October 10, 2011 October 12, 2011

For those of you who were interested in my post discussing automatic drawing (yesterday) check out this video from YouTube. It helped me understand a practical application.

I started working through the EDM (Every Day Matters) list of objects several months ago. I did the first three items rapidly and then got stuck. The fourth item on the list is a mug, cup or glass. I knew immediately what I wanted to show. My mother bought a cheerful set of red mugs 25 years ago. I always really liked them. They were bright red with small whte roses and bright green leaves. When Mom died in 2002, she still had two mugs from the set and I inherited them. I still use them for my morning coffee almost every day. Everytime I look at them I am still cheered by their fresh, bright color and I think of my mother. You get it…they mean a lot to me. I have this thing – I am scared to death to paint something that is extremely meaningful to me. I am afraid I will not be able to communicate what they represent for me – that I will fail them – dismally, heartbreakingly! Sunday, when I had my markers out to work on automatic drawing, I just jumped right in. This sketch is not a good one, it does not communicate well but at least I have broken through this barrier. My mug is surrounded by the orange juice, english muffin and cereal that I have for breakfast almost every day. I am a creature of habit! Done quickly and roughly but done…

EDM 4 - My Mug

 

January 30, 2011 January 31, 2011

Very productive day yesterday and loads of fun. I took on my third EDM challenge. I used a purse that has been my favorite for years. It was just semi-retired when my husband got me a multi-pocket, cross body purse from the National Geographic Catalog for Christmas…organized and hands-free…wahoo! Love the new purse but I am holding onto the old one. It is from Talbot’s, very flexible and also has a few pockets. I had to think about giving it a rest because somehow it got a smudge of white paint on its black canvas side. I was sad! Here it is…

Favorite Purse - EDM #3

 

I also had time (during the Pro Bowl) to sketch a set of the beautiful columns that decorate the facade of the Alamo. I love the warm color of the stones and stucco and thought this would be a good chance to try an underwash with an ink drawing on top.

Alamo Columns

January 29, 2011 January 30, 2011

For a year I have been fascinated by the Every Day Matters (EDM) challenge. Last year my focus was on using my newly aquired knowledge of color theory and drawing to create watercolor paintings for show and competition. (Wow is that a mouth full!) This year I am more focused on having fun and relieving stress and continuing to develop my knowledge and skills. Nothing is more challenging than trying to make mundane everyday objects impactful, beautiful or exciting. So here I am, close to the end of January, 2011 starting the EDM challenge. I am not making a commitment about how, when or where I will work on this. I just want to enjoy the experience. Here are EDM #1 and EDM #2.

Christmas Shoes - EDM #1

Andy Warhol gained much of his initial recognition through his whimsical illustrations of women’s shoes made for a luxury leather store in NYC. His “blotted line” drawings and some of the gorgeous photos in “O” magazine inspired EDM #1. I also took the oppotunity to use my bamboo calligraphy pens, another tool I bought and never used.

Ken's Lamp - EDM #2

The second EDM object is a lamp. In this case I used a more traditional approach and the lamp that sits beside my husband’s chair. Both the EDM’s were created using graphite, colored pencil and watercolor. For EDM #1 I used a fine point bamboo pen and Black Magic ink.