New paintings and regular art updates.
Sundays #bandofsketchers prompt was cuts. This was a head scratcher! I thought of a paper cut and decided to go a bit surreal. Instead of the paper cutting my finger I drew my hand cutting through a page of my sketchbook. Pastle colour felt pens and silver metallic pen.
How do i know the water is blue? Surely it’s transparent. But look at the sea. As you go deep into it you can see it stays blue until you go deep when it’s black. Then look at water at sunset. It stays blue even when the sky turns red doesn’t it? And in yellow white sunshine its very blue. Not green, not yellow, not red, not purple – Blue.
At the end of a sketch out artists do a throw down where we lay out all our drawings for each other to see. There are fourteen sketches here but I think there were more people attending than that.
There are lots of things to sketch at Keele, there is Keele Hall, various interesting buildings and different architectures. There are also a series of small lakes and an observatory which I once visited, but can’t remember where it is. The number of buildings on the campus has really increased in recent years. There is now a full blown science park there. It’s a long way from when it’s campus was the base for an old British comedy called a very peculiar practice. Based in the 1980’s.
Ten minute pen sketch, my fellow urban sketcher Rita was concentrating on drawing Keele Chapel, she looked chilly in the cold wind!
There was an open day at the University today but they let the urban Sketchers on the carpark. I sat myself down on a bench by the students union and ruffled by the wind that was gusting through the plaza, I sat and drew the Chapel too while watching gazebos rocked by the wind. A whole display of soaps and moisturisers on one craft stall went flying to the ground, it got gloomier and colder. But then about twenty of us gathered to see each others work! What a brisk and breezy morning.
I’ve been out with Stoke urban Sketchers today. It was a breezy cold morning but I need to get back into urban sketching again, I haven’t been along for months. We were at Keele University in Staffordshire. I decided to draw the Chapel, large, brutal architecture, a bit like a castle without the castelations. If that’s what they are called. I tried drawing using a charcoal set I’d bought. It was a bit disappointing, less charcoal, more grey pencil? I used some conte crayon sticks and a few felt pens to add bits of colour. I finished off drawing tiny lines to indicate the walls were made of black bricks. Eventually I went and got a hot drink. Then I came out again and quickly drew one of the other Sketchers. Finally we had a throw down of everyone’s drawings, I might post a photo later.
Tuesdays #bandofsketchers prompt was bird. This is based on the mad drawings of birds I drew as a child. I later found out about the potters the Martin Brothers? Who did salt glazed ugly birds!
Penkhull Pantomime this year is Robin Hood. It will be on in Stoke on Trent again next week, the Penkhull group is performing at our local village hall. I was not able to take part in it this year because of my ill health, but I am pleased that they will be using some small paintings of scenes I originally did three years ago. I’m trying to source some fibreboard so I can do a final painting, it will be based on a celtic design that I found and as it’s about Scotland there will be thistles and a stags head. I haven’t painted it yet but no doubt I will post about it when I’ve completed it. The photo here is me waring a mob cap in a performance I was in back in December.
It’s Valentines day here and a friend put a card through our letterbox wishing me and my hubby a happy Valentines day. I think it’s really sweet of her. I think it’s a nice idea to share love between friends as well as couples. Why not? A token of friendship and care and love? The idea of a more inclusive world where everyone gets something from it. After all not everyone wants to be in a relationship. They are normal people, they shouldn’t be deminished because of their choice. X
When I used to paint murals I did a series of cartoon characters for a friends son. This was Fun to do! This was done about twelve years ago. I enjoyed painting it. I remember using acrylic on the walls, with a matt varnish on top.
I saw the sky this evening
Turned bloody orange
As if on fire
Light streaming through
Branches and trees
Illuminating a landscape
Still dry from lack of rain.
The hedge behind us
Was split by the light
A shaft of red and gold
For telling bright weather
And clear skies
And stars
For the night ahead…..
Mallaband-Brown