Private Portrait sample

Here's a sample of the kind of portrait that you can walk away with after a private portrait sitting.
It really is a fantastic experience especially for women.

$75 for a 90 min sitting

email me if you'd like to book -- I have Sunday Feb 6th available if anyone wants a portrait done before Valentine's Day!

the practice of letting go

Life's been a bit challenging for me the past couple of months but I feel so compelled to give right now. However, giving unconditionally seems so hard to me sometimes. Last night I prayed for help in understanding unconditional love.

I woke up hoping to know what to do. It wasn't there. And as I walked to work I was trying so hard to love through the noise of my brain. I was trying so hard to push away the sadness/hurting/chattering/anger and to drag in the love from the universe that I noticed my face was completely tensed up. When I realized this I relaxed my face and BAM - there it was.

You can't think of loving and you definitely can't think of being loved. Love doesn't filter through the brain only the soul. Once I stopped thinking, I could sense it. And then I knew. It's funny to think of practicing letting go. But it is really a skill you must cultivate. Letting go of hurts/judgement/anger leaves the space for love to enter. Letting go of your perception of love leaves the space for all kinds of love to enter. And then the cycle of love can happen as easily and effortlessly as breathing.

I just have to get used to that feeling of space inside of me -- it's uncomfortable for my brain but it's just going to have to get used to it!

image from http://www.wondercafe.ca/

More raving about Private Portraits!

Thanks so much to my friend Dom for this testimonial!

"Like a lot of women, I have long had a love-hate relationship with my body. In recent years, I've become more accepting of who I am as a person and body acceptance, fortunately, has come along proportionately. But (there is always a but) looking at myself in a mirror - seeing my body in a loving and caring way for all it provides me - remained a challenge. Posing nude was, for me, the ultimate act of defiance: defying society's beauty standards, defying the bullies who taunted me as a child and teenager, defying family members who said I could never be happy because of my body. I wanted visual proof of how far I'd come and Renee captured this feeling beautifully and, provided a safe, nurturing environment in which this could happen. Merci Renee!"
- Dominique Chouinard

Ad Adjustments

Some adjustments to the ad that came out in the February Buzz.

Okay - the BUZZ ad is awesome but there are errors - my bad! Yoga is $15 drop in but $97 for the 10 weeks. Kids Build a Robot is on March 5 to accommodate Jack Frost. And Creative Healing is only $30 not $35. Hope that's it! You can always contact me to get the best info.

Private Portraits testimonial - "It was an empowering and loving experience for me."

'Private Portraits' is an opportunity for a person to sit as a model for an artist. Posing is at the model's discretion and on his/her terms. Sketching happens for 90 mins and the sitter retains all the drawings from the session. The session is very private and discreet. It's an amazing experience for both sitter and artist. Read the following testimonial to see the process from the sitter's perspective!

"I had my first private portrait session with fantastic woman last week and this is what she had to say about the experience.

A passionate lover of art,, I have often marveled at how an artist can sit with a model and capture that particular moment in time: the emotion of it, the depth of it. Recently I noticed Renee Laprise of MUSEartspace, was offering to do a nude sketch of folks for an out of the ordinary gift idea and with a great deal of courage, I signed up. Now, for you folks that know me, you might be thinking "Oh Cat! You're always up for an adventure! You love trying new things." And you'd be right in assuming that, but I do have a vulnerable side too and I will be 49 this year and I haven't been a size 3 in quite some time. So it did take courage and trust. I trusted Renee to provide an atmosphere of patience, discretion and honour and sensitivity and she did. It was an empowering and loving experience for me. I would highly recommend it to every woman and man who are on a journey's toward love and self acceptance. And bonus! I LOVE IT! Not a bad looking chick for a gal who's almost 50! *g*Catherine Ann "
Private Portraits bookings (all drawings retained by the sitter)
$75.00 per 90 minute sitting
$125 to have someone else (ie partner) draw alongside the artist (all materials provided)
call Renee for more info 388-2044 or email renee@museartspace.com

The goal of MUSEartspace is ...

The goal of MUSEartspace is ...
... to promote artistic expression and creative healing within the PEI community.

People have said it often ... MUSE feels like a healthy space. And that's exactly what
it was intended to evolve into. In the coming months I will be introducing more and more
programs that will use art to promote health (in mind, body and spirit). Currently I
have one Sunday a month dedicated to Creative Healing.

The first in the Creative Healing Series is: Expressing through Free Painting.
Class will consist of some creativity exercises, some visualizaton exercises,
and then we'll spend some time painting on large sheets of paper.
The last bit of class will be a discussion of the work. This is a day to spend painting what's in your soul. To call on the MUSE to allow you to free something that your soul's been trying to tell you. It's going to be fun and freeing. No worries about final product here. Only the process.

$30
pre-registration required

bring a friend and pay only $50

Private Portraits testimonial -- "It was an empowering and loving experience"

I had my first private portrait session with fantastic woman last week and this is what she had to say about the experience.

A passionate lover of art,, I have often marveled at how an artist can sit with a model and capture that particular moment in time: the emotion of it, the depth of it. Recently I noticed Renee Laprise of MUSEartspace, was offering to do a nude sketch of folks for an out of the ordinary gift idea and with a great deal of courage, I signed up. Now, for you folks that know me, you might be thinking "Oh Cat! You're always up for an adventure! You love trying new things." And you'd be right in assuming that, but I do have a vulnerable side too and I will be 49 this year and I haven't been a size 3 in quite some time. So it did take courage and trust. I trusted Renee to provide an atmosphere of patience, discretion and honour and sensitivity and she did. It was an empowering and loving experience for me. I would highly recommend it to every woman and man who are on a journey's toward love and self acceptance. And bonus! I LOVE IT! Not a bad looking chick for a gal who's almost 50! *g*Catherine Ann
NOTE FROM RENEE:

Imagine someone looking upon your body as a piece of art, taking care to record your form in a loving and honest way. When you are having your portrait drawn the relationship between you and the artist is very special. There's vulnerability and trust. And in the end the drawings will act as reminders of the day that you gave yourself permission to love your body if only for 90 mins.

I am offering such an opportunity at MUSEartspace over the coming weeks as a Valentine's day promotion. But I will continue to offer these sessions as I believe they can work to help people accept and even begin to love their bodies.

Anyone coming in for a session can be assured that their privacy will be maintained. MUSE is a safe environment and all the drawings I do will be going home with you. This is a very empowering exercise for anyone to try at least once in their lives. And if you have a partner you can have that person come into the session and try their hand at drawing you. It's not about the drawing, it's about your partner seeing your body in a whole different way.

Give me a shout if you'd like to know more.

FEE - $75 (90min session)
or $125 to have a partner in the session (all materials supplied)