Offline for a Bit

2.5″ x 3.5″  pen and watercolor pencil

Thanks for stopping by!  I’ve been offline quite a bit and will be for another week.  I have visiting relatives and my computer and drawing time is limited.  I’m hoping to be back by the 17th!

Here’s one of the drawings I put up for World Drawing Day.   I managed a little bit of drawing on that day.  Here’s a link to the Drawing Day Flickr group.  They were one of the various venues hosting Drawing Day events.

Remember Drawing Day, Saturday June 6

Back in April I mentioned Drawing Day, a yearly event that celebrates the joys of drawing.  Well, it’s coming up and I just wanted to mention it again.

The goal is to get folks to make 1,000,000 drawings worldwide.  So pick up a pen and pencil and give it a go.  Draw a picture of something outside or around the house.  Then post it to one of  many communities participating in Drawing Day on the web.   I’m going to post my drawing(s)  in the Flickr group.   Join in and have fun with it!

Every Day In May: Day 31 – It’s Over

4"x6"

My last entry for Every Day in May is a drawing I did of Michael relaxing in the sun wearing his favorite sunglasses.  He is wonderful about sitting for me.

Since doing this Every Day in May exercise I feel more inspired to go back to my everyday sketchbook drawing.    I got so caught up in my card trading hobby that my regular drawing practice really suffered.

But I can’t give up artist trading cards.  At last count I have 206 cards. It’s so addictive, I can’t imagine not trading.

Every Day in May: Day 30 – Gardening Sketches

4"x6" graphite

Saturday I did a lot of gesture sketches and tried capturing Michael as he worked in our yard.

4" x 6" pen and ink

Here are the best of the sketches, at least they look human.  Michael was able to recognize himself, which was a good sign.  I love this kind of sketching where you focus on what you are seeing and not bothering about the result.

Every Day in May: Day 29 – Another Batch of HP ATCs

On my Day 29 I made three more Harry Potter character cards for a swap on AtcsforAll.com.  This swap is a blast.  There are some great cards being made so I decided to make  six cards to get back six.   Here are Cho Chang, Harry Potter, and Pansy Parkinson.

Every Day in May: Day 28 – Just Sketchin’

sketchbook page - graphite

For Day 28 I sketched some mastiffs for some ATCs I’m making for a friend.   Wow, can’t believe that May is almost over.

Are any of you avoiding certain projects because it is May.  I know that I am.  A friend of mine gave me a starter set of OPEN acrylics, those new slower-drying paints.  I’ve been wanting to experiment with them, but I didn’t want to mess with my drawing schedule for May.  I had already projected how awful my little paintings would be and I didn’t want to feel obligated to post them.  I can be so silly…

Every Day in May: Day 27 – Fun Stuff – HP ATCs

markers and colored pencils

Fortunately I don’t have to hunt for stuff to draw for Every Day in May.  I have quite an assignment list going thanks to my card trading on ATCSforall.com and IllustratedAtcs.com.   I signed up for a Harry Potter character swap (I’m such a Potter nerd) so I worked on my cards for Day 27.  I had a  good time coming up with Malfoy family characters.  I tried making a Hermione card for a host gift, but she came out looking so passive–not Hermione at all.

On to Day 28…

Every Day in May: Day 26 – Sometimes, I Can’t Draw

(click on the image for a larger, clearer version)

Skipped Day 25, just needed a break.  Day 26 was an unhappy day.  I spend much time trying to draw the peonies that just bloomed in my front yard.  This is the best of the poor sketches in my sketchbook, how sad.  But you know, sometimes it just doesn’t gel.  I often have to remind myself that even if a drawing doesn’t turn out the way I want, I probably gained something from it.  Someday I will draw a flower that I am proud of and it will be the result of many sketches like this one.

Every Day in May: Day 22-24

Day 22

2.5" x 3.5" pen and markers

For Day 22 I made this artist trading card.  It’s adapted from this photo I found on Morguefile.  Morguefile offers free photos that can be used for commercial and private projects.   I’ve liked this picture for a while so I decided to do a drawing of it.

Day 23

pen and watercolor pencil

The next day I did a bunch of quick sketches of roses blooming in my backyard.  I started out with the continuous line drawings below, then I got out my watercolor pencils and colored come of my sketches.  It was a day to just scribble and sketch and not worry about the outcomes.

Day 24

2.5" x 3.5" pen and markers

I did a bunch of sketches and came up for this drawing for a card for a trade.  I’m not sure if I’ll send it.  I may just chuck it and make another.  But it was what I did for Day 24.

Every Day in May: Day 21 – Mysterious Man ATC

2.5" x 3.5" watercolor

Here’s another artist trading card.   I was watching  an old movie called  Ten Minutes to Live , which is a 1932 independent film by African American film director Oscar Micheaux.  It was included in a box of public domain DVDs we bought a while back.  There was this scene where the villian is coming down a flight of stairs.  I loved the way it was lit, so I paused the film and made a rough value map and a quick sketch altering his features to make him a more romantic sort of mysterious stranger.  Later I did this drawing and painted it with indigo blue watercolor.