May 13, 2019 May 13, 2019

During my time in London the British Museum was one of my favorite haunts. I visited at least five times and during my last visit I did some sketching in the galleries devoted to Greek art. The museum has one of the world’s great collections and the galleries also have seating where I could be out of the way to sketch. 

I sketched this massive horse from the Mausoleum of Halicarnassus

and this Nereid from the Nereid Monument at Xanthos. During this rainy, cold weather we’ve been having, I wish I was there again pencil in hand.

For more about Nereids click here https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nereid

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April 18, 2019 April 18, 2019

During my time in Great Britain I visited York. I fell in love with the city. It is easy to walk, has loads of wonderful restaurants and a diverse group of fascinating museums. I knew I was in “Linda country” when the first restaurant I found was the Chocolate Cafe (best hot chocolate I’ve ever had!) York also had wonderful theater and I saw a whimsical, musical version of the Secret Garden. I was also lucky enough to find that York was the summer home of the “pop-up” Shakespeare Festival. I saw an incredible version of Mid-Summer Night’s Dream. In fact there was so much to do and see in York that I had very little time for sketching. I did take one blowy afternoon to do a couple of quick sketches.

March 30, 2019 March 30, 2019

This week I have spent most of my time creating collaged notecards and bookmarks but I have been planning out some time for drawing or sketching – something I also enjoy. I want to share another location that I sketched this summer while in Europe. I only spent two nights in Lincoln but I was overwhelmed by the majesty of the massive Cathedral and the size and power of the castle. These two sit next to each other with a small square between. On each site a protecting gatehouse guards the important sites. I started a sketch of the gate that guardsthe cathedral. Here is the original.

 

 

 

 

And here is my sketch…I didn’t have time to work out all the problems with perspective. I do not have good visual intuition about perspective so I make many mistakes as I sketch and then have to correct them… guess I need practice! practice! practice!

 

 

 

PS I am having a horrible time working with the new block editor and am sorry for all of the odd formatting. I just don’t seem to be able to get my posts to look the way I want 😦

February 24, 2019 February 24, 2019

As I mentioned in my last post, this summer I visited the fascinating city of Oxford, England. It is full of ancient colleges, robed students, interesting architecture and one of the greatest university museums in England. I was able to spend almost an entire day in the Ashmolean Museum and was impressed with its wonderful collections. The focus is art and archeology. I even made time to do a little sketching. Off the main entrance is a wonderful sculpture court and I happily spent about 30 minutes sketching Clio, the muse of history. She was quite beautiful – even without her head! Here is the statue:

And here is the sketch:

For more information about the Ashmolean Museum look here. For more information about Clio look here.

December 26, 2017 December 26, 2017

Working with my bamboo pens I am finding it very difficult to do a finished drawing. It may just be the pens I have but none have a fine or very fine tip so my drawings look rustic at best and crude at worst. In my National Wildlife magazine I found an image I wanted very much to draw. It is of a large bighorn sheep. He is regal with powerful muscles and an alert posture as though he is on watch. He is the protector of his domain – at his prime. I did most of the drawing with my bamboo pens but finished the drawing/sketch (in a fit of frustration!) with a standard ink pen. The ink pen gave me the fine lines I needed to feel better about the drawing. It has some positives but I see some “kludgy” (to use a software term) areas that look smudgy and the head is too dark and short and I don’t have the eyes quite right. Ink is so unforgiving. Even more so than watercolor… Practice, practice, practice!

 

 

 

December 23, 2017 December 23, 2017

I have been engrossed in Walter Isaacson’s new biography of Leonardo da Vinci. The content is encyclopedic – rich and well written. The book is printed on elegant paper with a beautiful font and wonderful, clear images. The book includes many examples of Leonardo’s pen drawings. His mastery is dazzling and also inspiring. I will never approach the capability of Leonardo but I did get out my bamboo pens again and created a new practice sheet. I used images from my latest copy of National Wildlife (National Wildlife Federation monthly magazine). I love and am continually inspired by nature. I completed three rough sketches, the last of which I finished with colored pencils. The top drawing is of a monarch butterfly enjoying a blazing star, the second drawing is of three coneflowers, which are native to Indiana, and the third sketch I did is of a Southern Masked Weaver. I was fascinated by the colors shimmering through the feathers of this bird that is primarily yellow. He is weaving greenery into a nest.

 

 

 

May 5, 2017 May 5, 2017

This is the last sketch from my recent driving trip. After my youngest daughter joined me for the last week of my trip I did not set aside much time to sketch. On my last day in Charleston I walked the Battery area looking for manageable subjects. The houses there are beautiful, majestic and complex. I wanted to capture the feeling but didn’t have time for anything too large or impressive. AND I  wanted a house shaded by trees and decorated with sunlight dancing through dappled green.

My sketch was done with my watercolor pencils and crayons using a small brush (probably a #4) on a 6 inch X 8 inch watercolor sketchbook. And, unlike my earlier sketches, I used an ink pen to outline shapes since the sketch is so busy. This paper is heavy but I can’t work too wet or the surface “pills” and becomes hard to work with. I hope you can feel the sunshine! Its rainy in Indianapolis now and I could use a big dose of sunshine and warmth!

 

April 30, 2017 April 30, 2017

Last Sunday I returned from a driving trip to the American South. I started In Lexington, Kentucky, next visited Atlanta and Savannah, Georgia, then on to Charleston, South Carolina and finished in Asheville, North Carolina. It was an interesting and educational look at history, culture, natural environments and my personality. I was able to maintain a relaxed, adaptable approach to my trip (not really my type A norm). I loved the experience and was contented and able to enjoy what could have been a very stressful two weeks.

I have a new sketch for you. I did this sketch at the Atlanta Botanical Gardens. The Gardens are remarkable and they have a large woodlands area that I would like to explore further. One focal point is a sculpture made from living plants called the Earth Goddess. It is a huge bust of a beautiful woman with her hand extended and water flowing from it. In April the plants are tan, beige, light green but I understand that the Earth Goddess is very colorful later in the year. I loved it. I did a quick sketch and then touch-up later in my room. The foliage was very complex and challenging in this garden. Again I worked with watercolor pencil and later watercolor crayon on a small watercolor sketchbook. I hope you enjoy.

 

April 15, 2017 April 17, 2017

I just spent a week in Atlanta. It was a wonderful week. I didn’t even get frustrated with the traffic and crowds both of which were HEAVY!!!!! One of the highlights was my visit to Zoo Atlanta and their amazing giant pandas. They have two adults and their funny, furry, fascinating 11 week old cubs. The Mom and cubs are together and Dad is in a separate enclosure (he was pacing and tumbling and rolling). I did a quick sketch of Mom munching away on bamboo. I used my watercolor crayons and a small brush. It was very quick and spontaneous. FUN!

 

October 18, 2013 October 18, 2013

This is the final post about my visit to the Napa Valley. I saved the best for last. This watercolor sketch is of the Sterling Winery. Their cabernet sauvignon was my husband’s absolute favorite. When I saw the winery I had to visit. It sits on the top of a hill and you take a 300 foot aerial tram ride to reach the winery…beautiful views of the valley. This winery is at the northern eand of the valley and you have moved past the very dry, sun bleached hills of the south end of Napa. The winery is designed to look like a small village in Greece. Very special, very picturesque.

Sterling Winery watercolor sketch

I liked the overlapping abstract shapes and the clean, bright colors. The large tarnished bell that sits in the arch was brought from Greece.