It’s Inktober-Are you In?

Every year, people from around the world make a promise to themselves that they will work to improve their daily drawing practice during the month of October. They make an ink drawing each day and then they share the results on social media with the tag #inktober and #inktober2018.

I'll usually be posting my daily ink drawings on Flickr and Instagram. Go to https://linktr.ee/michelecooperart and select the link you want.


How about it? Are you in? Here’s where to get more information if you’ve never done this before.

For those who want the official daily prompts, here’s this year’s list.

In honor of the first day of Inktober 2018, I sat down at my drafting table in the studio this morning and drew a collection of my watercolor tubes, pans and pencils. All those in this photo are considered toxic, which fits the prompt for the day, "Poisonous".

Oct 1, 2018--Prompt is "Poisonous"

The pigments used in all media, watercolor, colored pencil, oil, acrylic, etc. may contain toxic materials. Most, but not all, of the toxicity issues are associated with heavy, or toxic, metals such as copper, cobalt, cadmium, lead. Caroline Roberts has written a comprehensive article about toxicity in artists' pigments here.

These are some of Caroline's suggestions on how to handle your materials safely:
 How to handle toxic paints safely

1. Do not use the same containers for paints that you do for food or drink. Well, duh, but thought I'd put it in anyway.
2. Do not put paint brushes in your mouth! Use a brush holder or a piece of kitchen towel.
3. Wash hands thoroughly after each painting session.
4. Even better, wear latex gloves whilst painting, or at least whilst using the toxic pigments. I hate wearing gloves but after researching this topic I will be wearing them. Simple as that.
5. Wear a dust mask if you handle pigment powders. Make sure it's the right one and keep it clean!
6. Do not have food in your studio and use covered drinks containers.
7. Since we don't want heavy metals in our rivers either, wipe up paints with kitchen towel and dispose of in the trash, not down the drain.
8. If you sand your paints at all (as an acrylic painter, yes I do) then wear a respiratory mask. Keeping the paint surface damp as you sand also keeps the dust down.

Author: Caroline Roberts

One Inch Drawing a Day

The challenge:

The game is inspired by John Vernon Lord who, in 2016, did a drawing for every single day of the year. Each one is just one-inch squared and made with pen and ink on paper. 

His 365 miniature drawings are currently on show in John Vernon Lord: Illustrating Carroll and Joyce

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More information and how to play.

Shells drawn with a Mapping Pen

I'm still having so much fun making my daily drawings on DIY postcards! I like the Fabriano Studio 140lb CP paper for the surface that takes pen and watercolor perfectly for this illustrative style.

I'm trying out my new dip pen and Dr. P.H. Martins Bombay Sepia ink. The ink dries relatively quickly in this 82°F weather we're having. (That's the cooler part of the late morning this week!) So right away I can start painting layers of watercolor washes from my DIY Altoids Mini Kit. No smearing!

I found my new "rare" pen on Ebay

Now about the pen. I saw Ohn Mar Win using it a year or two ago, but lately she mentioned that it was her favorite and I can see why. I wanted a dip pen that I could take sketching and not get too inky all over. Look! the nib stores in the pen just like my travel watercolor brushes do! I also wanted a flexible niib. Voila! Thanks, Ohn Mar!

William Mitchell Joseph Gillott Reversible Mapping Dip Pen Holder with 659 Mapping Nib. The 659 Gillott Mapping is a delicate and flexible nib which can create fine and wide lines depending on the pressure applied. Suitable for most mapping and drawing requirements.

The Gillott 659 Crow Quill nib can be stored inside the holder to preserve the point. The nib can be replaced when worn.

Five Minute Sketches, WIP

I assigned Tuesday's watercolor classes a little warm up exercise: Take your sketchbook out for a 5 minute sketch. Use any simple tool you like, pen, pencil, etc. Take 5 minutes to find a subject, 5 minutes to sketch and 5 minutes to return to the classroom and share your sketches. It was raining, so just a few chose to brave the cold damp weather outdoors for 5 minutes. The rest chose to spread out all around the interior of the building, sketching what they saw out the windows. I was so impressed by what they did. I think they even surprised themselves! (Sorry, I didn't take a photo of their sketches.)

My five minute sketches from Tuesday, ready for a touch of color and narrative after breakfast today.

