Circle of Life

This week's teacher on Sketchbook Skool has assigned that we do grids.  Grids and vegetables, and many of the students have been struggling with that task, and others do really well with it.  I've been one of the struggling ones, I'm afraid.  After days of getting distracted with...well, you saw the previous posting...other sorts of drawings, this morning I realized I DO grids.  Just grids my own way.  And the vegetables in the fridge look sad, as do the lackluster fruit in the bowl.  However, this large clamshell a dear friend picked up and handed to me from the beach on Cumberland Island off the coast of Georgia has been lying around the house for years, with other shells and beach pebbles nestled inside.  For me, it's like a little sumptuous snack for the soul, always tempting me to pick it up and fondle it.  

So this morning I snipped a young branch off of the garnet Japanese Maple by the porch, and sat down to do a "quick" sketch of those together, using a sheet of stationery Jim had lying around from when he and his previous wife would make greeting cards from them, with their photos on them.  They make lovely toned paper for monochromatic drawings.  Well, three hours later, this was the result.  I'm pretty pleased with it.  *Note later...  I guess I'm a little less pleased, knowing that I misspelled "Spring".  My daughter caught me on it! Sigh, back to the drawing board.  Literally.

Sea Monster

And now for something a little different...

This is one of Jim's and my collaborative efforts, and so far, we are so happy with our firstborn!  

Uptown Victorian

My sketching friend, Sharman, and I headed back to Port Townsend today to do some studies for our current online class (or klass).  We were trying to keep it simple, practice some washes and this old house caught my eye as we drove around uptown.  We pulled over, got out, and soon realized it was not a simple subject.  I'm not as happy with it as say, the Manresa Castle sketch, but salvaged some of it after I got home.  Sharman's was soft, much more sumptuous colors.  I've got to walk away for a day from this one, as it's looking more and more like The Bates Motel to me!  Our second sketch was a simpler view, the Strait of Juan de Fuca from Chetzemoka Park.  Maybe I'll post that tomorrow or this weekend.  But all in all, I feel I did a pretty good day's work.  And ate shrimp tacos at Owl Sprit. Wonderful!!

Manresa Castle Revisited

One of my most favorite subjects for sketches is Manresa Castle, in Port Townsend, a local landmark and hotel.  As some of you have seen on this blog, I did a sketch some time ago (May 24th 2012), but it was another view, on toned paper, with monochromatic Conte crayons.  It was earlier in the year, the trees were bare.  And I drew it from the interior of our warm car in the parking lot across the street, while waiting for Jim to be done with his allergy shots in Jefferson Medical shortstay.  

Yesterday Jim was again getting stabbed with needles in each arm (poor guy), so I actually got out of the car and wandered over to the Manresa parking lot, and sketched with my tiny watercolor kit.  I was standing in one of the last few empty parking spots, so I almost got run over, twice, but I stood my ground.  I took the attitude that my work took precedence over their silly vacation, and glowered at them until they backed up and drove away.  Most of the window details, shading, and greenery went on that evening after we drove home.  One of these days, I'll actually have to go inside and see if I "sense" the oft reported haunting, or at least eat in the restaurant.

Late Afternoon Glint

Today's assignment from our teacher, Koosje, was to find a simple item and draw it fairly realistically with colored pencils.  It's been many years since I've used plain colored pencils that aren't water-soluble, but I began my search for just the right item.  I'm sure anything would've worked, as other students were posting tomato drawings that made your mouth water, translucent lemons, kid's toys, onions, eggs, etc.

My "simple" subject matter popped up this evening just before the sun went down, and I'd about given up finding something worth drawing with colored pencils.  An antique sugar spoon... or is it a jelly spoon?...glinted in the last rays of the sun from the window.  

Clam Shack (Koosje's Online Klass Assignment)

Today I was well enough to walk down across our road to the property on the bay where a new-ish pier leads down to an old abandoned clam-processing shack on the water.  I've always thought the interior of the shack itself was spooky and sort of haunted-looking, and usually avoid going in.  I figured at the worst, I'd fall through the floor and end up in the bay.  At the best, an owl would explode out of the darkness and chase me, screaming, out the door.  But I'm okay with sitting up on the pier on my little sketch stool, the stiff breeze pasting my hair back, and drawing the forbidding doorway down below.  I was hoping for the company of the usual cormorants, kingfishers and eagles, but all I had today was a nervous-looking seagull.  This is done mostly in watercolor wash, Derwent Inktense water-soluble colored pencils, with some gouache over-painting when I got home to the studio.  I especially like the thick moss carpet on the roof of the shack, and the window on the opposite wall from the door.

My Pharmacy

This was the last sketch I did for Danny Gregory's week of Skool (I keep spelling that right and have to go back and correct it).  I stood last night for two hours, holding the toned paper in my arms on a pad, drawing first with white gel pen, then, wishing I could capture the colors of the bottles, ran down to the studio and grabbed my gouache paints for the colored areas.  Gouache on toned paper is so much fun!  Tomorrow is the next teacher's klass online, Koosje Koone.  We'll see what stuff I do this next week as a result of her suggestions.