This week is considerably cooler, even the humidity isn’t so bad. The air is still on, and we are still glued to the TV, and reports of the horrendous hurricanes that are happening in the Southeast. Les and I haven’t stopped worrying about everyone since before Harvey hit Houston. Other than donating money, clothes, etc, Les and I can’t participate, or help in other ways. So we watch and listen.
Meanwhile, I need to stay busy, and my busy is usually my art. This week I’ve been working on my third Prayer Flag, and more tags.
Being a Mixed Media artist gives me an excuse to save all kinds of little things. Bags of things know one else wants or needs, pieces of fabric, anything you can imagine somewhere in my stash of goodies….I have it. Putting it to work is key in this process.
While battling heat over the weekend, it left me no choice but to resort to surfing You Tube. This is what I have for Tuesday…..It never hurts to polish up on our drawing skills!
Now as the summer heats up, and we all get just a little at the end of our rope, this is the time to sit in front of a fan and sketch. As I’ve told everyone many times, I’m a “Goldie Locks Girl!” I like it just right….not too hot, not too cold. Needless to say, this is not my favorite time of year. It is way too hot for me to function, and if I do go out of the house for any reason, it has to be early, late, or I’m out.
What do we do?
This is what I do… I will sketch, draw on rocks, cut images out and glue them on paper, sometimes I look for ideas on Pintrist. Sometimes I’ll take a picture out of the paper or a magazine, and just draw it. This gives me an idea of how to shade a subject or the perspective of a subject next to something else.
That’s cheating!
In my eyes, that’s just practicing. Art students copy the masters all the time enabling them to study a particular artist, a method, or just perfecting their skills. I’m working all the time on simply getting better at what I do. If I’m not trying to sell these little sketches, how can it hurt anyone. On the other hand, I think it’s very difficult for me to copy a piece of art. I can’t help changing things, sometimes a little, sometimes a lot. I always have to put “me” into what I do. So, no I don’t think I’m copying anyone.
Inspiration comes from everywhere!
Often I say that I’m inspired by many things. It could be nature, or someone elses style, or color palate. I love color, and I’m always seeing something new, and creative in my world. Isn’t that why we take classes from an artist we admire? I frequently sign up for an online class in hopes of learning a new technique. The classes are usually Pen & Ink, or Sketching on the Move (that one I’m still working on). But I believe everything we do, think, and experience makes us, and our art more interesting.
I thought this little video would be of some help in getting everyone going, because I think it never hurts to get another kick start, or see something from another artists eye. Coffee shops are a great place to find new material.
Thank you for following me, and checking in to see what’s happening. Each of you provide me with a wealth of inspiration, and add to my creativity. I hope I can do the same for you.
Over the years, as I’ve changed my medium, my style, tried & experimented I’ve realized that my drawing skills have fallen behind, and I’ve always loved drawing. So recently it’s been my decision to start sketching again, & I’m loving it.
Sketching is something I can do that’s fun & not so serious, not that anything I do is intended or serious!
Cats, dogs, flowers, houses, trees, what does one tackle next as a creative endeavor? We all want to do something different, but we’re probably subconsciously attracted to the thing that works the best. On the other hand, don’t we like the challenge? I do.
Even if it doesn’t turn out perfect, and we all know perfect is not probable! I don’t even like perfection, that is for cameras, not artists! I uploaded a sketch of Daisy, our dog to work on, and with a little effort it could be just a little wonky. I love wonky, it makes me happy and creative. It takes me to a place I was never allowed to go as a child. So the wonkier the better…
There are other subjects I could paint, but while I’m finishing up the painting of my purse……
I’ll form a plan for Daisy.
The purse, well…after painting two, I’m getting over it. Purses no longer intrigue me, and I’ll be lucky to finish this. The cat has given me more trouble than I could imagine, as cats tend to do. Whiskers…no whiskers? Stripes, or no stripes? Polka dots, or not? Whatever I do seems to not be the way I had imagined it to look, consequently the cat has more layers of paint than my kitchen. It’s all good, and it’s all in the name of experimentation.
The end result of the purse is yet to come, so for good or bad, it will be finished!
David Lobenberg nails it for me! I love his style and relaxed way of teaching. AND… I love the California Vibe he adds to his watercolors. It is said that watercolors are the most difficult. In some ways I would agree, in other ways I have to say that once I learned watercolor, the transition into acrylics and particularly abstract, were way more difficult. It doesn’t have to be that way, but I always make things harder than necessary.
David makes it look so easy I want to take his classes, how about you? This must be why I live inCalifornia…
Karen's Stone Soup... 
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