National Squirrel Appreciation Day

Mischievous little critters, squirrels! And yet today is  National Squirrel Appreciation Day.

Relevant video follows here: https://youtu.be/zfmZSiFlgKU

"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?

A Nod to Wyeth

A nod to Wyeth.

Sometimes as a way of doing preliminary studies I will make several versions of a painting as greeting card sketches. Often, that's all they will ever be, just explorations.

This 5x7 gives me an opportunity to play around with a bit of Wyeth metaphor in the imagery. Here's a list in case you haven't caught the implications on your own:

1. A colonial wrought iron candle stick holder. Something that would have been common at Chad's Ford during the Revolutionary War.
2. The candle is colonial style, too. 
3. Eggs, as in egg tempera, the medium for which Wyeth became known.
4. The jagged edges of the broken egg shells remind me of the jagged edges on a log of fire wood outside one of Wyeth's window compositions.
5. There is the window, of course, with the windows of the building outside peering in as Andrew might have done.
6. The autumn season was one of Wyeth's favorites as was the same limited palette I'm using here.
7. Andrew used a bit of underlying drama to create a certain amount of unease in his compositions. I have alternated symmetry and asymmetry to leave the viewer slightly off balance. The candle flame, almost but not quite touching the window handle causes a bit of visual tension.
8. And then there are the shadows reminiscent of the shadows on the ceiling at Kuerner's. This time they're on the tablecloth. 

On the Boardwalk, LaConner

Calico Cupboard and south end of the boardwalk. 

From a sleepy little fishing village in winter to a vacation destination, LaConner certainly wakes up in summer. Calico Cupboard has always been a local favorite but, with the new "boardwalk" and its corner location, the line of bakery/restaurant customers sometimes goes halfway down the block.

The boardwalk is not actually made of boards anymore, but a wide aluminum grating. The new waterfront access now encourages people to amble along the back side of shops, boutiques and restaurants on the Main Street. There are always a couple of pickup trucks parked outside. After lunch, or on cloudy days, activity around the boardwalk sometimes slows down long enough for a bakery treat from Calico Cupboard after a quick sketch or two.

For Day 5, Summer Skies, please see my post here.

Windy Day at Kalama Beach

12.24.16 It was a very windy day at Kalama Beach on O'ahu with the family. We had a view of the "Mokes", two islands off Lanikai Point. The windsurfers and kiteboarders were having a great time while swimmers and body surfers watched from the choppy surf closer to shore.

Grilled Cheese Sourdough and Tomato Basil Soup for Lunch Sketch

I just finished my Coffee Break Sketch live on Periscope. I finally got to eat my lunch! Although I had to microwave it to heat it up again, the toast still made a satisfying crunch around the melted cheese.

So much fun, sketching and chatting with old friends and new. Thanks for watching! See you all tomorrow at 4:30 pm Pacific time. Bring your old Kindle cases and make a sketchbook. 

Most Delicious Grilled Cheese Sandwiches on the planet. How's that for a batch of great lunch ideas?

Lunchtime Artscope Wednesday at Noon

What's for lunch? Log on Periscope.tv/michelecoopart and find out while I sketch.

Boston Cream Pie for Dessert

Thanks for joining me for a Coffee Break Sketch at noon today on Periscope.tv/michelecoopart 

It was lovely, chatting, sketching and visiting with people from all over the world today.

I always have the goal to take only 15 or 20 minutes for these quick sketches, but the conversation is so interesting that I end up slowing down. :) Still, if I missed any of your questions or comments, you can ask me here or on Instagram

See any broadcasts you may have missed on Katch.me/michelecoopart

Attacked by Squirrels!

I'm working out my anger issues against the wild gang of squirrels in our back yard. Sketching the crime victims seems to help. This was an impromptu Periscope broadcast just now, so you can catch it on replay until it expires tomorrow.  periscope.tv/michelecoopart

After signing off air, I finished up the crocus sketch by adding the bedraggled, wilted flower, a crucial part of the post mortem evidence!

Sketching in Aztec, New Mexico

Mistakenly considered to be Aztec in origin by early white settlers, the site actually contains the ruins of a 12th-century Ancestral Pueblo settlement built by people associated with Chaco Canyon to the south. The Ancestral Pueblo people, formerly known as Anasazi, were ancestors of the modern Pueblo Indians. They lived in multilevel communal dwellings constructed of sandstone, mud, and stones.

100 degrees outside at Aztec Ruins, New Mexico

On this sweltering hot hilltop, my granddaughter and I sketched as fast as we could and escaped into the cool indoors to add color later.

A section of the ruins at Aztec, New Mexico.

Aztec Ruins National Monument, archaeological site in northwestern New Mexico, U.S. It is situated on the Animas River, in the city of Aztec, about 10 miles (16 km) south of the Colorado state line. The national monument was established in 1923 and designated a World Heritage site in 1987 (along with Chaco Culture National Historical Park to the south). It has an area of about 320 acres (130 hectares).

Looking east across the Animas River from the ruins. 

From another viewpoint, I got most of the color before I couldn't take the 100 degree "dry" heat. At least my watercolor washes dried quickly. 

