Happy Almost-Summer!

S'more, Deconstructed

(click to enlarge)

I know that the calendar says that we have a month or so until summer officially starts, but in my mind, Memorial Day starts summer rolling. And since the Illustration Friday topic is melt, I thought I'd share this drawing from almost exactly one year ago. (See the original post here.) Have a relaxing holiday weekend!

Sand Dollar, version 2.0

(click to enlarge)

As mentioned in my last post, after playing around in that looser style, I had to do a tighter, more realistic version of one sand dollar. It's a quiet little drawing, but it played right into my obsession with radial symmetry in nature. The image is about 6" in diameter, twice the size of the actual sand dollar. I used what I think is a piece of Fabriano Artistico paper that I found in my drawer; its beautiful surface just loves the graphite. I remembered to take this one WIP shot, for what it's worth :

I hope you're enjoying the first few days of summer!

Hidatsa Shield Figure Beans

Prismacolor colored pencil on Strathmore charcoal paper, "Golden Brown"

One of my Christmas presents from my daughter was a fabulous selection of vegetable garden seeds from the Seed Savers Exchange. (If you're into gardening, you must check out their website; you can also order one of these catalogs that I just received—isn't that cover gorgeous?)

Among my seeds was this packet of Hidatsa Shield Figure Beans. That name had me intrigued right off the bat, and the photo on the front of the packet sealed the deal. So, I did a little bit of research: The markings on the beans are supposedly reminiscent of the painted shields of the Hidatsa tribe who raised corn, squash, beans, and sunflowers in the Missouri River Valley of North Dakota. I looked for an image that supported this theory, but didn't see anything strikingly similar, but I'll keep sleuthing. Shield Figure beans are described in the fascinating Buffalo Bird Woman’s Garden (1987) which you can read more about here.

As for my drawing, it was lots of fun, but I'd forgotten that the charcoal paper needs a lighter touch than I gave it, I'm afraid. Here's how I set up my little "models" on my drawing table. I just stuck them on a piece of foam core with this Quake-Hold museum putty that I use all of the time when positioning the things that I'm drawing. (And yes, when you live in earthquake country, you do also use this stuff to secure valuables in case of The Big One.)

While working on this drawing, I had to get out one of my favorite picture books, the exquisite A Seed is Sleepy. Sylvia Long's amazing illustrations could keep my entertained for hours. They've also collaborated on A Butterfly is Patient, A Rock is Lively, and the stunningly beautiful, An Egg is Quiet. I simply adore these books.

Well, it's getting warmer here in the Bay Area, but we're experiencing quite a drought this winter (this is our rainy season); the plants in my yard don't know what season it is. Here's hoping that Mother Nature gets some rain on its way in time to set the scene for my seed planting!

Update: I've just realized that this week's topic on Illustration Friday is "beginning". What's more of a beginning than some seeds? (Okay, we could get into the which-came-first conundrum but we won't...)

Radicchio

I've been eyeing the radicchio at the market—isn't it beautiful? I love how the leaves nestle together so snugly. (Perfect for Illustration Friday's topic of "together" this week, in fact!)

I'm not a huge fan of radicchio's bitter taste when eaten raw. However, I was reading that, while Americans tend to use it mostly as a raw salad ingredient, Italians usually grill it or cook it in risotto, etc. So, I plan on cutting this baby into wedges, drizzling some olive oil onto it and throwing it onto the grill this weekend—we'll see!

It was a treat to use these colors for a change. Some of you may think that I should have drawn more of a pronounced outline at the white stems, but I like how the red leaves sort of emerge out of the white paper. What do you think?

Here's a WIP shot...I really love this stage; I'm always tempted to stop here!

I'll let you know how my grilled radicchio turns out; 

have a wonderful weekend and Happy First-Day-of-Autumn!

My green pencils need a rest.

"Brussels Sprouts"

Prismacolor colored pencils on Strathmore Bristol vellum, 3" x 11"

About a year ago, a close friend of mine gave her aunt a framed print of my drawing of an artichoke. Her aunt lives in a Northern California coastal area known for growing artichokes, pumpkins and Brussels sprouts, and kindly asked if I might draw those as well. You may recall that I finished the pumpkin, but the holidays intervened and when I finally had time, no Brussels sprouts (on the stalk) were to be found at the markets. (By the way, if you haven't eaten Brussels sprouts in a while, you should try them again. In recent years, some of the bitterness has been bred out of them—they're delicious!)

