I guess I’m a hippie – you know, “flower power” and all that stuff.
The fact is, I love flowers and want to have a flower garden again. And a vegetable garden. As retirement approaches, it look more of a reality than before. And as our backyard gets cleared out, too, that will help.
So, today’s sketch is really last night’s sketch. I went out with my tablet of tan paper and took a look. Almost all green except for the lavender plant. I used ink for the initial drawing and then Derwent’s InkTense colors. Then, for the ones on the left, I just painted to see which looked better – pen and color, or just plain color.
The bathrooms are nearly done. All that remains to do is hang the mirrors, towel racks, toilet paper holder, and place the drawer pulls. The baseboards can wait! At noon, we will officially be able to use the sinks, the faucets, and the second toilet. Who thought that could be so exciting?
And in between the chaos of repairs and work, I have tried to do some painting. I pulled out my watercolor pencils and started a picture that will be mixed media in the end. It’s complicated. I have been scanning every step.
To kick back, I have been looking at the flower pictures I took last weekend at the botanical garden – so many! I have painted a few of them, with ink and pen, with watercolor pencil and pen, with watercolor. I really like flowers and wish I had a better yard for a garden . . . that will come, though; meanwhile, I wander in one I don’t have to maintain.
For some time now I have been practicing “urban sketching,” which is a fun way to record what you see around you. Sit down, have a cup of coffee, take out the ink, color, and paper. Go to a park, visit a zoo. The world is around you!
Ink and wash in Stillman & Birn sketchbook. Light washes are more successful than heavy washes as far as I can tell.
Part of the process of this style of sketching is to realize the essentials of what you see in front of you. It is a good way to evaluate and decide what to keep, what to discard. By the same token, you learn about your materials. To me, one of the most important elements is the paper – how it responds, how it reacts. After a bit, paper becomes like an old friend – you know its nuances, when it’s in a good mood, when you are having difficulties. And, like people, you find you like some paper better than others.
Painted with multiple glazes in a Hand Book. There is some blooming, which can be annoying, but the paper holds up well to repeated washes.
I’ve picked up a number of sketchbooks, many with heavy paper to handle watercolors and ink. Handling a wash is critical. However, learning what a paper can and cannot do is also important, and part of that is just using it.
The Pentalic sketchbook holds up really well to repeated wetting. The sky is a good example of this – I went in about 5 times, just because I could, to see how it worked. There isn’t too much blooming with this paper. As well, the paper has a pleasant texture. Both wet-in-wet and dry brush work on this paper. I painted all of this with a flat water brush to get a sense of how to use it more successfully than I have in the past. Ink is both Carbon Ink and pigmented markers.
To date, I have a Stillman & Birn, Hand Book and Pentalic watercolor sketchbooks. Stillman & Birn doesn’t respond quite like I would like it to for wet washes, but it holds lines well. I need to practice with it more to get a sense of its personality. Hand Book seems to have better wash-handling qualities. Pentalic, so far, appears to be the best. I also have decided I like spiral bound vs. signatures.
Nothing like the power of the crop tool in your photo processing software. This is a pretty bad sketch, but it was part of a lot of sketches done at the local mall. On the original page it is all lost in space, but with a square crop, it turned out okay – just okay – but much more presentable.
This morning, I met up with a friend and we went up to one of my favorite local places, the botanical garden a few miles from my house. Before you knew it, 2.5 hours had passed, filled with sketching, painting, chit-chat, and coffee. Not a bad way to spend a sunny morning!
I had all of last week off – 10 days total – and in that time period we celebrated two Thanksgiving, did a whole lot of baking and cooking, saw friends and family. In between, I managed to sketch and / or watercolor everyday. In that time period, I had a lot of fun and found myself feeling really glad to be painting again. Of course, some stuff was pure rubbish, but others produced a sense of satisfaction. Even better, I could begin to see progress. The connection between mind and hand and color and paper is beginning to return.
But now – can I keep this up? Certainly not at the pace I was doing it. But I have made a decision: I will use my photos as the basis for sketches and paintings, and try to turn out two a week minimum, perhaps three. When will I do it? In the mornings, while I drink my coffee, and instead of looking at the depressing global situation, I’ll look at lines and colors instead. Seems like a good deal, if you ask me!
Ink, Yarn & Beer 