Sketch journal July 2023
I finished up a section of black paper with some sketches of my native plants. The pen is a white Posca marker, which made a satisfying bright white line. There is a knack to botanical sketching – including enough detail but not getting lost in the details. I like the thought of spending time with the plants, observing them closely , and improving my sketching so maybe I’ll continue these.
A very minimalist sketch of a coffee mug made by holding a brush by the tip and letting it dangle. The paint is a diluted black gouache. Interesting.
A sketch that started out with blobs of black on one side of a spread. Then I folded the book closed to make a Rorschach-like print. Lastly, added some doodles in pencil and pen. I like the layering and the sense of responding to the ink blots.
And July had some imagined faces, which I’m not wild about. This young boyish face is the most appealing of the bunch. Who are these people? There’s no sense of connection. When I was taking drawing lessons, there was a lot of emphasis on drawing people (and faces) from life. I enjoyed it a lot. But it’s not that easy these days since honestly I don’t see that many people. And it’s harder to draw people anonymously in this small town. So – I don’t get the same kick out of drawing faces. I need to think about this further.
So many interesting techniques. The boy looks like a kid from the 1950’s – 60’s…may from Andy Griffith…a friend of Opie’s ????
I was perplexed by the “d” in “another angle” … and then laughed when you explained that it was “another dangle” … quite a comely one at that
Yes “dangle” – I don’t remember to do that with the brush unless I’m prompted. So a good one to practice!