I’ve never drawn a bicycle, much less painted one, in my life. Welcome to my first attempt! Rather out of proportion – wouldn’t want to ride on those wheels – but did get it to be recognizable.
Given the fact I broke my wrist and finger, I am surprised I can even draw, much less keep colors inside the lines.
It’s easier to paint with a messed up hand than it is to type or write. Looking at my drawing / painting of yesterday, this morning I decided to paint it, no lines, no preliminary whatevers – just a direct paint, working wet and dry.
Back to work with a messed up wrist . . . wasn’t bad. After work, the sun was still out. In our yard, we have a beautiful vase-shaped crepe myrtle tree. It is sending out the first leaves of the season. I sketched this at sunset, trying to catch the complex interweaving of the branches and the delicate greens of the baby leaves at the tips of the smallest branches.
Besides doing the orchid yesterday, I sat down and did what is being called”direct watercolor.” As in sumi-e, the artist thinks about things before committing brush to paper. No lines. No value studies. Look, see, think, paint. It is a bit of a challenge and rather daunting, but I think this is such an enlightening way to learn the art of brushwork, value, contrast, and so on. I did some glazes here and there, to create contrast as well as to carry various colors throughout the painting. I also worked with vignetting, considering the shapes of the four corners of the vignette as well.
Today I took off my splints – it’s like getting out of jail, I swear – to enjoy the freedom of using some pen and ink. Now the splints are back on, but there is a sense of satisfaction in doing some artwork, no matter how simple. Pen and color, with a focus on simple color.
Ink, Yarn & Beer 