Happy Halloween!

This evening, we had fewer trick or treaters than in years past. My guess is that it was partially influenced by the weather (cold) and the participation on our block this year (lousy). Still, it was fun to see the kids that did come to our door. Early in the evening we had two witches who both had good costumes and make-up.

For my daily drawing, I finally broke with the streak of leaves and experimented with a few pieces of candy in a bowl. I did several quick sketches. The point was to try and get multiple items to fit within a confined space, since I mostly work with a limited number (namely one) of objects in a sketch.

Here's the best one and a slightly more focused attempt at drawing a single piece of candy.

Ellipse - The Sequel

My profession is getting nuttier and nuttier and there are days where I struggle with the relevance of the new requirements and changes which continue to occur. This angst comes about mostly when I spend time getting the continuing education hours I need each year. Most days when I am in the world working, I mostly enjoy what I do. Last week when I spent the day at a conference, I had one of those angst-filled days.

What does that have to do with the ellipse? I used them and drew them when I needed a break from the nuttiness of all of the new standards and requirements being discussed at the conference. I could rant about the new lease accounting standards, but will spare you.

There were ellipses everywhere, on the tops of glasses, mugs, and pop cans. They were close to me. They were far. They were straight ahead and at the side. I really, really looked at them and tried to draw them in the margin of the conference materials, when I needed a break. I drew some of the glasses and mugs. I also did a few simple sketches of the conference presenters.

As far as ellipses are concerned, I noticed that I tend to make the back part less deep and flat and the front part more deep and more round. Also on the sides of the ellipse, I tend to make them too round. Actually at the outer edge, a very small part of the edge is a straight line or mostly a straight line. It's when one those times when my eyes and brain fight. My brain is saying it's round, it's round, it's round and my poor eyes are trying to interrupt and let's slow down and really see what is in front of us.

I also realized that for most ellipse which are flatter, you can put a fish tail on the end of them and, viola, you have drawn a simple fish. For me, this was a revelation. When I was talking to the hubby about this, he already knew this. He is full of all kinds of knowledge and delightfully surprises me from time to time. Although it also made me thing, what other apparent things about shapes, seeing, and all of that have I been missing all of these years?

Just Call Me A Leaf Lover

I am really grooving on drawing leaves. It's almost meditative. Plus, it's been good practice for  drawing shapes, thinking about negative space, and working on shapes that fold back on themselves. With drawing shapes, it's helping me get better control. There are subtle shifts and shapes and I think I'm getting better at syncing what I see and what comes out of my hand.

Essence

Here is my current understanding. At it’s essence, painting is about capturing shapes and values. That’s it. While it sounds simple, the application is not.

Drawing Leaves

Throughout the fall, I've gone out to pick up leaves with the intention to paint them. For some reason, I just did not get it done! Instead as the leaves got dry and crinkled in my basement, I've been grabbing a few from time to time to draw them. It's been great practice, especially with the parts that fold back over onto themselves. This summer when I took the on-line drawing class, I really struggled with shapes that do this. I feel like my skills have improved, because it hasn't seemed so daunting.

This was the my first leaf of the season. I drew it with a water-soluble pencil and a water brush and tried to show some of the value differences.  The veins were drawn in pen. I am going to enjoy learning more about using this pencil with water.  

At some point, I need to push myself to add values in my drawings either with hatch marks or shading. I've mostly stay with line drawings, since I am getting more comfortable with that. Here is my leaf gallery. They presented a good opportunity for practicing. For the ones which were really folded over, I tried to think about the negative space. 

On the bottom page, I didn't capture the top part of the bottom-most leaf very well. I liked how it curled, so I went back and re-drew just that part. It's surprising how satisfying this was.

I Should Have Painted More Leaves

I should have painted more leaves this fall.

#152 - Fall Leaf - 6" x 6" gesso board - regular palette

I must remember not to go back and paint in the leaf veins. I had fun with the background. On one paint stroke, I hadn't mixed the paint very well on my brush. The brush stroke turned out swirly-looking, so I did the entire background that way. I also went back in and outlined the leaf in gesso. One of my friend's leaves a broad distinct outline when she paints. I like how it looks, so I am experimenting.

