I finally managed to circle back to make some paintings inspired by the classes I taught at the Japanese Gardens last spring. The light was truly magical, as was the maple foliage!

Love a good Japanese lantern!

Inspired by the Little Spokane River and filled with love for the color green. Why do herons always look like they are glaring at you?

This is one of the HUGE old trees at our place. We had some incredible sunsets this winter. This evening, it felt like I was living in a pink and gold globe of light!

I was asked to create a couple utility box designs for the City of Liberty Lake and they requested a patriotic feel so what is more patriotic than fireworks on the 4th of July?

The daytime themed Liberty Lake Utility box wrap is all about enjoying summer at the lake shore. I thought about trying to fit a barbecue into this scene, but finally decided that it was better to leave it out. This is the biggest watercolor I’ve ever done, something in the neighborhood of 27” x 41” which is pretty darn big!

I have been following an artist online who has been making little square “diary” comics about her daily life and I found them fascinating and inspiring and decided to do a few of my own! I think I’d like to continue this. A little 2” x 2” square is totally manageable and I like how it makes me think of something interesting to document each day. As you can see, indoor flowering house plants are essential and there is high interest in what might be flowering outside!

The primroses are blooming and I am delighted. I only have three, but I am already scheming to save seed and try to grow more. I want a whole meadow! Unrealistic? Who cares.

The Hellebores are also in bloom. In fact they were the first thing to bloom on the whole property (What happened to my snow drops? Who knows.) which has made me forgive them their downward facing flowers. At this time of year, I’m desperate for signs of life!

But before you know it, the world will look like this and I’ll be trying to find some shade while I’m out sketching in the field. A little tease for the future-Katie Frey and I are going to team up to do several plein air painting sessions this summer at various places around Spokane so if you want to get out and paint on location, keep an eye out. I’ll share here once we have dates!

May your days be full of blossom and your palette full of paint!

Megan

It’s been a busy start to 2026. I spent most of January teaching a watercolor class at Whitworth University. It was an intense but fun experience. We had class every day for 3 hours for the term. It was really cool to get to spend so much time with the same group of students and everyone’s growth from the beginning to the end of the class was amazing! I also learned a lot about teaching a college class (Grading! Writing a syllabus! Using Canvas-no, not the kind you paint on.) and hope to get to do it again next year!

Once I had recovered from teaching, it was back to the studio to work on paintings that I’ve been putting off for far too long. These are a mini-series, focused on the light in downtown-specifically around Washington, Main and Spokane Falls Blvd.

I was completely caught by the way the shadow of the sky bridge cast onto the convention center.

I think it was Edward Hopper who said that he just wanted to paint light hitting a building and man, I do have to say that it is very satisfying!

Closer to home-my living room. My aunt recently gave us the couch starring in this painting. She bought it in 1974 and it is in mint condition-I love it, but as you can see, I am not afraid of pattern. Yes, that is a zebra patterned rug on the floor and my cat (in the middle foreground) is laying on a tiger striped blanket on a foot stool.

This is Xena who is currently choosing to take a nap on my knitting instead of in the bed we bought for her (see drawing above, the maroon “soft box” on the couch) or the many blankets left out for her perusal).

Love to you and all your furry ones,

Megan

Christmas letter included below along with some favorite winter scenes. This year’s Christmas card image is the Vista House on Mt. Spokane. Suggestions for next year’s Christmas card welcome. :)

See you in the New Year, you awesome people!

Love,

Megan

Merry Christmas Friends!