I almost never draw from reference photos; I just get a better result from real "models". But rather than put this drawing off any longer, I decided it had to be done. Now, if I were to draw using my own photos as reference, that's one thing, but this time I had to rely on stock photos I found online. The ones I ended up using had no photographer listed that I could request permission from and/or give credit, and they were all used extensively on  the internet as "generic" pics of Brussels sprouts. I also bought some loose fresh Brussels sprouts which were very helpful in achieving realistic colors and textures. (I posted some WIP shots in this previous post.) I'm happy with the end result, but can't help but feel a bit guilty about using those photos, even though they weren't "artistic" photographs per se.  How do you feel about that dilemma?

I've been a little negligent of my blog; I've been trying a new drug for my Parkinson's and had more than a few "foggy" days, but am feeling much better now. Looking back at my last few drawings, it's high time to draw something—anything!—that's not green.

Note: I just remembered that this week's topic on Illustration Friday is "lush". One order of lush Brussels sprouts coming right up!

Old Books

Prismacolor colored pencil on Strathmore Charcoal paper. "Pottery Green"

“It is a good rule after reading a new book, 
never to allow yourself another new one till you have read an old one in between.” 

— C.S. Lewis

I love old books, so when I saw this week's topic on Illustration Friday, "worn", I had to look no further than the bookshelf next to my desk. I've always liked how these four looked together, in their green and blue covers. I might have gone overboard using the grey-green paper, but I like how their faded covers sort of fade into the paper.

I've drawn books before (here) and I always have a grand time doing them. I've thought about doing a series, but I'm a big fan of artist Jane Mount's book series, and worry that I'm not being original—not that my work is all that similar to hers. I guess it's time to re-read this wonderful little book that I have,  Steal Like an Artist by Austin Kleon. It's enlightening, inspiring, and great fun to read.

Speaking of books, I mentioned in a recent post that I'm going to visit the home of Beatrix Potter on my upcoming trip to England. Well, in my travel planning, I somehow neglected to see that her house isn't open on Fridays...the day I'll be there. Grrr. I tried to console myself with the fact that there will be a smaller crowd and I can still see the outside and the gardens. But what really cheered me up was the fact that, a few minutes later, I got the last online reservation for one of the infrequent tours of the Bodleian Library at Oxford, and the tour includes going into the not-usually open-to-the public Radcliffe Camera.  (I'm such a library geek.) And when I read the description of the exhibition that's on while I'm there, I forgot all about Beatrix and her not-open-on Fridays abode. Check out the amazing exhibition here.

I'll be back home on July 13, so I hope to give you a full report!

Sweet Summer Cherries

“Summer afternoon—summer afternoon; 

to me those have always been the two most beautiful words in the English language.”   

—Henry James  

It's cherry season in the Bay Area, and there's a stand in my neighborhood that sells some real beauties. On Wednesday afternoon, I bought a pound each of the dark red ones—I think they're Bing, but I'm not positive—and the Rainier cherries, and they're so sweet!! (It was a happy coincidence that Illustration Friday posted this week's topic of "sweet" just as I was putting the final touches on this drawing.)

I decided to draw the Rainiers, as a companion piece to a drawing of the red ones that I did last year at this time. When you see these in the market, they're often a bit bruised and discolored—their light-colored skins make them appear more fragile. I think they have a more delicate taste, too.

It's supposed to be warm and sunny here for the next week or so, and cherries are the perfect warm weather snack—it's a wonder that I got through this drawing without getting cherry juice all over it.

Here are some set-up and work-in-progress pics.  Please forgive the bad lighting and inaccurate color; I shot these at my desk with my iPhone camera since I just didn't want to get up and do the whole scanning thing. I was going to write a bit more about my process, but oddly enough, when I went back to last year's cherry drawing, I'd gone through it all in that post! Strange...

Have a great weekend!

My favorite liquid

A quickie sketch for Illustration Friday's topic, "liquid".  