Towards the end of the day, I discovered this ingenious little light well with its own pocket garden, flower pots ready and waiting for spring, and a Tuscan mural to cheer up those looking out from the windows on the opposite wall. I only had time to do the ink sketch, planning to add watercolor pencil and ink wash later.

A light well hides a secret garden.

My 5 minute sketch with the Sharpie Pen after class.

Here's the result of some simple color and ink washes on the secret garden sketch. I have time lapse video demo on my Instagram feed of the color/wash process. See link in right column.

See my Instagram feed @michelecooperart for a time lapse video of process of adding color.

I managed to get a few trophy shots of my other two 5 minute sketches (see below)

Afternoon sketch. Looking straight across the alley at the cracked wall and weathered window on the next building.

I had planned to go outside and was headed for the elevator for my first sketch when an unusual appliance in the parking lot caught my eye out the second floor window.

I have no idea what this is....maybe a refrigeration unit? But what fun to draw!

I started on the right hand side of my Pentalic Aquajournal in the morning, then added sketches in the afternoon and after class.

Tuesday am sketch demo (right side) and pm sketch (left side)

I have a heading, 2nd FLOOR, but still haven't decided what my narrative will be for the rest of this two page spread in my visual journal. I will post it here when it's finished.

"Is this a dagger which I see before me?"

I doubt that Macbeth had to feel guilty about killing a good sketch, but that quote came to mind as I prepared to use my "dagger."

The brush with the shorter tuft is called a dagger, a longer one (also made for watercolor) is called a sword and the very long tuft but shorter handle seen above is a dagger striper. I have had the latter for decades. It's usually used by sign painters and car paint detailers for long, thin lines.

Douglas Fir Pine Cones

See my Instagram feed for a quick video of how I use the dagger brush for creating soft edges for snow shadows,

Trying out a new bleed proof disposable fountain pen.

I think my ink started to freeze while sketching out in the cold today, but it was the only viewpoint that I wanted for my pine cone sketch for WorldWatercolorGroup prompts. I'm all out of sinc with the calender now, so I'm just having fun catching up. Three more days to finish the February daily drawing challenge!

How's it going for you?

Everything but the kitchen sink

They say if life gives you lemons, make lemonade. I say if the ink spills, grab your dip pen and make a sketch.

I used every thing at my disposal. 

It's Freecode, not Freelode

On my live periscope today, I opened up some art materials mail. And in one of the packages was a lovely shiny new red fountain pen which said Freelode on the box. (After the broadcast, I looked it up and I guess the company name is Freecode.)

Now doesn't that label look like it says "Freelode" to you?

Anyway, I figured out how to take it apart still further, and Voila!, the ink adapter worked like a charm!

Live Ink and Wash Demo on Periscope Tomorrow

Let's have some fun with a twig and ink! I will broadcast a quick watercolor demo tomorrow, Thursday at around 4:30 pm. Wondering how to watch?

1. Download the Periscope App on your tablet or smart phone
2. Find me here on Periscope and follow me. (I think you can watch on your laptop or computer, too)
3. When it says live, tap-tap-tap the screen to send hearts. Or say hello in the comment bar.
4. If you miss it live, you have 24 hours to watch the replay. You can still tap to send hearts but you won't be able to comment. After 24 hours the broadcast will disappear. 

Periscope.tv/michelecoopart

Light in the Autumn Trees

Can't forget those beautiful trees yesterday. So I went back to do a line drawing and demonstrated my ink wash technique and color sketch for classes today.

Couldn't find Schnitzel

Ahhh. The last day of my "Julie Andrews" curse. (Let's just hope Dick Van Dyke doesn't start up with Chim-Chim-Cher-ee!)

I present to you: Brown Paper Packages Tied Up With String!

These are the kind of packages my grandmothers would send with gifts, cards, clothes, puzzles, coloring books, dolls, and homemade cookies in them. To keep things steady, they would pop up a pan of popcorn and use that to fill in the voids. When you opened the package, you saved the string, carefully folded the paper for later use and inhaled a big whiff of popcorn! (I wonder if anyone ever used real peanuts?)

Thank you, everyone from Instagram and who commented through email and here on my blog with great ideas from "My Favorite Things".  At the risk of going insane with that tune in my head 24-7, there actually are quite a few of those that I just may end up coming back to before the end of Inktober!