The Mystery Of The Ellipse

Last night, while I was feeding the cats, I browsed through one of my beginning drawing books. The page I landed on happened to show a bunch of drawings of ellipses. Something clicked in my brain.  I realized that I tend to either draw an elliptical shape more like an oval than an ellipse or I tend to draw them like a long rectangle with the corners made into curves.

When I got home tonight, my brain was fried, but I really felt the desire to draw something. Out came one of my favorite mug from the cupboard and I thought about, drew, and played with the idea of ellipses. On purpose, I started with trying to draw the basic shape of the mug, prior to measuring the depth versus length of the ellipse.

As usual, my initial drawing turned out more oval than reality.  The width of the ellipse was actually about 2-1/2 times longer than the depth and I drew it more with a relationship closer to 1-1/2 times. I slowed down and really tried to see the actual proportion and, honestly, I could not. I could see it when I took a picture, but I just could not see it in real life. While it's frustrating, it's useful to know (and hopefully remember) that I should do a simple check of the proportions prior to drawing elliptical shapes.

On several sheets of paper, I played around with drawing an elliptical shape with the general proportions of the top of my mug. I also discovered that my ability to draw the changing angles of an ellipse could use some work. From the angle I was working the angles are more severe on the outer edges than towards the middle. If I drew slowly, my shapes looked goofy. If I just tried to draw a quick upper arc and lower arc and attached them, it went much better.  Another option would be to do an initial light under-drawing in the form of dashed lines. For some reason, it's easier to draw the change in angles in dashes rather than a continual line.

While this post may sound critical, this evening's experiments with ellipses were enjoyable, instructive, and fun.   

Habits

My painting habit is in a good place. While I still draw everyday, I have lost focus. I need to work towards getting this back and building good habits and strategies for my drawing practice.

Rescued, Mostly

This one did not have a good start. Several months ago, I would have left it half-finished, but I am trying to push myself a bit more. I put this aside on Saturday, but returned to it on Sunday, Monday and today. My goal was to rescue it from something that I would not post on the blog to something that I would. The face angles of the face and overall shape are still a bit off, but it feels like I rescued it, mostly. Trying to go further with it would have changed the experience from learning to joyless.

#150 - Cat - 6" x 6" - paper - palette with alternative blue

My alternative blue, ultramarine blue (#1400), is not as opaque as my usual color, phthalo blue red shade (#1260). This should not be a surprise, since the back of each tube of Golden Heavy Body Acrylic paint shows several key features about the paint color. One of  these is the transparency versus opacity of the color. Still, there is a vast difference between reading the back of a paint tube and experiential learning. This experience is giving me a new understanding of transparency and opacity and what that means when you mix colors together.

I Have A Lot To Learn

I have a lot to learn. I don't say this as a bad thing. It's actually quite a good thing. I am trying to think more before I do, to pay more attention while I am doing, and to engage the editor rather than the critic. The critic in my head frequently tells me that this or that photo would be too hard for me to paint. That kept me from trying to paint a picture of Minnehaha Falls that I took last year. As a way to push back, I plan to have two paintings going at one time. One is more in my comfort zone and one is not. Minnehaha Falls is not in my comfort zone.

Another change is that I am starting each day out by painting. Most mornings that means five minutes, but that is enough time to dash downstairs, paint a few strokes, clean my brush, and start on the other morning routines. This is a much better use of time than scrolling on social media. This new habit started on Tuesday morning, my first day back from the cabin and the first day back at work. Between the happy feelings from the cabin and taking a few minutes to paint, it was a good morning and that carried through most of the day. This morning, I started to sketch out a new painting, so it's not always about picking up the paint brush.

This is the painting that I started on Tuesday morning. I finished it last night. One of my goals was patience. I tend to get overwhelmed and in a hurry with a more complicated scene.