I love coffee, as I've mentioned before. (Ironically, caffeine is supposed to have some protective effect against Parkinson's disease; I guess I missed the boat on that one. If you're interested, my fellow blogger, fellow "Parkie", and and wonderful painter, Amanda Bates, wrote a comprehensive post about it here a while back.) Anyway, I rounded up some coffee-related things from my kitchen, and decided to do a page in my new favorite sketch book—I just love this Strathmore "Toned Tan" paper! (I like the result, except for the fact that the French press is a touch overwrought and looks a bit like a penguin...)

I set my Prismacolors aside and used Derwent drawing pencils for this one. (3B Graphic, plus "Chinese White" and "Chocolate" Drawing pencils)  Derwent products are wonderful, and I've recently learned that they were the one of the earliest pencil companies. Their factory is still located in the Cumbria region of England, in the beautiful Lake District. My husband and I are visiting that area for a couple of days this summer when we vacation in England.  (Today's our 35th wedding anniversary, and the trip is our present to ourselves!) I don't know if we'll have time, but I'd love to fit in a trip to the Pencil Museum in that area—it certainly sounds like my idea of a great museum. The main reason that I wanted to add the Lake District to our itinerary (besides the fact that it's gorgeous country) is to see Beatrix Potter's home and gallery. I know that's a totally tourist-y thing to do, but I just have to see it. And, to be able to see some of her artwork first-hand is going to be such a treat—even better than a cup of coffee.

A flower for Penelope

Prismacolor colored pencil and graphite on Strathmore Toned Tan sketch paper

(click to enlarge)

This week's topic on Illustration Friday is "Tribute", in honor of its founder, Penelope Dullaghan, who has recently moved on to pursue other projects. Before I launch into my own tribute to Penelope and IF, I'll explain my little sketch:

When my husband and I moved to California many years ago, we were invited to dinner at the home of a family friend. Along one side of their house, they had a profusion of different varieties of fuchsia on display, and I fell in love. I haven't had any in my own garden for years, so when we recently replanted a flower bed, we decided to add some fuchsias. At the nursery, I was instantly drawn in by their names. I love it when plants are named as a tribute to a famous person. I chose two, almost as much for their names as for their beauty. One is Fuchsia "Winston Churchill" (which I love because I'm an admitted Anglophile) and the other is the one I've sketched here. With its red "hat" and white "beard", how could I resist Fuchsia "Santa Claus"?! Such a lively little blossom; the whole time I was sketching it, I kept thinking of the Flower Fairy illustrations by Cicely Mary Barker. You can see her charming Fuchsia fairy here.

Now for my tribute to Penelope Dullaghan:

One of the reasons that I started blogging a few years ago was so that I could participate in Illustration Friday. For a long time, I was a very consistent contributor—I rarely missed a week! Early on, one of my drawings was even selected to be IF's "Pick of the Week" which gave me lots of exposure and encouragement. But most importantly, I got to know many fellow artists that also participated  in IF regularly. (Once I realized that if I commented on a drawing, that person often commented back, the communication floodgates were opened!) I consider a number of these people to be friends: I still visit their blogs regularly, chat with some on Facebook, and a few of us even check up on one another when we haven't posted in a while. For these reasons, I send my heartfelt thanks to Penelope for her devotion to this website that gave rise to such a wonderful supportive community.

Having said that, my recent IF entries have been few and far between. I've had a busy spring and wasn't at my drawing board as much as I'd have liked, but things are a bit quieter now, and I'm hoping to spend more time doing these quicker sketches when I'm not working on a more detailed piece. I will also be visiting blogs, making some new friends, and checking up on the old ones! So, in the spirit of the IF community that Penelope nurtured, feel free to leave a comment and say hello!

Wings

" I have made a great mistake. I have wasted my life with mineralogy, 

which has led to nothing. Had I devoted myself to birds, their life and 

plumage, I might have produced something worth doing." 

 —John Ruskin

I was excited to read that this week's Illustration Friday topic is "wings", as I have just finished this drawing of  spotted owl and peregrine falcon feathers. It was a Christmas present for my son; I know, I know, it's January, but he has just returned from three months in New Zealand, so our celebration was postponed a bit.