Having fun with Inktober

This being the first week of Inktober, I thought I would offer a few more bits of encouragement to my students and sketching friends. It's not too late to join in! Catch up and keep going!

If you feel too much stress committing to a daily sketch for 31 days (it's still only one day at a time!) how about committing to once a week? or every Saturday and Sunday (that would be 10 for the month)?

Jake Parker, the founder of the Inktober Initiative, has some good suggestions and all sorts of helpful pages on pens, ink, how to draw. He says:

"Note: you can do it daily, or go the half-marathon route and post every other day, or just do the 5K and post once a week. What ever you decide, just be consistent with it. INKtober is about growing and improving and forming positive habits, so the more you’re consistent the better."--Jake Parker

Here's my sketchbook with Days 4, 5, & 6 for 2015. I upload each day on my Instagram

One way that I'm pretty sure will get you started is to buy a new pen/ink/sketchbook. You know you want to play with it! Ready? Set? GO!

Virtual Paintout, Flower Market in Manila

Dangwa Flower Market on Dimasalang Rd, Manila, Phillipines- Google Street View here

I drew with my twig, Chinese ink and watercolor pencils in the Perfect Sketchbook.

It's fun to compare this one with a previous effort in Bangladesh, virtually of course. Here I used India Ink, twig, watercolor and white Signo pen.
Bill Guffey hosts The Virtual Paintout online, where you can visit a different location each month through Google Peg Man, walking the streets (virtually) and sketching. Then you upload your image and URL to share it with the other virtual painters around the world.

Update 10/5/15 My photo is now published on the Virtual Paintout website!

EDiM 18 - Lipstick/lip gloss

"Pour yourself a drink, put on some lipstick, and pull yourself together," - Elizabeth Taylor
I think Liz and the Red Queen would have either got along famously....or would have gone down in flames together.

After class, Wintergrass

Since the Ad Hoc outing of Seattle Urban Sketchers was scheduled just 15 minutes away at the Hyatt Regency Bellevue, I drove over there after my Kirkland class this afternoon. We were there during "Wintergrass".

Wintergrass is a family-friendly Bluegrass music festival, with concerts and dances at 4 different stages. There are also music education programs for kids and adults, workshops, impromptu jams, and a chance to see and hear some great music. Acoustic Sound produced it with the mission statement:
Acoustic Sound is committed to preserving and promoting traditional acoustic American music through presentation and education, with special attention given to the bluegrass music community.

You could purchase tickets to see performances by legends and featured performers, or just wander the hallways and lobbies to see impromptu groups forming up and playing together.

In the hallways of the Hyatt Regency, Bellevue, WA today.

In one of the hallways on the main floor, a group of about 13 people were in a circle, facing each other. John played bass and another musician played the "Dobro" guitar. There were banjos and more guitars, fiddles and singers. All this was played at a very polite level of volume, taking advantage of the acoustics in the hallway. At one point bystanders closed in and began singing along as they played an old classic, "Let the Circle Be Unbroken." The quiet, understated volume lent a very touching, tender quality to the music.

 Upstairs in another hallway, Mack was playing his favorite instrument, a Gibson guitar that he bought for $600 in 1972. "That was a lot of money then", he said, "I turned 66 years old this year, and it's still my favorite."

People at the Flower Market

I made a few  quick contour drawings at Pike Place Market last weekend.

People were packed in as tight as flowers in a bucket. Maybe I will have time, and room, to add color today. :)

Ink Scribble Figure

Here's a quick 1 minute demonstration I did for my class. It's a combination of gesture and contour drawing with a Micron pen. I scribble from the inside of the shape to the outside, adjusting as I go for the proportion and angles that I need.

The whole idea is to use your sketchbook all the time, not worrying about how to perfect what you're doing......just do it! Practice creates freedom, freedom and enthusiasm create artistic growth.

Cat Sketches - Line and Wash

This is half of a page of sketches I did of cats. The large one is pencil and the others are pen, all on 140 lb watercolor paper.  The small ones are diptychs, paintings meant to be viewed as two together. The concept is opposites.

What kind of titles would you give them?
Tune in tomorrow to see the watercolor "wash" part of line & wash. :-)