It’s been a busy and full year at our new house. I can hardly believe that this time last year, I was hustling to get paintings made for my group show at the Art Spirit in Coeur D’Alene. I made the biggest watercolors I’ve ever painted for that show and really feel like I grew my skills both in terms of scale and emotive capability, which I am proud of. Despite the busy-ness, I also managed to participate a bit more in my Women Painters of WA group, showing work with them in Clarkston, Chewelah, and Twisp (upcoming) and visiting a gallery owned by a fellow member in Moses Lake. As the previous sentence implies, I’ve been beebopping around the state quite a bit. I traveled to the 3rd annual Sketcherfest in Edmonds to attend a workshop, artist talks, sketchbook tours and to meet regional and international artists. It’s so inspirational to see what other artists are making and doing! Towards the end of July I attended an overnight paddle and camping trip for the Spokane Riverkeepers as a painting instructor and had an absolute blast. A highlight was rafting all the canoes together in the middle of the river to paint the sunset followed by a starlit night paddle where the river reflecting the sky made me feel as if I was in a globe of stars. I’m already looking forward to next year.

Closer to home, I enjoyed observing our land for the first time in all the seasons-buttercups in spring, swathes of oxeye daisies in the wilder parts in summer, the ruckus of nesting season with the birds calling and flitting everywhere (thank you to the Merlin app for telling me who was in the yard each morning!), rose hips and snowberries in the hedgerows in the fall, hoarfrost on the branches in winter. I did some painting in my sketchbook to capture it but I also spent a lot of time scraping and painting outbuildings while our flock of ducks looked on and offered copious advice. After painting buildings, I focused on making garden beds; killing off grass, putting in edging and planting. Thank you to everyone who shared plants. I will be thinking of you when they come up in the spring! It will be a riot of color and shape that will be so fun to paint! 

Luke had an adventure figuring out haying this summer. Our property is a slope with a stream at the bottom so each field is a separate micro biome that required changing the settings on all of the equipment so that was a challenge. Thank goodness he is handy and has haying experience from his youth. We also had some adventures with the plumbing (ah, old houses with big trees nearby), but the most unusual and, in a way, strangely enjoyable challenge we faced was losing internet for 2 weeks when our provider’s tower got hit by lightning. Luke got a portable satellite internet for work and I attempted to make do with data, but AT & T doesn’t have great coverage for our area so I spent the two weeks feeling like I was back in the early dial up days-I could get internet if I wanted it but it was slow and limited so I lived my life like it was the 90’s and if I needed to send a photo to someone I drove to my sister in law’s house and sat on their porch to use their Wi-Fi! And yes, if you were wondering, of course I made the dial up noise whenever I opened the browser on my phone. :) I spent most of the two week period reading, painting, and being outside working on projects rather than scrolling on a device and frankly, if you can manage it, I recommend it!

Wishing you stars all around you, flames in your hearth, and peace in your soul now and in the new year,

Megan

Sketched from life at the Davenport.

Gaiser Conservatory Holiday Lights

Who doesn’t love the Garbage Goat?

Popping in with a bunch of fall art made over the past few years to celebrate my favorite season and a reminder that this Saturday is my last art market of the year-33 Artists at the Hive! Hope to see you there!

Painted sitting in a pumpkin patch at Siemer’s Farm up in Greenbluff on a glorious fall evening.

Early November, I was driving home around sunset when the hail storm I’d been driving through lifted and I saw this view. I pulled over IMMEDIATELY.

The historic trees in Browne’s Addition make for an incredible canopy of color in the fall and it is lovely when they match the color of the Campbell House!

Our new house has a lot of snow berry shrubs along the road.

The Japanese Gardens at Manito are a must to visit in the fall.

Painted on location on a cold, overcast fall day-couldn’t feel my fingers by the end, but I loved the red of the maples.

Happy Fall y’all! See you Saturday!

Here’s some of what I have coming up!

Magically Moody Watercolors with Megan Perkins

At the Spokane Art School

Saturday, October 11, 1-4 p.m.

$40, includes all materials and instruction 

Want to learn how to create expressive paintings? Megan will provide a photo of a favorite landscape and show you how to change its attitude-from sunny and cheerful to moody and dramatic, it’s all in the colors and values!

This class made possible by a Spokane Arts Grant Award.

