Also a Bit Reckless

 

Here is the second card I made on Wednesday when I was feeling "strong and brave".  It turns out I was also a bit reckless with respect to the size.

I painted these on 1/4 sheets of card stock, and by the time I mounted them they grew to a tiny bit wider than 5".  Finding envelopes will be a challenge.

Note to self:  Plan just a little bit before cutting.

Choosing A Subject

This geranium in a clay pot attracted me as a drawing subject as soon as I sat down in my lounge chair last week. 

I discarded it as a subject because I thought it was a bit simple, a bit boring, and instead, launched into the wider, busier drawing below.  After I finished, I was still drawn by my initial choice, and so I sketched the one above.  

I like the simple one much better; I should have stayed with my intuition.

Thoughts on #30x30DirectWatercolor2019

Someone in the #30x30DirectWatercolor2019 Facebook group asked, "As we head into the final week of this exercise, what, if anything, has everybody learned about their painting, their process, their work?"

I might have learned that 30 day challenges are not for me. At least, not this kind of focused challenge.  I like to bounce around between media too much, I guess. I keep wanting to draw in pencil crayon when I'm "supposed" to be painting. This was supposed to be fun, right?

Someone else agreed with my thoughts, adding that sometimes these challenges can hinder creativity rather than help it.

I knew going into this challenge that I might not stick with it for 30 days.  I've probably done 30 direct watercolor paintings, because one day I did about 15 (small) chairs before realizing that chairs are not the greatest subject for wet on wet.  (OK, I'm a slow learner.)  I guess it depends how you count to 30.

One night recently, I looked out the window and saw a beautiful sunset.  I was moved to paint the journal page you see above.  I considered it a fail, but later realized that this is exactly the kind of "whim" that Joanne Sharpe would add a quotation to and post on Instagram.  So, maybe I didn't "fail" at #30x30DirectWatercolor2019, I just made it my own.

Note to self:  Lighten up!

Note To Self: Just Keep Drawing

It is easy to spend more time looking for just the right reference photo and just the right journal page than it is sketching.  I had the right idea here:  I pulled a journal off the shelf, flipped it to the first blank page and then pulled a magazine out of the cupboard.  I didn't even open the magazine; I just used the photo on the front cover as my reference.

I used a Pentel brush pen for the sketch.  After drawing most of the features I covered the red stencil on the face using white acrylic paint and then added back some colour with a gelato.     

Note to Self

I don't like change.  I could handle it better. If I could stop fighting and start looking for new opportunities that would be a good start.  I think that I have finally accepted that summer might just be over!

Elegant Writer meets Mushrooms

I got my Elegant Writer out again the other day.  Still finding my way... 

Note to Self

Note To Self

Note to Self