Justice will not be served until those who are unaffected are as outraged as those who are.
– unattributed
Meditation – 01 June 2020
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Author Archives: Dana Burrell
Video – April Was Fake Journal Month
2020 was my ninth consecutive year of Fake Journaling ever since being tuned on to the process by artist, Roz Stendahl in 2012. She has since stopped her own participation but all the pertinent information is still available on her Official International Fake Journal Blog.
I have all nine years of my fake journals on my dedicated Fake Journal blog…
Skylark Karma.
( skylark karma(dot)wordpress(dot)com ) Each is written by a distinct character, some bearing similarities to me while others couldn’t be more different. This year my character is female. She’s married to Hank and they have two children. The daughter, Lise, is a college freshman and their son, Silas, or Sy for short, is a high school senior. The journal chronicles their daily activity during April 2020 as they adapt to various challenges presented by the coronavirus pandemic.
I chose to draw and paint primarily food packaging and produce using Caran d’Ache Aquarelle watercolor pencils with journaling on the opposing pages.
Although I enjoy the daily process I confess my favorite part is making a short video slideshow to share. It’s nearly as good as letting you page through it yourself. You can always stop the video below to read the entries but it definitely would be easier to visit my fake journal blog and start here with April 1st.
Hope you enjoy this three minute escape into another life!
Remember, this is FAKE… no wrists were broken in the making of this journal.
Meditation – 25 May 2020
My life has been a tapestry in rich and royal hue
an everlasting vision of an ever-changing view
a wondrous woven magic in bits of blue and gold
a tapestry to feel and see, impossible to hold.
Carole King – Tapestry
Off With Her Hair!
Never have I been more thankful for my hairdresser! And before you judge… yes, my cut was allowed following New Hampshire’s structured reopening plan and masks were worn by all. (I’ve obscured some of the text on these pages for privacy.)
Since a few of my in-person workshops this spring were cancelled I treated myself to a short workshop featuring one of my favorite illustrators, Ohn Mar Win. I’ve been following her on Instagram, Ohn_Mar_Win, and I’ve been particularly taken with her recent floral illustrations. See for yourself, they’re exquisite!
The best part of taking her class has been revisiting my comic arts dip pen fitted with a flexible G nib. I used it with a favorite permanent ink, DeAtramentis Document Brown.
There’s nothing like learning something new to get me smiling.
In fact, I’m still smiling.
Meditation – 18 May 2020
Inspiration is for amateurs. The rest of us just get to work.
Chuck Close
Hashtag Coping Skills
Walking, gardening, cooking, drawing, painting and connecting with family, friends and neighbors… anything that brings joy is essential.
#copingskills
(All images drawn from photos posted by the subjects on the Sktchy app.)
Meditation – 11 May 2020
No surprise in the writer, no surprise in the reader.
Robert Frost
April Only Had 30 Days?
Whew! Seemed like April was really long.
Globally we crested three million positive COVID-19 cases of which one million are cases here in the United States. I also heard that more Americans have died from COVID-19 than died over the twenty years we were in Vietnam.
In the face of these sobering statistics I searched for a little happiness.
I found myself laughing with Pluto, a very wise talking dog, and dancing in the kitchen with dj DNice and his Club Quarantine on Instagram.
Spirits lifted, I believe I’m ready for whatever’s coming my way in May.
Meditation – 04 May 2020
Transition
There is nothing permanent except change.
– Heraclitus
The Numbers
Everywhere there are numbers… number of cases, the price of oil, the dollars allocated to help small businesses survive the horrible downturn in our economy.
I’m obviously morbidly fascinated.
Somehow sketching and painting makes it slightly less scary.