As I've told you in a previous posts here and here, he's a field biologist currently working with the California Condor group at nearby Pinnacles National Monument. (Pinnacles was recently upgraded to national park status!) Before that, he worked with a spotted owl research project up in the Sierra. With a few months off between stints at Pinnacles, he took a working vacation to New Zealand—backpacking, photographing, and working on a local falcon project.

My son is one of those lucky adults who has a job that grew from a childhood fascination. As a little boy, he would count hawks to pass the time on our summer drives to Lake Tahoe, and requested that his 7th birthday cake be decorated with a peregrine falcon. I was able to unearth this photo (terribly out-of-focus, I'm afraid) to document my culinary creation. Twenty years later, I hope that he'll enjoy this drawing just as much.

Here are a few WIP shots...I always enjoy seeing them in posts; I hope you do, too!

Aw, Nuts!

Prismacolor colored pencil on Strathmore charcoal paper, "Golden Brown"

I love drawing nuts. They're such interesting shapes and textures, inside and out. I also love samplers and swatch charts, color charts, botanical charts, it doesn't matter what the subject is, really—I like their visual organization. The illustrations that the John Burgoyne does for the back covers of Cooks Illustrated magazine make me swoon. So, this is my nut "sampler", but it's a work-in-progress. There will eventually be at least 2 more rows, a walnut and a Brazil nut. I may add some hand-lettered labels, but that remains to be seen.  I'm also using it to illustrate this week's Illustration Friday topic, "zoom", as I really had to get out my magnifying glass to zoom in on these. (Okay, that may be a stretch, but I've missed participating in IF lately, and just had to enter something this week!)

Drawing on toned, textured paper seemed to help capture the colors and feel of the almond and hazelnut. The only drawback is that it's not as easy to digitally clean up stray background smudges and pencil dust, so that hasn't been done yet on this piece.

I've got another couple of pieces (one with a very personal story attached to it) that are almost ready to share; I hope you'll check back on Thursday for a special Thanksgiving post!

Illustration Friday: Crooked

a Couple of Cuddling Crooknecks 

Hmmm...maybe I should do an alphabet series...

I've been trying to think of a good subject for the topic, "crooked", while repeatedly walking past a huge pile of these squash on my kitchen counter. Obviously, it finally dawned on me that crookneck squash fit the bill. The plants are getting scraggly and overgrown, but they're still producing like crazy. 

I'm annoyed with myself because I rushed a bit while working on these shadows and made them too dark; it's tricky when you have a yellow subject on a white background. Then I tried to soften them by adding a little crosshatching, which wasn't all that successful either. Ah well, live and learn: Slow down. And plant fewer squash next year.

Illustration Friday: Imagination

Nothing fuels the imagination quite like some blank paper and a box of crayons.

Illustration Friday: Lonely

It's impossible to be lonely when you have a good book—and a chicken or two.

This is May, my Buff Orpington hen, atop one of my latest yard sale finds. My husband spotted these beautiful Adirondack chairs when we stopped at a yard sale on our Saturday morning walk home from the coffee shop.

Both chairs and both footstools for $22—such a steal! I may refinish them down the road, but I kind of like their weathered look. But best of all, they're really comfortable for reading on a summer afternoon; May and Charlotte think so too. 

Are you reading anything wonderful this summer? (I keep my current picks on my sidebar over to the right, if you're interested.)

Illustration Friday: Suspend II

Prismacolor colored pencil (White and 90% Warm Grey) on Strathmore Charcoal Paper

I know, two posts in two days is a tad unusual for me—okay, highly unusual for me—but when I noticed these rocks, they just had to be in a sketch for "suspend". (I hope that the wonderful people at Illustration Friday won't mind me bending the rules and posting two entries.)

Lately, I've been picking up rocks with holes in them when I see them at the beach, or on a walk. Strung up and hanging in my little studio area, they're little travel mementos. (I should have been writing dates and places on them; I think I'll do that from now on!)

Will I make it "three posts in three days"? Tune in tomorrow...

Illustration Friday: Suspend

Prismacolor colored pencils on Strathmore Bristol Vellum

In my garden, ripening blackberries are suspended from their stems, 

waiting for the birds—or me—to pluck them off. 

