Daily Sketches

I'm getting so many done that I'm not even posting the super-crappy ones.  quantity = success :)

 Waiting for Ethiopian food.  yum.  Jesse is getting more tolerant of my sketching on date night :)

 Forshortening is a b*tch

 Library Story Time - I often avoid drawing people - but I love drawing the backs of people - they don't know I'm drawing them, so I don't feel self conscious.  And I don't have to do those tricky faces.

 My bag - with a minimal color approach.  I might get the hang of this water color thing someday :)

I didn't feel like drawing this day - but I had the time so I made a small box on the page to fill.  Over the fence at my son's school.

Nature Walkabout Lab

I was kicking myself for putting this lab off until the weather turned :)  but I lucked out and today was lovely - it turned out to be more of a playground walkabout instead of a nature walkabout - I couldn't convince Jonas to leave the playground to go on a hike with me - until it was time to go home for lunch and then he threw a giant fit because he wanted to go on a hike.  yes.  We are at that age.

But I found lots of nice naturey things near the playground to draw.

This lab appealed to the alternate-reality-scientific illustrator in me.  I love tiny little details.  I am done with fine tip sharpie pens though.  Bleeds too much.  As soon as I have some spare cash I'm going to the art store and buying a REAL PEN.  It will be exciting.

These are also the last 2 pages in my sketch book.  I started it in May and now it's November and it's all filled up.  I don't think I've ever filled a sketch book in less than a year before.  Of course it helps that it's thick paper - so it's only 40 sheets, but I've also just filled a larger sized book that I keep in the studio for working out painting compositions and random drawings.

Sketches

I've been getting much better at sketching every day - I find myself sketching multiple times a day even.  I suppose the recent inspiration comes from the sketchbook books I've checked out from the library.  The Art of Urban Sketching and An Illustrated Life.  Both make me feel simultaneously intimidated and inspired.  :)

I've also finally set myself up with a "grown-up" set of watercolor paints.  So I'm working on that.  I'm still very frustrated with my efforts there. Someday I'll get the hang of it.

Travel Sketching

For the last 3-4 trips I've taken I've brought along a sketch book knowing that the travel sketching Lab was waiting there for me in the book and I was going to have to do it sometime.  And each time I've been too busy with trip stuff to ever pull the pencil out and actually sketch anything.   Well, we just got back from a 2 week road trip to NY and back - and I finally got a few sketches done.  I think it actually happened this time as opposed to other trips because I've built a habit of sketching already at home.  I didn't get a whole lot of exotic locals or anything - but these are drawings of places far away from me - however mundane they are :)

 quick sketches from the passenger seat driving through NY and PA in the fall - so gorgeous.