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 ©2011 Carolyn A. Pappas, Privacy Curtain. Ink in large handbook sketchbook.  ©2011 Carolyn A. Pappas, Skyline. Ink in large handbook sketchbook. I was always suspicious when I heard women say that childbirth was their most creative act. In my case, the only creativity involved was making some sketches from my hospital bed while waiting for the contractions to set in.  ©2011 Carolyn A. Pappas, Katie on the Couch. Ink in large handbook sketchbook. This is a quick sketch of Katie from a few weeks ago. Katie has become my best buddy these days. I’ve been trying to do as much sketching and painting as possible recently because my due date is fast approaching. I am getting nervous and really excited! I’ve spent the last couple of days putting a lot of hours into the painting that I’m going to use as my Christmas card. I love sending out a Christmas card with my own artwork on it, but I’ve been procrastinating all year. When I found out about the sale that Moo is offering right now, I didn’t want to miss out. Through tomorrow, they are giving 15% off their holiday cards (with the code CARDSYAY), in addition to the 15% off sale that they are already running. I say this every year, but next year I am going to be more prepared for sure and get my artwork ready ahead of time! I’ll be posting my painting, along with some Work in Progress photos in an upcoming post. Below is a really nice short film by and Danny Gregory and Tommy Kane that I enjoyed. I thought the music was especially fitting. To El and Back: a film about Butch Belair from DannyGregory on Vimeo.  ©2011 Carolyn A. Pappas, 8-16-11 sketchbook (Garden Sketch). Pitt pens in large handbook sketchbook. Today was the first time that I sat down to do sketching of any sort in the past week and a half, because of various things that came up, namely: a death in the family I’m not going to have my drafting table anymore or a separate studio space, and I have had to make some hard decisions about my art supplies. I had already decided not to delve into any new media because I didn’t want to buy new supplies. Now, I had to make decisions to get rid of things that were nice and that I had spent good money on, but I probably wasn’t going to use for awhile and couldn’t store. Thankfully my ink and watercolor supplies don’t take up that much room, but I had to donate a lot of paper for lack of space. Also, I’ve gotten rid of a number of things that are nice to have, but not necessary because I don’t use them too much. These things have left me stressed out to say the least, not to mention that I am expecting at the moment (due in late October). I am very excited about it, but I wish I had a better handle on things right now. Wish me luck because I think I am going to need it in the next few months!
 ©2011 Carolyn A. Pappas, Sketches of Folds. Ink in moleskine cahier. Some ten minute sketches of a belt that fell off a sweatshirt of mine. My Noodler’s pen and bulletproof black ink seem to work well in my Moleskine cahiers. The ink dries quickly without feathering or smudging and the pen slides over the surface of the paper. I may actually find myself filling these books up with sketches! I am not a big fan of the paper in the Moleskine cahiers because it is so tissue thin that drawing on it is uncomfortable for me. It wrinkles easily and it is see through. It is only possible to draw on one side of the page because otherwise, the drawings on both sides will be spoiled. I have been able to deal with this issue by cutting a piece of Bristol board to insert behind each page so that I can draw without ink bleeding through. I can also scan my drawings without seeing through the pages.  ©2011 Carolyn A. Pappas, Lakeside Ruins. Lexington Gray ink on pink textured paper, apx. 5 x 5 inches. I based this drawing on a blurry photo I took at dusk. It was more of a pen test than anything else, really. This drawing is of a certain place on the shore where geese like to gather. There is a crumbling stone wall and the remnants of an old foundation next to a grassy area. My favorite part about it is the silhouette of the trees against the sky. I might do another version of this some time, except drawing the water differently. I tried out my new pen on a different sort of paper here. The paper is highly textured, which I wouldn’t ordinarily use for ink, but I thought the pale pink would go nicely with my gray ink. There was a bit of feathering but this paper is very absorbent so I did not have to worry about the ink not drying. When writing or drawing on a paper like this, the most important thing to keep an eye out for is little bits of paper getting stuck in the nib and causing ink spatters or dragging. One thing I was pleased with was that I thought this pen was nearly out of ink but I was able to make this whole drawing (with hundreds of tiny strokes) and have yet to refill the pen.  ©2011 Carolyn A. Pappas, Tuesday Morning Pears. Graphite, 7 x 10 inches. I’ve been trying to get a good amount of artwork done in the mornings before I turn on my computer or otherwise get distracted. This morning, I drew some pears while listening to people on talk radio go back and forth about Chinese Mothers. I am so glad I didn’t have a “tiger mother” because I would have hated to get roped into playing piano or violin. Painting and drawing is much nicer in my opinion.  ©2011 Carolyn A. Pappas, At Ease. Graphite on Bristol Board, 8 x 10 inches. I started this portrait back in September, but I put it on the shelf and didn’t work on it for months. Finally, I decided to finish it off so I could move onto other things with a clear conscience. I did remember to scan it at different stages of completion (see below). The baseball cap was my favorite thing to draw as I loved the strong contrast. My intention was for this to have a more sketchy look, but I ended up adding more detail than I had originally intended. Even so, I am happy with it, and it bears an excellent resemblance.
I’ve been settling in at home after being away for a few days. We are supposed to get snow on Saturday but nobody knows how much to expect. I wouldn’t mind getting a lot.  ©2011 Carolyn A. Pappas, Bags. Ink in 9 x 12 inch sketchbook.  ©2010 Carolyn A. Pappas, Arrangement of Pears. Graphite on Bristol Board, 6 x 6 inches. This post outlines my 2011 Art Goals. I love this time of year when I can read other artist’s recaps and goals. If you have made such a post, please leave a comment below and I would love to check out yours. I have tons of ideas and I could easily make a list so long that it would be impossible to complete, but I limited myself to four main areas. Increase Production Using Sketchbooks in a Different Way. Experiment with New Subject Matter Start Selling My Work I also have a few other projects that I have started work on, but they are not ready to unveil yet. I hope everyone has a very happy and productive New Year!  ©2010 Carolyn A. Pappas, Three Leaves. Ink and watercolor in 5.5 x 8 inch sketchbook. Every fall I make some sort of leaf drawing or painting. In fact, leaves seem to be a favorite theme of mine all year long. They seem to have a lot of personality and each one is different, which I love. While doing a Google image search for “paintings of leaves,” I found the site for Vermont artist Gary Milek. He uses egg tempera, gold leaf and watercolor to create really beautiful and detailed landscapes and florals. He and his wife run a joint gallery and botanical garden called Cider Hill Gardens. I think I will add it to my list of places in Vermont that I want to visit next time I get up there.  ©2010 Carolyn A. Pappas, Two Leaves. Marker in large handbook sketchbook. |
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Copyright ©2012 Carolyn A Pappas - All Rights Reserved |
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