Take a break

Posted on June 11, 2021 Posted in Sketching, UncategorizedTagged #bandofsketchers, Art, Bodnant Gardens, Day out, Garden, Life, National Trust, Sketching, Wales, Welsh hills, Welsh mountainsLeave a comment

Thursdays #bandofsketchers prompt was ‘take a break’ so I chose to draw this image from the front of the 2021 National Trust Guidebook. It’d just drawn in coloured pencil, charcoal pencil and fine liner black ink pen.

I need a break! So I would take it at Bodnant garden near Llandudno in Wales. It’s a National Trust garden. A beautiful place which drops into a wooded valley and is surrounded by the Welsh hills and mountains. We are missing the laburnum walk that will be in flower now. I hope to go there soon.

Panels in illustration

Posted on June 7, 2021June 7, 2021 Posted in Sketching, UncategorizedTagged Art, Black and white, Drawing, Fun, Icecream, Life, Sketching, speech bubbles, thought bubbleLeave a comment

Now we are learning narrative art at college. Learning how to lay out panels. I think you are meant to have an idea and base the shapes of the panels on what we are drawing, but as usual I did it back to front, drawing the panels first, adding the speech and thought bubbles, then adding the people. The ideas for the story came last! My mind is strange. Anyway it worked quite well. I would try and make it neater if I were to do it again and perhaps import it into photoshop to tidy it up? Overall it was relatively painless to do. Note to self, why has the mother’s dress changed?

Doodled faces

Posted on June 6, 2021 Posted in Sketching, UncategorizedTagged Art, Artrage oils, Crowd, Drawing, Faces, Life, Photodirector, Sketching, Thinking, WorriedLeave a comment

Artrage oils and photodirector used to make these slightly worried faces in a crowd. Perhaps I should have given one of them a mask? They certainly feel crammed together. And what are they watching? Why are they there? Is it something pleasant or unpleasant? Who can say. From the depths of my mind to the page. I sometimes don’t know what’s coming!

Cats outside adventures.

Posted on June 6, 2021 Posted in Cat, UncategorizedTagged Art, Black and white, Black and white cat, Drawing, Indoor cats, Life, Outdoor cat, Sketching, Tuxedo catLeave a comment

Last night the cats stayed out till dawn. I called them every hour but they were not bothered. The two indoor cats are fine, they love being out now. They sit on garden walls and seem to stick together. They follow the outdoor cat around and the dynamic between them all has really settled down. They are being very loving when they are in. Lots of purring and cheek rubbing. They seem to be staying round the back of the house and garden, keeping away from the road.

If I can find them in all the foliage I will try and post some photos of them.

drawing of a profile

Posted on June 6, 2021 Posted in Sketching, UncategorizedTagged Art, College, Colour, Design, Fun, Illustration, illustration MA, pastel, Portrait, portrait sessions, Profile, Sketching, studentLeave a comment

drawing with an ink roller

This was one of the portraits I did in a student led portrait group at college during the last few months.

The face was mostly drawn with one of those ink rollers you can use to blank out your address on letters so that you can throw them away without anyone seeing your details and stealing your data. Its quite hard to use because you have to sort of turn and twist your hand and press firmly to sketch curves. AfterId done that I added colour using pastels and the thick black lines were done with black calligraphy pen (most of these have run out so I need some more).

I quite like the strong feel to this. I am trying to find my illustrational voice. I have been told to look for illustrators that my work resembles, but I think mine is different? Is this a good or bad thing? I’m definitley developing my analogue skills. Digital work is more difficult for me.

Post it note portrait…

Posted on June 4, 2021 Posted in Sketching, UncategorizedTagged Art, Drawing, Experiment, Life, Pencil, Poem, Poetry, Portrait, post it notes, SketchingLeave a comment

Art can be anything

Anything if you experiment

Experiment and learn

Learn to try

Try to play.

Play with Art

Art….

Dancer/music

Posted on June 3, 2021 Posted in Sketching, UncategorizedTagged #bandofsketchers, Art, Arteza metallic watercolours, Drawing, Experiment, Fun, ink liner pen, Learning, Sketching, Watercolour sketch2 Comments

I went a bit mad for this, today’s #bandofsketchers prompt dancer/music. Made a drawing in metallic watercolours of a ballet dancer, I didn’t base it on a particular pose. When it was finished I wasn’t happy so I drew over it, then changed it in the photo app on my phone . I’m including all three versions I saved.

Using monoprint

Posted on June 2, 2021June 2, 2021 Posted in Sketching, UncategorizedTagged Acrylic paint, Art, Black and white, Drawing, Experiment, monoprint, Picture, Portrait, Sketching, TextureLeave a comment

Ten minute sketch using cut out monoprint

The monoprint was made by rubbing paper onto black paint brushed onto silver foil and then scratched through a bit. I then cut out a shape to fit to the shape of the woman body and arm, side of the face and hair, (basically the shaded side of her face and body). This was a bit nerve wracking as I only had ten minutes to do the cutting out, sticking, and drawing the rest of the portrait. I used the monoprint from a stock of them I’d made already.

Valley view

Posted on May 30, 2021May 30, 2021 Posted in Sketching, UncategorizedTagged Art, black fine liner pen, clayton, Drawing, Life, Shaking, Sketching, Trent Vale, Valley, View, Walking, wobbly lines3 Comments

View of Trent Vale and Clayton from Thistley Hough

We went for a walk in the evening yesterday, and instead of just taking photos I took a small sketch pad with me. I couldn’t draw all the details I could see and because its black and white it’s hard to get shade and tone, but I did my best. The two blobs in the sky were hot air balloons. Too far away to see any detail and they were travelling sideways on to us very slowly (left to right). This took about 15 minutes, just trying to get an impression of the view over the valley. I wish I didn’t shake, my lines are very wobbly!

Galaxy

Posted on May 30, 2021 Posted in Sketching, UncategorizedTagged #bandofsketchers, Acrylic paint, Art, Astronomy, Life, Prompt, Sketching, sky at night programme, Watercolour sketch, whirlpool gallery2 Comments

Today’s #bandofsketchers prompt was Space. It is a favourite subject. I love the Sky at Night Programme on the BBC. I’ve tried to paint the Whirlpool galaxy, using Arteza metallic watercolours and some black and white acrylic. A bit splodgy but the detail on the photo was overwhelming.

Mallaband-Brown

Tag: Sketching