heights of achievement, or even fail. It is only when an artist is dis-inhibited that he or she can reach the heights of artistic achievement." - Semir Zeki "Give yourself room to fail and fight like hell to achieve." - Irwin Greenberg "You are not here merely to make a living. You are here in order to enable the world to live more amply, with greater vision, with a finer spirit of hope and achievement." - Woodrow Wilson

The "Wild 100" at the National Museum of Wildlife Art The NMWA has anchored the Fall Arts Festival in Jackson Hole each September with its Western Visions "Miniatures & More" show. I'm extremely proud to say that I've been part of this show for a decade now; Western Visions is an international show that includes the best of wildlife artists working today. This year, the Museum has decided to redefine the show and trim the number of artists substantially, to just 100. I am THRILLED to be one of those artists! Each artist will be submitting a sketch, a medium-sized work, and a larger work to the show. "Tenderness", my wolf scratchboard (see right) will be one of those pieces. In the meantime, you can read the Museum's press release on the new focus of the show here. The westernvisions.org website lists events and participating artists. I hope to see you there!	Tenderness 24 x 18 scratchboard

Showing in London! I am deeply delighted to be showing a body of African scratchboards with Holland & Holland in London, at their showroom just off Bond Street (thank you Mr. G. for arranging the exhibit!!), and I wanted to share some of those images here. For purchase information, please contact H&H at +44 (0)207 4994411, or gunroomuk@hollandandholland.com.
"Springbok Fragments", 16 x 12 scratchboard During our visit to South Africa several years ago, we had the good fortune to spend time on a private game ranch in Cape Colony, down in the southern part of the country. The ranch reminded me of America's Great Basin desert country - beautiful, rugged, and dry - and I was smitten with the springbok there. They seem to fill a similar ecological niche as American pronghorn; they're strikingly marked, small, and fast, and they're named for their habit of "springing" (leaping high in the air) when startled. This gorgeous buck made a lovely subject for scratchboard, and I enjoyed watching him emerge from the board.
"Uncertain", 14 x 18 scratchboard I've said it before: zebras and scratchboard go together like gin and tonic (both being favorites of mine). This Kruger Park resident stopped in a dirt road to look at us, obviously a bit uncertain about our intentions; he finally ended up cantering off nervously (and that will probably be a future scratchboard subject!). The sunshine and sheen on his black stripes were perfect to pick out his form.
"Shujaa", 18 x 18 scratchboard OK, I showed this in last month's Artzine...but this piece needed to be shared with you at a larger size, so forgive me the self-indulgence. As I noted last month, "shujaa" is Swahili for 'warrior' - a description that seemed very apropos given the intricate tracery of scars this boy is wearing (note the torn nose). However, he was clearly genetically successful - he was consorting with a female who was obviously receptive, as we watched them mate, then sprawl on the tarmac and block traffic in both lanes of a Kruger Park road.

READERS RESPOND - footnotes to the April Artzine: "I enjoyed reading Daren's interview. A whirl of inspiration. I love that while he is inspired by the art, he's already thought through that someday he will be remembered by it." -- what a wonderful note; thank you, Wendy McG.! "Collecting art does two things, firstly it enhances the collectors environment and secondly, and I believe more importantly, the investment nurtures the development and evolution of the artist's work; the financial support allows them to take risks and evolve. Without that support the artist could not achieve their full potential." -- Thank you for the thoughtful note, Simon G.! "I love this month's Artzine! 'Shujaa' is absolutely stunning! Thank you for sharing your painting process and the interview. You never cease to inspire!!" -- Lynne B., thank you for this lovely note!

That's it for May. I hope you have enjoyed this newsletter (and thank you to the many readers who respond after each Artzine, thus giving me good material for the "Footnotes" section :-) - if so, I encourage you to share it with anyone and everyone. I appreciate your help in building a bigger audience for my work!

Warmest regards,
Julie T. Chapman

Painting Today’s Wild West (and Africa!) with Contemporary Flair
(406) 546-2636
20900 Whitetail Ridge Road * Huson, MT 59846
Artsite: www.JulieTChapman.com
Find me on Facebook: www.facebook.com/JulieTChapmanArtist