In a world where you can be anything.
Be kind.
Meditation – 03 February 2020
1
Sketchbook = Journal
Back in early January I saw my sketchbook filling up with images but no writing. I realized just how much I missed musing about my days.
Purposeful journaling about my most mundane daily activities was the only way to change that trajectory.
BTW… the Center for Disease Control truly believes shingles is dangerous and one of the worst things to plague humans. Get vaccinated!
Portrait of Sktchy muse Karina Grinchenko in an A5 portrait format Hahnemühle Nostalgie. Journaling obscured for privacy.
Meditation – 27 January 2020
Great personal style is an extreme curiosity about yourself.
Iris Apfel
Blooming!
It’s been a while since my last update on the progress of the little paperwhite bulb I was given back in mid-December. Quite a lot has been happening…
and just yesterday it bloomed!
Of course now the house is filled with its “perfume”!
I don’t mind it and figure it’s the price I need to pay to have green and flowering things growing in my house each winter.
But the Paperwhite’s smell can be polarizing. Where do you stand on the issue?
Scent? … or stink?
Meditation – 20 January 2020
How long? Not long, because the arc of the moral universe is long, but it bends toward justice.
Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
Montgomery, Alabama
March 25, 1965
(… and yes, I missed the second o in Montgomery.)
Testing New Brush Pens
I love watersoluble pen and ink work because sometimes you feel like keeping a line and sometimes you don’t.
On Roz Stendahl’s blog and her Patreon site, Roz Interim, she demonstrated the Pentel Sign Pen – Artist Micro Brush. They’re dye based and water-soluble, perfect for shading with a touch of water, and on top of that they have a super fine brush tip! You can see that in the photo below.
I was able to find both sets of 6 at my local Michael’s and immediately set to testing.
Portraits don’t always have to be realistic, do they?
Hahnemühle Nostalgie – A5 portrait
Meditation – 13 January 2020
Don’t get in a rut, change it up, experiment.
Learn from others and learn from your mistakes because if you’re working hard enough… they will occur.
But most of all… don’t stress and have fun!
unknown
The Paperwhite’s Update #1
It’s been two weeks since you saw the first images of the daily documentation of my little Paperwhite’s growth. It’s been growing gangbusters now that it has its roots firmly entwined among the glass beads.
These daily ink and watercolor sketches just prove that art can be made in the briefest of time. These rarely take more than a half hour of my time but give me immense enjoyment.
That’s a good trade off any day!
Meditation – 06 January 2020
Every portrait that is painted with feeling is a portrait of the artist not of the sitter.
Oscar Wilde
Testing the Clairefontaine Watercolor Sketchbook
Back in May 2019 I was asked by Roz Stendahl to be one of a few artists to help her test an A5, landscape format, Clairefontaine Goldline Watercolor Sketchbook provided by the Clairefontaine representative. Roz started out the testing before sending the book along for each us to fill a few spreads using various techniques and media.
I decided to fill a signature by testing assorted techniques: watercolor, water-soluble inks, gouache and watercolor pencils.
I was the fifth to work in the book and unfortunately by the time I received it the stitching was coming undone and the book pages and signatures were separating. I really enjoyed working in it but even the best watercolor paper can’t overcome poor construction. This can be seen in the video Roz posted in conjunction with her comprehensive review of the book. You can also see Roz’s testing and the testing from the other artists at the same link. Their work is exquisite and their comments enlightening.
This was a great opportunity for me to clarify what I look for in a visual journal. I know I’ll continue to experiment with commercially bound books because it’s just too much fun not to… but I also won’t give up binding my own books with my favorite papers in my favorite formats either!
Thanks Roz!
Dana Burrell... Art 