Birthday Greeting

Today is my brother's birthday. Happy Birthday, Tom!

Black Sharpie marker and Marriott black ball point pen on a Canson 5" x 7" greeting card.

First Colored Pencil Drawings

I am taking the online colored pencil course Getting Started in Colored Pencil with Bet Borgeson. This is a 7 week class, and I have just completed week 2. The class emphasizes color. These are my first colored pencil drawings. The exercise was to use color as a device to express form. Prismacolor pencils on Strathmore 400 Series Drawing medium paper (9" x 12").

Illustration Friday - Stitch

My illustration shows Betsy Ross sewing the first American flag. Winsor and Newton watercolors on 140 lb Arches watercolor paper. 8.5" x 11".

Work In Progress: Stitch

This is a sketch for my Illustration Friday entry this week. The prompt is "stitch". My illustration shows Betsy Ross sewing the first American flag. My web research suggests there is no evidence to back up the Betsy Ross story; it is a folktale. That is ok. It seems like a harmless fabrication, and I wouldn't want facts to get between me and my Illustration Friday entry. The purpose of this sketch is to get the outlines correct (especially on the flag) and to establish value. I used mechanical pencil on printer paper. I now wish I used good drawing paper. Lesson learned. I intend to transfer the drawing to watercolor paper and paint in watercolors, in a poster style. I'll probably stick to the real colors of the American flag, although the Andy Warhol-wannabe in me is hankering to do the flag is some bold complimentary colors like blue and orange.

I am studying Maxfield Parrish this month, and his work is influencing this piece. Parrish loved patterns on fabric and used them to indicate 3 dimensions, such as the folds of the flag. I tried to render the stars and stripes in such a way as to indicate folds. I will also use some value change to indicate the folds, but this will be minimal.

If anyone has any suggestions on improving the design, I welcome your input.

EDM #153 - Draw Something In A Plastic Wrapper

This is a cauliflower wrapped in plastic. It is destined to be dinner tonight. We'll use it to make Cauliflower Cheese casserole from The Findhorn Family Cook Book. Basically, this is steamed cauliflower baked in a cheddar cheese sauce. I found both the cauliflower and the plastic wrapper to be very difficult to render. Mechanical pencil on 9" x 12" Strathmore 400 Series Sketch Pad paper.

Illustration Friday - 100%

100%. It is way overrated. In school, we are taught to strive for the grade 100%. At our jobs, we are encouraged to give more than 100%. It is the way to get ahead. But 100% can be a killer. So just say no to 100% and perfection. And encourage your kids to say no, too. Striving for 100% can lead to fear of failure, which leads to fear of trying, which kills creativity. Striving for 100% leads to burn out, exhaustion, and poor health. Just say no!

Watercolor and gouache on 5" x 8" Acquarello Watercolor Studio 140 lb cold pressed paper, touched up using Photoshop Elements.

Here is the original watercolor version, before the touch up. I used Photoshop Elements to alter the color of the "100".

EDM #152 - Draw a Nut

Wow, walnuts are amazingly complicated. I love rendering form, so I enjoyed trying to capture the shape of the walnut half. Mechanical pencil on 9" x 12" Strathmore 400 Series Sketch Pad paper.