I have three classes with the Corbin Art Center:

Painting Big Skies 4 Weeks | Ages 18yrs. & Up | Megan Perkins Skies have a huge impact on a painting, not only sometimes taking up a large amount of the paper, but also dramatically affecting the mood and atmosphere of the work. It is important that the sky is considered carefully when planning a painting. In this class students will tackle painting sky-with clouds, with mist, full of color, or as a more neutral backdrop with a focus on being expressive and allowing the medium of watercolor to do its magic. Supply list included upon confirmation of registration. $89

18700   Wed.    10/1-10/22         6-8pm

Loosen Up Your Watercolor Painting 1 Day | Ages 18yrs. & Up | Megan Perkins Feeling like your paintings are stiff or too tight? Want to embrace the flow of watercolor paint and loosen up? This is the class for you! Megan will demonstrate how to make your paintings full of energy and freshness, giving you quick and easy exercises to uncramp your style! Supply list is at bottom of class registration receipt. $69

18701   Sat.       10/18    10am-Noon

Sketchbook Habit 4 Weeks | Ages 16yrs. & Up | Megan Perkins Experience the joy of playing in your sketchbook. In this class, we will explore techniques such as Notan, blind contour, hatching, color blocking, and more as a route to making work that improves our skills while embracing fun and defeating the inner critic. The goal is to learn ways to make art in small bits of time regularly so that you can make art every day. Please note, you WILL be expected to work in your sketchbook between class sessions. How can you develop a habit without practice? Supply list included upon confirmation of registration. $89

18702   Mon.    10/27-11/17      6-8pm

Plein Air Painting: Finch Arboretum with the Northwest Museum of Art and Culture
Saturday, October 18, 20251-3 pm

Finch Arboretum
Cost: $46, $40 MAC Members 

Capture the vibrant colors and crisp energy of fall in this outdoor sketching and watercolor workshop in the stunning backdrop of Finch Arboretum. Led by local artist Megan Perkins, you'll get helpful techniques and personal tips for working outdoors amongst the trees and leaves. Bring your own supplies and drinking water. We will have cups and paintbrush water if needed. 

Sign up HERE

https://sales.northwestmuseum.org/PatronEducation.aspx?pid=59519&cal=https%3a%2f%2fsales.northwestmuseum.org%3a443%2fcalendar.aspx%3fview%3dc%26et%3dp%2bc

In other news, I also have three pieces in Terrain this year and will be at the Thursday’s ticketed Artist Preview Night. The First Friday extravaganza on the 3rd is free and open to everyone! Check them out below and good luck spotting them among the hundreds that will be on display. “Mountain Fire”, the one with the pink flowers, will be the easiest to spot I bet because it is almost 5 ft long!

See you in a week!

As usual, I’ll be at Collista’s studio-the furthest north and have tons of original art, including studies and small pieces from my studio flat files. I look forward to seeing you there and keep your eyes peeled for my next email if you’re interested in taking a class with me-I have a 5 different classes coming up in October!

This is a long one with lots of photos so the email may get cut off. Feel free to click through to read this in my blog in its entirety if so.

In bittersweet news, my aunt and uncle sold their lake house up at Priest Lake. They bought it back in 1979 and not only have I been going there my whole life but my parents have been going since they were in college. They came over with my brother and we all gathered to say goodbye to this special beloved place with my aunt and uncle.

I had a great time teaching a series of classes at the Japanese Gardens at the beginning of the month. We really lucked out with the weather and it was magical to get to be in the gardens during the golden hour and watch the light fade as evening came on while we painted.

We got to see koi breach to catch bugs and on the final class, an osprey dove into the pond and carried off a baby koi which was incredibly dramatic!

Doing a demo painting for classes is always challenging because I need to make a decent painting but also leave enough time for students to paint too. It can get messy but you can’t beat the high energy on the page!

Personally, I’d love to have a little stone lantern in my own garden. Any tips on a good place to get one?