 

My blackberry plants are out of control—in a good way. They have razor-sharp thorns, and they grow like weeds, but I love them anyway. Maybe it's because I can never pick them without thinking of Beatrix Potter's The Tale of Peter Rabbit, in which Peter's sisters obediently pick blackberries during his misadventure in Mr. McGregor's garden. 

It's great to be participating in Illustration Friday...it's been a little while! I'm reserving judgement on the new format—maybe it'll just take some getting used to. (I'm not so good with change.) I hope to visit some old favorites as well as some new faces this week! (Update: After actually posting my first time in the new IF  format, I have to admit that it's nice to not have to make a thumbnail—even though I miss the "surprise" element of clicking on them—and the "sharing" capabilities are amazing!)

Illustration Friday: Faded

Prismacolor colored pencils on Strathmore charcoal paper, 4.5" x 5.75"

"Beware of all enterprises that require new clothes."

—Henry David Thoreau, Walden

We all have our favorite pair of faded blue jeans. As summer begins, I'm ecstatic to be trading in my school-year work clothes (which, for me, only means casual pants and "nice" jeans) for my really casual gear.

As I mentioned in a recent post, I'm going to work on photographing my work this summer, rather than scanning everything. I haven't jumped into the process yet, so this one was just taken with my iPhone, and you can see some problems with the uneven color of the lighting. But I think I prefer its texture to the image I got when I scanned it. (Maybe my scanning abilities need some tweaking this summer, too!)

I thought you might like to see my ultra-sophisticated set-up for this drawing: I tossed my jeans onto the floor by my drawing table, isolated a composition that I liked with a mat, and started drawing. 

I tried to keep the colors I used to a minimum: Indigo Blue (one of my faves) and White, along with a couple of warm tones for the stitching as well as Tuscan Red over the Indigo Blue (one of my favorite layering combinations) for the dark corner.

I hope to connect with many of you this week; I'm planning on making lots of overdue blog visits...hooray for summer!

Illustration Friday: Kernel

I hope you'll forgive me for posting an oldie this week. These chestnuts were one of the first drawings that I ever posted on my blog, back before I started doing Illustration Friday. (You can read the original post here.) I've been too busy with the humdrum practicalities of life and haven't participated in IF in way too long, and just needed to get something out there this week. That will change soon, though: School is out soon, so I'll be off for a few months, and have lots of drawing to catch up on. And I can't wait to have time to visit blogs regularly again. So, if I haven't stopped by in a bit, fear not, I'll be by soon.

Happy Almost-Summer!

Illustration Friday: The Return of Spring

The return of fresh asparagus to the produce department is a sure sign that spring is here. I love the tidy bundles—I even love the lavender rubber band that surrounds them. 

I left this piece unfinished...or is it? I actually like how it looks, and may leave it like this. I find work-in-progress shot very appealings, and sometimes they have a vitality and movement that makes the "finished" piece looks kind of static by comparison. To my eye, especially with pencil drawings, the unfinished image seems to be emerging from the paper. 

What do you think? Does it look unfinished to you?

CP Magazine!

Last month, I received an email, out-of-the-blue, from the amazing Ann Kullberg. (If you are into colored pencil art, then you're no doubt familiar with Ann. She has a fabulous website devoted to colored pencil art, has published a number of books, and even publishes CP Magazine.) Ann was emailing to ask if she could use my delphinium drawing in the April issue of her magazine, which would feature botanical art!  I was thrilled, of course, but quite humbled. Would my little drawing, created to illustrate "gesture" for Illustration Friday, hold its own among pieces by well-known artists? Well, I've just downloaded the digital version of the issue, and I'm happy that Ann chose this piece—it's not your "textbook" photo-realistic botanical art, so I think it helps to illustrate the range of styles in botanical drawings.

So, check out the April issue of CP Magazine—it features the amazing Ann Swan (my idol), a fascinating step-by-step by the talented Susan Jones (her work is exquisite) and includes one of my all-time favorite botanical pieces, that astounding Savoy cabbage drawn by Janie Pirie. Thank you so much for including my little bouquet, Ann!!