The result after several mornings shows the pool of water unconnected to the falls above. I'm not good at seeing this type of thing on the fly, so having a break is good. Even with this problem, I was pleased with the different values in the water, especially the bright white. Up until this point, I'thought that I could get a bright white color by adding more and more white to a brush that was already loaded with another color (especially if that other color was light in value). Not so! I tried this many, many times and it never worked. Slowing down gave the editor in my head a chance to come forward and recognize a truth. If you want bright white or ever-so-slightly off white color, you have to clean your brush first. Mini-breakthrough.

This shows the painting further along and look! The falls and the pool of water are attached to each other.  

I finished this painting last night. When I look at it, I can see that I need to develop a better vocabulary of brush strokes. I'm not sure how to represent all of the undergrowth, trees, and shrubbery. The green parts near the falls could also use better texture or something. While I could go back and continue to fuss with it, I'm  done. I learned what I could and I'd rather try it again at a later date. 

#149 - Minnehaha Falls - 8 x 10 on paper - palette 1

While I'm not sure the completed painting is a success, the experience was. I tried some new things and learned a lot.

Two Fresh Palettes At The Same Time - Urgh!!

We returned from the cabin today.  As I was putting away my painting stuff, I realized that I wore through the paper in the palette with my standard colors.  It's been a long, long time, since I've done that.  The paper in the Masterson's Sta Wet Palette is tough.  Plus, I think I used to mostly rub my paint through the paper rather than get it picked up in my brush.  Anyway, I had to set up palette 1 with fresh paint. In addition, palette 2 with the alternative blue paint is also really fresh.  A fresh palette is annoying.  Looking down at the white color of a fresh palette is unsettling, plus color mixing is easier when the palette has been used.  Lastly, it takes me a bit to get the right amount of moisture when I set up a new palette.

I finished the following painting up at the cabin, using palette number 2.  Since this palette is still too wet, my paints were runny and I needed extra layers of paint to build up the colors.  This is the first completed painting using the alternative blue paint.  It made mixing grays more challenging and I had trouble getting a neutral gray.  I'm not complaining.  It was fun!  It seems as though the ultramarine blue is not as powerful a color as the phthalo blue red shade.

#148 - Ella (8 x 8 using alternative blue)

I feel like I'm exaggerating the different values, but I'm not really.  It just seems that way, especially when the lightest values are really light.  When I'm painting them, they seem harsh, wrong, and way too light, but after a short time I can see how important this is.  I used to do this with my knitting at times.  I'd try to compensate my love of bright colors by sometimes picking colors where the values were too close.  It's taken a long time to recognize this habit.  Hopefully, I'm on the road to conquering it.  

I was going to post this one yesterday, but decided to wait.  I had to add back a tiny bit of black gesso to the eyes. 

Flashlight

I was treated to a late-in-the-year visit to the family cabin of my friend.  It is a magical place and I have been fortunate to be able to come here for 20 plus years for a visit in the summer with a big group of my friends.  This time, it was my friend, my hubby, and me.  It's quiet and peaceful.  Since work has been so busy and crazy, it was a welcome time to relax and watch the leaves change color.

There is a wonderful, old, metal flashlight at the cabin.  When I was here last summer, I tried to draw the flashlight head on and I just could not do it.  Last night, I grabbed it and and gave it another try.  I did a warm up sketch first.  The body was way too long.  Especially when I look at an object straight on, I still can't eyeball this, so I did a quick measurement and a second, quick sketch.

I could have done another sketch of two to refine things, but didn't feel the need to do so.  I felt like I could see the front of the flashlight in a way that I couldn't 1 1/4 years ago and that my drawing vocabulary is slowly expanding.  That was enough.

Hummingbird At The Cabin

When I was at the family cabin of a friend this summer, I managed to get a photo of a hummingbird in the phlox. The resident hummingbirds feed from the hummingbird feeder, so it was surprising seeing one feeding from the flowers. My photo was a bit blurry, but still I was lucky to get a picture at all. These little birds move so fast.

147 - Hummingbird At The Cabin

The flowers required capturing a bunch of fussy, little details, which also means that there are a lot of decisions to make. I knew I couldn't do this in one sitting. Even with working on it 3 separate times, I still need more stamina. My brain just gets tired. This is an 8 x 10 and was painted with my standard colors.