Exciting news inside-my clivia bloomed and that is always worth a couple of sketches. I moved it away from it’s perch by the window to the kitchen where I could admire it more closely.

Sketching the giant willow tree around the back of our house. There was a bit of a paint pen explosion (the green below and some of the yellow above) but I managed to cope and it was nice to feel the sun on my face as I drew this anyway.

This is Deputy Dog, my husbands’s aunt’s ranch dog up in the Okanogan. When he isn’t herding cows, he is a part time model! 😂

We have Muscovy ducks and while one mom managed to successfully raise a brood of 5, the rest of the moms abandoned their eggs so my husband rescued them and has been incubating them on our kitchen table for the past month. This last past week was spent frantically trying to help the babies hatch (many had a foot over their head which made it impossible for them to hatch out on their own). He did most of the work while I supplied towels, cups to hold them while he worked, bandaids to correct straddle legs and sanitizing. Stressful! I currently have 11 adorable ducklings in a brooder in my house. Good thing they are cute. Stay tuned for sketches of them in my next bulletin.

Happy spring to you all!

April is a very busy month for me. If you haven’t already stopped by, I have a piece in the Little Spokane River Artist Studio Tour show at the Kolva Sullivan gallery this month. The show is jammed pack with art from the amazing artists from the September art market and I highly recommend stopping by before it gets packed up at the end of the month.

If you weren’t able to make it out to my show at the Art Spirit Gallery in February, then may I suggest stopping by the Central Library in downtown? Almost all of the paintings from that show (one sold and the other is at the Kolva Sullivan show) are hanging on the big wall opposite the cafe on the ground floor for this month. Thank you to Eva for the invite and for her fabulous art hanging skills (as seen above).

If you haven’t stopped by the Northwest Museum of Art and Culture lately, you should! The exhibit they have on Japanese armor and art right now is stunning!

I sketched these in pencil at the museum and added color later. I was delighted to see another person sketching while I was there. So much fun!

And speaking of Japan and the Northwest Museum of Art and Culture, I am DELIGHTED to tell you that the museum secured the rights for me to teach several sketching classes at Manito’s Japanese Gardens at the end of this month and the beginning of May. I suspect this might be a once in a lifetime opportunity so sprint on over and sign up! Here’s a link. The website can be somewhat hard to navigate so you are also welcome to reach out to the education coordinator Amanda Gardner at her number:(509-363-5357)

Classes are April 22nd and 25th 6:15-8:15

And May 1 & 2nd, 6:15-8:15-Sign up for May Classes here.

Watercolor Landscape Class starts next week on March 26th at the Corbin Art Center, 6-8 pm. Visit my.spokanecity.org to find the class and sign up! Look under “Adult Art Classes”. Or just click HERE!

Hi Guys!

Thanks to everyone who came out my show at the Art Spirit in February, especially those who came to my painting demonstration about a week and half ago! It was so great to see all of your faces. If you didn’t have a chance to come by in February about half of the pieces will still be on show upstairs for the month of March.

The snow has melted and things are starting to pick up. I’ll be at the Liberty Building (the same building as Auntie’s) for First Friday this Friday 5-7 with my co-show artist Melissa Dingfield. The Show is called “Two Views of Spokane” and showcases our paintings of the Spokane area. Melissa does these really cool gouache and oil paintings, often of interiors of local businesses which are a great contrast to my tendency to paint exteriors.

Here are a couple of the paintings that I’ll have in the show!

And here are some of Melissa’s:

As if February was not busy enough, I also made a quick trip over to the west side of the state to celebrate my brother and dad’s birthdays and to drop off new art at a boutique that carries my work in Seattle. I made a bunch of western Washington themed paintings for them and had way too much fun painting spring flowers and adorable seals.

Inspired by a trip to the Skagit tulip fields three years ago!

Visiting the cherry trees at the University of Washington.

Apparently this pose is called the “banana pose” and means that the seal is happy and comfortable!

Ok, that’s all for now! See you Friday!

