Tools

Yesterday’s #bandofsketchers sketch was tools, the hammers are a bit rusty. The mole grips are out of the ark. I put them an a cushion as an interesting background. It is only a very quick sketch but I enjoyed doing it. Theres another group I’m in #uskstoke, Stoke Urban Sketchers is starting doing virtual sketch outs because of lockdown. So might be posting some more pictures here from that.

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so long ago

I drew this back in August, I can’t believe its so long ago! I was mooching through my pictures because what I have on my computer is not synced with my phone ( which has most of my images on it). Whatever happened to digital cameras? Ive still got one in a drawer somewhere, probably with leaking batteries in it, now I just use my phone. How much technology has been discarded because it no longer works?

For instance i have an idea to use little watches in an artefact for a college piece, what I want to find out is whether you can use reconditioned watches instead of buying in new and wasting resources.

So I come back to my little sketch, analogue, ink on paper. I dont know what I was channeling, but it makes sense, dont waste, use less…..

Doodling

When I’m drawing, whether it’s in analogue, or as here digitally, I love to play and mess about. Why stick with one idea? After I’d drawn this I decided to put it through a another a called sketch and I added the cracks. Finally I duplicated it in Layout and changed the filter when I posted it to my Instagram account.

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Blue rose

Another digital drawing done at sketchfu a few years ago (site now closed). This was a drawing challenge. Artists would post photos and then challenge others to draw the image just using the sites simple tools. I don’t know if the original picture was photographed with ultraviolet light or with blue dye injected into the flowers.

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When I say digital, I mean finger painting.

I did a drawing in ArtRage oils today, it’s a drawing app with pens and a metallic/non metallic slider so you can add a sheen of apparent oil paint if you want. In this case I drew with my finger although I do have a stylus to draw with if I want. I have this free version and I also have the paid for app with more pens and brushes. I like the freedom it allows me.

Trying to draw part of a painting with felt pens…

I struggled with this. I tried to draw a square for our Orme art group collaboration of part of a Pierre Bonnard painting. I thought it looked OK but when I see the pictures side by side? Hmm. I was drawing with marker pens and felt pens, some of which would smudge, others are permanent. Clearly I haven’t been able to blend things that well and also my drawing is not as delicate. But you can’t draw paint brush marks with a felt pen. They say a bad workman blames his tools.. I don’t know…

Red

Today’s sketch for #bandofsketchers, the theme is red. Not many trees in this country turn bright red in autumn. I think that’s because we don’t get cold enough weather to force the chlorophyll out of the leaves to turn them to brighter colours (is the red xanthophyll?) long time since I did O level biology!

Anyway these were on the road outside so I did a quick sketch and then filled it in. I’m afraid I cheated as it was so wet and windy so I did use a reference photo to try and get the right colours. Another sketch with permanent markers.

Flutter by

I like messing about as you know. In this case it’s a butterfly drawn with nail polish. I also used some felt pens to fill in the gaps. Yes it’s a bit strange, but I prefer doing this to just throwing the stuff away. At least the nail polish is locked into the paper and not sent off to landfill somewhere.

I will carry on doing drawings with them till they run out. They could be used to do illustrations. I wouldn’t use them in a children’s book! It might give them the wrong ideas and I am careful to apply a bit at a time to reduce fumes.

I did draw with boot polish once as part if a mark making class. It’s amazing what you can do…. Didn’t JMW Turner add mud and sand to his paintings?

Emotion

Todays band of sketchers prompt was emotion. I tried to draw myself doing an evil laugh. Permanent marker drawing. I was drawing by the light of a standard lamp to excentuate the shadows on my face. It’s a bit scruffy and odd because some of the pens are running out and it was difficult to differentiate between the colours on the pen tops. I wanted to say ‘Grr Argh!’ which was the sound that was at the end of Buffy the Vampire slayer programmes, oh yes I was a Buffy fan.

Ginger beer

Digital sketch I drew in my old version of photoshop. I really ought to get the new version. The one I use was published in 2002 but I’m very nervous of changing because of the cost and whether I would still understand it. Maybe I should look into it instead of umming and ahhing. I need to find out what advantages it would give me. My old photoshop is glitchy, when I get near the edges of a drawing it suddenly will only draw straight lines at 90° to the sides. It never used to bother me, but as I use it more it bothers me…. Anyway enough moaning….