This painting looks better at a distance, plus the photo looks better than the actual painting. I will give this one another try. Now that I'm looking at the above photo as a type up this post, I especially like the flower directly above the bird's head. It has some depth to it and captures the light.

Six Months Of A Twelve Month Series

I worked at the Minnesota State Fair Foundation, so it was time to tackle a drawing of the historic bust on the front porch of the building. Each month, I spend 10 to 20 minutes on a quick sketch. This time I used a very different tool. Last week, I purchased a Pental Pocket Brush Pen, so I decided to use it for today's sketch. Even though it's new to me, I love it. The ink flows out of the pen so freely. I can see why Roz Stendahl gushes about this pen.

I am 6 months into this and my sketches have only the tiniest resemblance to the actual subject. That's okay. On a micro level, I don't warm up and it's the end of the work day. Sometimes, this is the only time that I try to tackle facial features in the month. On a macro level, it is still miraculous to me to be developing the skills to draw something like this. While there's still a lot to learn, it wasn't that long ago that I was petrified to put a line on a piece of paper. 

Month 6

My plan is to post my sketches on a quarterly basis, so here is the one from the beginning of September. I was a little uptight with this one and did some erasing, which leads to more erasing. Generally, I try to avoid that. It makes me start to doubt any line that I've put on a page.

Month 5

This one is from the beginning of August.

Month 4

Oh heck, I might as well post the first three sketches as well.

Month 3

Month 2

This is the one that started it all. I did this sketch while I was taking the on-line drawing class. The subject matter was so far out of my league, but I was really pleased with myself for giving it a try at the time. From there, I thought the once a month sketch would be an interesting way to see what changes in my sketches. I may just keep doing this for as long as I do work at this client.

Month 1

Feeling Good

I have been thinking about how to better use the time that I have to paint and why I procrastinate. Two problems are deciding what to paint and trying to paint after I've either had a "breakthrough" or finished something that I really like. The worst is when both of these things happen at the same time. I realized that my own behavior makes this happen more than necessary, since I frequently will push to finish up a painting in the evening. That leaves me with nothing in process the next day, which can start the procrastination cycle. Last month deciding to paint cats, cats, and more cats made the decision making easier and I found that I painted more.

The solution is to never finish a piece at the end of my "art time" on any given day. If I do finish, I need to leave enough time to choose the next subject and start drawing it. I've been trying this the last several days and it feels good. It feeds into the ideal that painting is a process. There is no true beginning or end and any work on any given day does not matter. Continuing the process and feeding it is what matters.

I really enjoyed painting cats last month, but have felt the need to stretch myself this month. My current plan is to have two paintings going at the same time. One will be complicated, such as a landscape or which contains multiple objects, and one will be simple.

I've also decided to branch out and test drive several new colors. I made myself a little crazy, since it felt like I was being unfaithful to my existing colors, especially since I like my palette. They are good paint colors and I'm learning how to use them. I use the following Golden Heavy Body Acrylics:

• Titanium White #1380
• Quinacridone Magenta #1305
• Phthalo Blue (Green Shade) #1255
• Phthalo Blue (Red Shade) #1260
• Primary Yellow #1530

Still, I thought it would be fun to experiment with several new colors. While Wet Paint had my brand on sale, I decided to buy a small tube of:

• Hansa Yellow Opaque #1191
• Ultramarine Blue #1400

Since I have two of the same palette, I'm keeping my original colors in one palette. In the other palette, I swapped out the Phthalo Blue (Red Shade) for the Ultramarine Blue. I'm marking my paintings so I know which palette I used. Plus, I am going to use this as an excuse to paint some of the same things twice, (which I frequently do anyway) using the two different palettes. At some point, I will change the second palette back to the Phthalo Blue (Red Shade) and substitute Primary Yellow for Hansa Yellow Opaque. Way, way down the road, depending on what I learn, I might set up the second palette with both of the alternative colors.

Here is what I finished today. After I was done, I decided on my next complicated subject and easy subject and started the drawing for both.

Original palette