Here’s a little bit about the show in the Art Spirit team’s words:

Local Color Explodes Onto the Scene at The Art Spirit Gallery

The Art Spirit Gallery is thrilled to announce the opening of its highly anticipated new exhibition, "Local Color," on Saturday, February 1st, 2025, at 11:00 AM. This vibrant collection features the works of four exceptional local artists: Wes Hanson, L.R. Montgomery, Megan Perkins, and Teresa Rancourt.

"Local Color" is more than just a title; it's a celebration of the unique hues and textures that define our region. It's the deep blue of Lake Coeur d'Alene reflecting a sun-drenched sky, the verdant greens of the surrounding forests, the earthy browns of the rolling hills, and the fiery oranges and reds of a Northwest sunset. It's the essence of place, the spirit of the region captured on canvas.

Each artist in this collection draws inspiration from the rich palette of the Inland Northwest.

• Wes Hansons style is impressionistic, employing loose brushstrokes and transparent washes to create a sense of fluidity and movement. The colors are often subtly modulated, evoking a sense of tranquility and serenity

• L.R. Montgomery's oil paintings are known for their bold use of color and texture, often employing a vibrant and expressive palette.

• Megan Perkins' paintings, light and shadow play a significant role in creating mood and atmosphere.

• Teresa Rancourt's paintings are known for their vibrant and expressive use of color, often employing a bold and saturated palette each bring their own unique perspective and artistic vision to this exploration of local color. The resulting exhibition is a captivating tapestry of styles, techniques, and interpretations of the region’s landscape and spirit.

Join us for the opening reception on February 1st to experience the vibrancy and beauty of "Local Color."

All four of us artists will be at the gallery on the 1st from 11-112 for a Q & A session.

Each of us will also be doing a painting demonstration during the show. I am up on February 22nd, 2-4 and I’d love to see you so please mark your calendars!

Finally, since you’ve been so patient to keep reading all of this self promotion, here’s some photos of the paintings I have made for the show. The Art Spirit asked for me to “go big” and while I can’t compete with L.R. for sheer scale (his works are monumental windows of color!), I pushed myself and worked bigger than I ever have before so as you look at these tiny thumbnails on your phone, please imagine them at 2 ft x 2 ft and at the largest 52” x 27”!

If you’d like to see the rest, come by the Art Spirit sometime in February. There’s always plenty to do in Coeur D’Alene even if it is chilly and there’s certainly no off-season for Dockside sundaes in my opinion! See you in February!

Some of you may have seen a long accordion style landmark painting I’ve been using to decorate my booth with at a few shows. With the encouragement of some friends and my printer, I’ve made it into a a folding accordion card/decoration. I’m think that it could be a very fancy Christmas card-one of those ones that are a present in itself. A veritable letter can be written across the back and then the recipient (or yourself, I am totally on board with buying oneself presents) can display the card in it’s full unfolded glory on their sideboard, desk, window sill, table, etc.

It was entertaining to pick out example paintings that I felt were both loose but also have a fall vibe! I love fall (though not the season that approaches afterward) and I think Spokane has fabulous autumns. Currently delighting me are the changing colors of the leaves and the crisp morning air followed by the mellow warm ness of late afternoon. Oh and the onset of sweater season. I love me some soft, squishy knit sweaters! What are you loving about fall?

Finally, please read down to the end to get the deets on the 33 Artists show at the Hive-my one show for October and the second to last show I’m doing this year. It’s on the 26th. Hope to see you there!

A Tithonia (Mexican Sunflower), grown in my garden and painted BIG (17” x 17”-ish)

A pumpkin field painted at Siemer’s Farm up at Green Bluff a few years back on a beautiful autumnal evening.

A painting inspired by a drive home in early November where a rain/hailstorm lifted right about sunset and I saw this out my window and I immediately pulled over!

Oh and for those of you who read to the bottom-I’ll be at this show on the 26th at the Hive (a super cool library building on Sprague) and I’d love to see you!

