Last week I did not work on any “serious” art projects, although I did finish up something that I have wanted to do for a long time. I have wanted to make a one page mini zine for years now, probably since 2004 when I first saw one. For various reasons, I never got around to it until now.
The front cover of my one page mini zine.
It was nothing fancy, just a small series of pen and ink drawings pasted to a sheet of paper and photocopied. They were nature drawings from around my house, sketched quickly.
Making the paste-up using a super old lightbox that I've had for years.
Below I scanned my photocopy and arranged the pages in order for you to see. These drawings all fit onto one 8.5 x 11 inch sheet of paper.
This is my favorite time of year to be outside appreciating the subtleties of nature. Springtime is the best time to experience the color Green in many different variations. The spring landscape is gorgeous here in New England.
The View from Poet's Seat Tower in Greenfield, MA
Above is a photo I took yesterday from the top of Poet’s Seat Tower. I made a mini sketch of the view from the lower part of the tower on a manila tag. It was an experiment using my Pentel Pocket Brush Pen and some colored pencils. The pen works great on this paper (no smudging unlike some other papers I have tried), although there isn’t enough tooth for the colored pencils.
I haven’t done anything in straight pen and ink for a long time so I decided to give it a try again. Pen and ink is a real challenge for me because I struggle with adding too much detail. I really love detail, but I can carry it too far at times. I don’t ever remember doing a landscape like this in ink before–I wanted to show the different “layers” of trees and ground. I’d like to try a similar landscape, only draw it more simply next time. It was a lot of fun to draw for sure.
The scene depicts the view from Fox Hill in Bernardston, Massachusetts. Bernardston is a small town in a very out of the way part of the state. I love it there! It was the same place that I spotted the pheasant.
At my recent botanical illustration class, the teacher had us close our eyes for about two minutes and then open them and notice what drew our attention. She wanted us to see if we were drawn to the lighter areas or the darker areas of the room first. I noticed the light filtering in through the window and then the contrast of some white antlers against the wall.
Then she explained her theory that people who are attracted to the dark areas first find it more natural to work in oil, acrylic or pastel. People that prefer the light areas first tend to enjoy watercolor, colored pencil, graphite and pen and ink. I felt like my own instincts were confirmed! I had never before heard someone explain this theory, but in my case I think it definitely applies.
I’ve been thinking a lot lately about my personality and how I am nothing like the stereotypical “artist personality.” I took a Myers-Briggs test and I came back as ISTJ (introvert, sensing, thinking, judging). I am very serious and organized. I am ultra-dependable. I see things in black and white and I have a need to follow the rules (sometimes too rigidly!). I love my personality, but sometimes I can get too intense and that’s why I love art so much, because it lets me “depressurize” myself.
The drawing is based on an old photo of a stream taken while crossing over a bridge. I believe it was in Northern Italy. I drew it the other night after Cate had gone to sleep. She has been going to bed around seven o’clock every night so I have some extra time in the evenings these days.
When I was pregnant, I threw out most of my clothes because they were really old (read: frumpy) and I wanted to update everything. So I’ve been slowly undertaking the task of buying new things. It’s nice to redo everything from scratch, I must say. I’ve been more intentional about what I am buying to create the specific “look” that I want. This little sketch is of a bag that I got from bookhou at home. It makes a nice diaper bag for Cate’s things.
Recently, I made some updates to my website. I added a static homepage with a painting and a concise artist statement. I wanted to give my site a more professional overall feel and I noticed some people were confused when they landed straight onto my blog. I’m planning on changing out the picture every so often with a current one. I also reorganized my portfolio page according to medium instead of subject matter. Updating my portfolio with new work is going to be a major focus of mine over the next few months.
I have always liked leap day, as it is a rare day. Plus, it’s supposed to snow today. Yay!
I thought I would share some links I have come across recently:
Vivien Blackburn has been experimenting with Derwent Coloursoft colored pencils over watercolor, with very nice results. It makes me want to do more experimenting myself, along these lines.
Lisa Call wrote a nice blog Advice to Emerging Artists: You are not a Fraud about writing an artist statement, or writing about your artwork in general. I appreciated the encouraging words.
This abstract drawing is inspired by the tufts of hair of my flokati rug. These days I like to make abstract, repetitive drawings while Cate takes mini naps during the day. This drawing was especially fun to make with my Noodler’s Flex Nib pen.
Congratulations to Endment who is the winner of my notecard giveaway. Please contact me with your information so I can mail off your prize. If I don’t hear from you by Friday, Jan 20, I will draw another name.
If you haven’t signed up for my free email newsletter Delicate Paperwork yet, it’s not too late. I’m sending off the first issue tomorrow. Click here to sign up.
I did some multitasking one evening, alternating between reading, listening to the TV and sketching Ruben (whenever he changed position). I felt so productive.
This is the first year that I can remember that I haven’t been stressed out over Christmas. I decided not to gift anyone artwork this year, and my family decided on a one present per person policy which really simplifies shopping. Now that my shopping is all done and I don’t feel “pressurized,” I actually haven’t minded the few times I’ve been out in the stores. I spent a couple of nice afternoons visiting Thornes Marketplace and Kringle Candle.