Lion's Teeth outside the Studio Window

I looked out my studio window this morning and saw a brave little flower growing in the expansion joint of the sidewalk. The name dandelion is the English name for this beautiful buttercup yellow flower. It is also called lion's tooth- this is because its notched leaves bear much resemblance to the teeth of lions. The sun came out and cast the shadow of the flower head onto one of its leaves. I was charmed!

Sketched where it grows. 

Immediately, I abandoned the idea that I originally had for the last page in my Sketchbook Project. I grabbed my sketchbook and pen, standing over the flower to draw. See, this is the way it goes when your sketchbook is as much a part of your life as wearing shoes!

One of my colleagues on IG reminded me of a poem, “We wouldn't ask why a rose that grew from the concrete for having damaged petals, in turn, we would all celebrate its tenacity, we would all love its will to reach the sun, " - Tupac Shakur

The name dandelion is a corruption of  the original French word dent de lion which when translated means 'lion's teeth'. In Greece the flower is called Leotodon which means lion tooth in Greek. 

Check out my 2015 sketchbook at the Brooklyn Art Library in New York.....once it gets there. See what's on the rest of the page. 

Sunday sports for Sunday Painters

What sports do you play on a weekend? Are you a participant or a bystander? Either way, you have lots of subject matter from which to choose: action sketches, figures, outfits and sports gear. I am sure an easy warmup sketch of a simple volleyball could get you started! 

I like the official uniform. 

Anacortes Marina

I posted the compositional linework and beginning of this sketch yesterday. Moments after closing the sketchbook, I drove over to class #1 for the day, then on to class #2, my night class at Skagit Valley College.
I filled in the color while watching TV last night and here's the result!

Most of the rigging was left as the white of the paper.

This little Pentalic Aqua Journal is only 3"x5" closed, but 3"x10" open.

The little stone church

I was on Saltspring Island teaching a watercolor workshop with this as my morning demonstration one day. We had a great location, where we ate our box lunch on the lawn, then turned facing away from the church to sketch the vintage ferry dock.

Most of the materials were brought to the island by barge.

Speaking of Corn

My husband and I, unbeknownst to each other, each bought fresh corn yesterday. He was out working  on Whidbey Island and I was at the Skagit River Produce barn. I was sketching about three feet away from the flatbed heaped with just-picked piles of fat, fresh ears of corn. Who could resist?

Added to yesterday's sketchbook page

Needless to say, we had too much corn to eat for one meal. I know we're going to finish it off tonight, so I sat at the patio table this sunny afternoon and added these to my sketchbook. Now the right side page is pretty much done. I have something in mind to finish off the blank spots in the two page spread. Check back on Saturday to see the results!

Long Red Radishes

It's fun to alternate between a Micron Pen and a nice pointy brush and watercolor.

I picked up these long red radishes at the Skagit River Produce barn on my way home from Rosario yesterday. No one seemed to know the official name for them. I will report later on how they taste, because I won't let anyone eat them until they are painted.

Update: Pat F. thinks the variety might be "Dragon". 

What's in your cup?

 Sunday usually involves taking a little time out to slow down, reflect, enjoy a cup of --------(fill in the blank). And then enjoy an art break. Whether it's the contents or the cup itself, why not make a sketch of your favorite?

Art in a cup! Make it, paint it, drink it!

 Coffee or tea? Cappuccino or Darjeeling? A cozy white mug or a delicate heirloom china cup?

Section of my sketches from last Friday. See full two page spread here.

Tip: Make two: one to use as your model and one to sip while you paint. Otherwise, trying to wait for your treat while you paint is just too much to ask on a Sunday!

Recommended Minimum Watercolor Palette

Since this is the plein air painting season, I thought I would encourage those who have never tried it

before. Very affordable travel palettes are available in art stores and hobby shops. I especially like the Yarka 12 pan set, which sometimes even includes a little brush.

If you already have watercolors in tubes, you can easily make your own travel palette, using your own colors. See complete DYI directions for my tiny Altoids palette here.
Fill each of the empty sections from tubes of watercolor. I used a warm and cool of each of the three primary colors.

Top Row: Permanent Yellow Deep, Vermilion, Manganese Blue

Second Row: Winsor Yellow, Crimson Red Lake, Ultramarine Blue Deep
Tip: Stir freshly squeezed color with a toothpick to make sure it is evenly distributed. Allow paints to dry with the lid open overnight before transporting.

Value Plan

Digital value plan with markers
in Paper by 53 app

Personally, I like the feel of the implement in my hand and the "drag" that comes from using real artist's materials on real paper.

However, you will never run out of ink, paper or pencil if you choose the digital app, Paper by 53.
The rewind feature is one I wouldn't mind using on a few of my paintings. :)

For a "real" planning sketch like this, I use Prismacolor or Copic Markers: 30% warm grey, 60% cool grey and black in my Robert Bateman sketchbook.

Rainy Day Sketching

Try sketching the effects of rain on location. Either paint from your car or find a dry spot under a tree or other temporary shelter.

Public parks in the Pacific NW sometimes even have sheltered tables with a fireplace!

Materials: sticks pruned from bamboo and mock orange in the garden, walnut ink, bamboo pen, sketchbook, water, brush, Derivan liquid pencil. I like to use the Fage Greek yogurt containers for a stable water vessel. I can use just a small amount of walnut ink in the "fruit" section and the larger part for water.