I’ve been quiet here lately because I’ve been wildly busy. My husband and I bought a new house and are in the process of simultaneously settling in and trying to get our old house on the market. To everyone who has done this before-you have my sincere admiration. This has been incredibly hard work! We’re starting to make good progress and I’m so excited about the new place. It is beautiful with a year round stream and great views. I can’t wait to paint here!

In other news-my favorite show of the year-the Little Spokane River Artist Studio Tour is happening this Saturday and I am super excited! I’m at Collista’s studio, as usual-that’s the furthest north studio, on Panorama. There’s plenty of parking and the garden is always beautiful thanks to her husband’s green thumb. I will have a bunch of small unframed originals at a range of prices and I hope you’ll find something that needs to come home with you! See you there!

This is a demo from an urban sketching class at the Northwest Museum of Art and Culture. I loved the half moon deck arch and the two porthole windows below.

Back in August we made a quick trip up to rural Canada for a family reunion/funeral and, as always, I brought my sketchbook.

This is the view from up on the porch on the house seen in the above image. A lot of time was spent sitting here, drinking coffee and talking to people.

The farm is very near Lake Mara, which is a gorgeous lake with fabulous views. One evening, a group of us made a quick trip over there to wade.

The sunset that night was gorgeous! I raced to capture the light before it went. As a result, the people on the shore are blurred (my paint was not drying as fast as I needed it too and the temperatures had cooled to boot), but I really like the feeling of light and it brings back the memory of that night which is always the point of my sketchbooks!

I hope all of you have been bearing up under this crazy heat! I’ve been busy sketching all over the place-doing my best to stay out of the mid-day sun. Challenging, but worth it. I’m going to crack open my sketchbook below to show you what I’ve been up to, but FIRST!

A Conspiracy of Artists! I’m one of over 12 artists being hosted at the Jacklin Art Center. We’re having an opening this Saturday and there will be snacks, wine and AIR CONDITIONING! I hope to see you there.

Ok-back to the sketchbooks!

Hoping you all are staying cool and having a fabulous summer!

This is a Thai restaurant where we had lunch toward the end of the trip.

I “collected” people on the Tube. I drew in the seat structures first and then I waited to see who sat down in front of me. This drawing was created over about 3 rides on the Tube and it was very fun-so many interesting characters! Almost everyone is on their phone and that goodness because that keeps them from spotting me (most of the time) even though I am just 3 or 4 feet from them!

The left side of the page here are a couple quick sketches from when we were at Kew Gardens-a giant Cyprus tree and a dragon guardian on their pagoda. On the right was the tableware at the Delaunay-an absolutely fabulous restaurant across from the theater where we saw “Tina Turner: The Musical”.

The stage curtain had Tina’s eyes (and hair) screen printed onto it. Very graphic and an interesting contrast with the green and gold baroque theater.

Mom sent over this photo she took from the 2nd floor of our flat of me sketching the Michelin Building. Can you see me?

I’m across the street from the frontage of the building on the steps under the red awning!

Here’s how one of those sketches came out!

I brought home Tunnock’s Tea cakes for my husband. Milk chocolate with marshmallow inside, they are too sweet for me!

Made it safely home! This is the view from my studio. Everything had grown in the 12 days I’d been gone-including the weeds and grass all over our gravel driveway. Still, it was good to be home and back in my studio. Hope all of you had a fabulous 4th of July!

I had a great time at Manito Art Festival and it was so lovely to see all of you!

Before I get back to my London trip-here’s two cool shows here in town that include a painting of mine. First the 2nd Inland Northwest Juried Landscape Art Exhibition at the Jundt Art Gallery which runs until mid July.

Come see me this Saturday, 10-6 pm at the Manito Park Art Festival! It’s always a great show. Us artists will be set up on the lawn next to the Duncan Gardens!

Coming up: Pt 2 of my London trip and what I’m up to in the latter half of June!