Mission Address

This is an automated post.

To write to me use this address:

Sister Erika Michele Baird
Uruguay Montevideo Mission
POB 30150
Salt Lake City, UT 84130-0150

Attn: This is 'Pouch Mail' service. That means envelopes are not allowed. Postcards are great (Be sure to put your return address somewhere so I can write back!) as well as single sheet letters: you write a letter on one sheet of paper, fold it into thirds to it's the size of an envelope. Tape the top shut, and put the stamps on the other side, along with the addresses as usual. The sides should be open, so if you want, yes, you can look inside and see what you've written. This is, as I understand it, part of my church's pouch mail policy with the Uruguasian government. It allows you to get letters to me without paying international shipping.

For letters in envelope or anyone crazy enough to want to mail a package to South America:

Sister Erika Michele Baird
Uruguay Montevideo Mission
Horacio Quiroga 6350
Carrasco
11500 Montevideo
Uruguay

Please know my ability to respond will be intermittent at best and nonexistent at the most likely, I would love to hear from anyone though, and if you send me something I will respond if at all possible as soon as I get a chance to.

Updates will be posted at my family's blog for those interested.

See you later!

Going on a Mission!

I don't think I've posted this here yet, and I guess it's better late than never.

I won't have computer access until early 2010, but if anyone really feels like writing, my Training Center address is:

Sister Erika Michele Baird
Uruguay Montevideo Mission
Provo Missionary Training Center
P.O. Box _________
2005 N. 900 E.
Provo, UT 84604

You need to fill in the PO Box found in the comments below.
(The reason for this is, I haven't left yet, so I don't know what it is. My family is going to come back and leave a comment with it.)
Departure date will also be specified in comments.

If you send a letter I'll reply if at all possible, forgive me in advance though, my ability to reply will probably be sporadic at best. Make sure your return address is on it though ;)

I'll be in the training center for approximately three months (until September) though it may be a little less. I have a post schduled with my Uruguay address that will post here in late august with an updated address.

Other updates, for those interested, will probably be found at my family's blog.

Utah Foster Care Annual Chalk Art Festival

My high school used to host chalk art competitions every year, which I never did very well in until senior year, when me and my partner Lin Zhang won first. It was the first time I'd ever won anything for drawing, and it kind of took me off guard (In a pleasant way of course) After that festival I heard of the Foster Care one, then in either is first or second year. My mom and I have made a tradition of participating in it since '05 and it's steadily grown in popularity. This year there were twice as many artists than our first! We've done both reproductions and original art, and this year we decided to do 'Reverie' by Alhphonse Mucha.

The competition allows twenty four hours to finish, then judging takes place. We got there at about five or six on friday night right after I got off work and put in about three hours, then came back saturday morning and went until four. Since the image was so complex, we started in the middle and worked out.

Working in the middle of the road gives you 'Zoo Syndrome.' I think we partially go just to laugh at what people will say right next to you and think you're not listening. The usual comments are along the lines of 'Don't step on that honey!' 'hey look, they're drawing a lady.' or, 'don't they know that cars ae going to drive all over that?'

My favorite comment this year though was this guy, who, my mom was smart enough to sneak a picture of. He walked up, squatted down (which was rare) and sarted talking to us. He had a thick accent from somewhere back east (I'd say New York, but what do I know) mixed with spanish or portuguese 'Hey man, nice drawing! Except, look, her lips are all like, you know' he makes a kissy face like someone spoiled and then says, 'it makes her look like a Utahn.' I didn't laugh right then, but as soon as he was a block or so down the street my mom and I couldn't help it and just started lauging. I hope all Utahn's lips don't look like that, or I'm in trouble.

Progress on Saurday morning. The weather was in the high 90's, but we've had worse. Hot is okay. Wind is dismal. Thankfully no wind this year, just sunburns. We use rubber gloves to grind the chalk into the pavement, it takes three or four layers rubbed into get an even coat, then you can start blending colors together. Each artist is given a box of Koss pastels to work with, as much water as they can drink, a t-shirt, and lunch. There's also a fountain, which our square was right next to this year, so when we got hot we could go run through it. (We were both hideously dirty anyway, and after a while you stop caring what you look like.)

This shot shows the color we had best, unfortunately when we took pictures of the finished one with our camera it was so bright they all turned out blown out, so we waited for shade.

Finished!

Robin Study

Anyway, yeah, it's sad to find robins who get hit by cars. But the artist in me also can't resist. Animal rights people: it was already dead. And burying things in dirt actually isn't that flattering once you get past the cultural expectancy of it.

Micron and limited pallette watercolor, with some white gouache (cue purist flaming). About two hours, overall. 8.5 x 11And, as gross as it is, I'm trying to dry it so I can do more wing studies. My sisters think I'm gross. You probably do too.

River Gold

This one was just based on three randomly chosen words from the back of my sketchbook (My roomates and I compiled a list of over 200 unrelated words one night that I chose from occasionally) River, Steam, and Gold.

About 8" x 10" Oil on sealed illustration board. Scanned in a lot darker (and bluer) than it is in person.

Bridle Horse

The subject matter of this one was inspired by a halter in a Gerome painting of Arab Horsemen seen on James Gurney's blog (which I highly recommend). The entry it is from can be found here. Not completely captured, but it's such a beautiful halter I knew I had to draw it, at least in a practice piece. The rest of it was inspired by a broken ballroom company earring I found at work (which happens to be the dance department's costume shop) It was quite large (in the nature of most ballroom dance jewelry) and also quite glittery (also in the nature of ballroom jewelry) It was a Swarovsky crystal which was mostly cool blues and greens, with a good deal of gray if you could manage to not look at the sparkly parts, and every once in a while threw out an awesome orangey-red flare.

As close to what I'd call a 'breakthrough piece' as I think I can bring myself to say. Gouache and I are really starting to hit it off. Especially combined with ink. This is another from Media Experimentation, with the 'experimentation' part being to take an inked drawing, paint thick gouache over it, then wash the paint off. It makes for a very cool stained paper (er, Illustration board, I should say) effect. Some re-inking and opaque paint was added afterward, but it came out surprisingly well after the initial round of paint, so I didn't have to work on it too much. I don't think horses can have that color of eyes, but I thought it was cool. Artistic license. 'Nuff said.

Leopard on Wood

I tend to habitually mistype the word 'leopard' as 'laopard.' Bad habit. Anyway, this was for a class called Media Experimentation, which, oddly enough, is exactly what it sounds like. This particular assignment was to use acrylic on wood. Acrylic and I generally don't get along very well, but I like it on wood well enough: if you make a mistake you can just sand the whole thing off! Hey, that's what the assignment was! Paint it on, and sand it off. It results in some pretty neat textures...and really easy mistake patch ups. I cheated toward the end and got my micron pens in on the deal. I just can't resist line.