Story Time

I finally got a little studio time today, so I tidied up this little drawing and transferred it onto the new illustration board. The gold of the board is a lot deeper in person. We'll see how it looks. This is a first bit of the value study that will help me get started with the colors. I am going at a snail's pace, as usual.

   

   This piece is reminding me of a story I read when I was very young. It might have been an Inuit story, but I'm not sure. It was set in a place where women were scarce, and men would fight over them. Once, during such a fight, the two men pulled the woman between them, one at her feet and the other at her arms. They pulled her completely in two, and each man carved a new half for her out of wood. And that is why some women can dance and others are gifted with their hands. I would love to find that story again.

   

 

 

Colored Illustration Boards

These beauties came yesterday. I've been waiting to start that screw head drawing because I wanted to have that warm yellow underneath like in the houseboat drawing, but without the texture. It took a while, but I finally found some illustration board that is near to that yellow ochre color I'm after. This photo isn't quite correct, because the color is deeper and warmer than it appears here. If anyone is interested, it is called Bainbridge Hot Press Illustration Board and you can find it here:  https://www.dickblick.com/products/bainbridge-hot-press-illustration-board/

The pencils are colors I tried out from the big set and wanted to add to my own collection. They are Sky Blue Light (a miracle worker) and Black Cherry, Black Grape and Black Raspberry. Honestly, I bought the last three because they sounded so delicious. 

 

Two is for Joy (practice)

   I sort of saw this yesterday, except the sky was grey and silver, and there is a line of trees behind this field. But there were two crows, just like that, perched on cropped stalks.

     The sky is blue because I wanted to practice doing the gradation in colored pencils. There are five blues in the sky, plus white. I've painted that a lot of times, and it is always the same each time. With colored pencils, I'm sort of having to reinvent the wheel for myself, because the process is not the same as painting. The newness of it is a blessing.

    

 

From my sketchbook

This is actually from before the riot, but it's how I'm feeling today, too. On that day, I had a conversation with someone who was really worried about what might happen on January 6. At that point, I thought she was right to worry, but I also naively thought that the adults in charge in D.C. would be prepared. Foolish me.

     And now, we are facing more of the same nonsense. Washington seems to have wised up and is prepared, but now my worry is for the states. My ear is to the ground for signs. I hope everyone stays safe out there.

Blue Skies and Golden Sunshine for David Lynch

We have them here, too. Once in a while.

 

The Next One

   I've been searching through old sketchbooks lately, and came across this one from something I used to think about in my childhood. I have always liked my mornings to be slow, and when I was little, I thought it would be nice if I could unscrew my head and wash my face and comb my hair with my head in my lap instead of my arms in the air. I thought it would save so much time, and I'd have more time for daydreaming in the mornings if I could manage it.

Years later, I drew out this little image of how that would look. I think I didn't pursue it for a painting because I thought it looked pretty gruesome. Now, it just makes me laugh. And it will be just fine to use to practice colored pencils.

I also wonder if I've ever read a story about this, and that's how it made its way into my sketchbook. I've been searching, but so far I haven't found one that fits.  

 

David Lynch and Sunshine Yellow

Lately, I've been watching David Lynch's daily Weather Report. Today, he referenced George Harrison's While My Guitar Gently Weeps and then went right back to talking about temperatures and golden sunshine. Here are some lyrics from the song:

 I look from the wings

At the play you are staging

While my guitar gently weeps

Those seemed like really appropriate words for today.

     Such as it is, I'm pretty much done with this little drawing. I grew up spending my summers at a beautiful aqua-blue lake. I didn't have boat shoes, but I did have a little blue rowboat, and in it, I explored every inch of the lake where I was allowed to go. I've been craving that sunshine. For right now, this is the next best thing.

I'm surprised to find that my color theory habits are changing because of the Prismacolor complete set. It has been a while since I've been excited about that kind of discovery. When I paint, I usually keep to a pretty limited palette, and I mix most of the colors. It is pretty rare for me to use paint straight from the tube. But with this set, there are so many colors to choose from, all I have to do is match the color I see and find it in the set, rather than having to make it myself. Plus, the names of the colors are actually helpful. I was looking for a yellow to brighten up this sky, and I found one call "Sunshine Yellow" that was perfect. 

I really liked having the ochre color to work with on the surface, but I wasn't a fan of the texture of the paper. I think that next, I'll try putting a watercolor wash over some Bristol board and try the colored pencils over that. What I'd really like to have is some illustration board that has a colored surface, but so far, I haven't found any. It's good to stay hungry, though, right?

 

    

 

Look at this Deliciousness

This is a thing of beauty right here: every one of the colors that Prismacolor makes, 150 in all. I bought the set for my classroom, because one of the few perks of being Area Coordinator (in this case, a name for a schmuck who does lots of extra jobs for no extra personal compensation) is that I get to decide how to spend our area money. 

   Now I'll be able to suggest colors to students and also allow them to borrow one they need that won't be in their personal kits. And oh, my gosh. It is so lovely to have so many subtle choices, already arranged in color classes. I'm tackling the water in the little drawing I posted a couple of days ago. That little section of aqua greens and blues is where I'm at right now. My happy place.

 

Kick It to Start

These are just experiments, to help get myself going.

I've been really struggling to make images. I guess all the ennui is getting to me. Good thing my former self didn't have time to make all the things she thought of. I've been looking at those old sketchbooks and found this little idea. I'd like to sail away in a pair of shoes like that, right about now. 

    I'm still getting the hang of colored pencils. One problem here is that the paper (mi-tientes) has too much texture, so the wax kind of clumps up instead of blending well. But, I like working with a colored paper, and I haven't tried the colorless blender, yet. 

   And ha!  I see a mistake in the boat! Darn it!