Wooohooo! A package in the mail!

Using my new rubber stamp for the back of handmade postcards

Look what I got in the mail!

We have been doing some handmade postcards in the last series of my watercolor classes and someone knew what I was wishing for! Thank you so much, B. !

As you can see I have been going crazy with my new vintage postcard stamp all morning! These are some postcards that I have been getting ready for a giveaway on my Instagram soon. I am only taking a very brief break to share this with you!

Then back to practicing for my first live broadcast on Periscope! Download the free app today and get signed in so that you will get a notification when I upload my first broadcast!

PS. I like to choose my own watercolor paper so that I get the effect that I'm looking for, instead of just using the purchased  watercolor postcards.

Just Practicing

Screen shot of raw rehearsal

I am practicing with video demonstration for upcoming broadcasts on Periscope. The studio lights are a bit random tonight. I think I prefer natural daylight.  And I could do better contouring the eggshells. Well, that's what practice is all about, isn't it?

By the way, these are left over eggs from some elaborate still life set ups that I did yesterday for the last two watercolor classes of the term.

Bonus Sketch Meetup at the Burke Museum

Sunshine and shadows this morning at the Burke Museum entrance

Seattle Urban Sketchers arranged an Ad hoc meeting this morning to accompany Laurie W., a visiting sketcher from San Francisco. On a cold, frosty November morning, it was so nice to be indoors, discovering something to draw in the current exhibit. Kate sketched everything, both inside and out!

In the lobby, a woman in a white lab coat was seated at a small table holding jars of preserved snakes. She was counting the scales to determine which of three varieties of garden snakes they were.

We also shared the venue with a group of school children, some of whom gave encouraging comments on our sketches in progress.

Fossil Whale Exhibit

The first thing that caught my eye was the fossilized remains of a 30-million-year old baleen whale found on the Olympic Penninsula. I can't imagine the effort it would take to assemble this from pieces found in the mud. Other fossils, such as shells, were displayed with it on a bed of sand.

I used watercolor pencils while sketching fossils in the museum.

Since water media isn't allowed in the exhibit area, I used watercolor pencils to sketch, then went out to the lobby to blend the drawings with my water brush. The fossilized whale head, upper right, is how the pencil looks before adding water. The 180 lb. paper in my Stillman & Birn Beta sketchbook works great for this.

THE REMAINS OF THE DAY

Afternoon sketches, parking ticket, lunch, etc. (tap to zoom)

Home in time to enjoy the sunset!

After sharing our sketches at 12:30pm, some of us went to the University Book Store for lunch in the cafe and shopping in the art department. I sketched a sandwich and Tina sketched me!

 Laurie brought her Moo Card collection of bird sketches (she let us choose one of the 50 in her series.) I got the hummingbird in its nest!

Thoughts about Still Life

"Stop thinking about artwork as objects, and start thinking about them as triggers for experiences. That solves a lot of problems: we don't have to argue whether photographs are art; or whether performances are art or whether Carl Ander's bricks or Little Richard's 'Long Tall Sally' are art, because we say, 'Art is something that happens, a process, not a quality and all sorts of things can make it happen'... [w]hat makes a work of art 'good' for you is not something that is already 'inside' it, but somethings that happens inside you - so the value of the work lies in the degree to which it can help you have the kind of experience that you call art." -Brian Eno

Why do artists paint still life? Examples and explanation

Art Otter says Still Life is not Boring

with examples from ancient Egypt and Herculaneum

What are your thoughts/experiences with still life as an artist or as an appreciator of art?

All 31 of my Inktober 2015 sketches

After enduring a rough nine days with the cough, cold, fever yuck that's been going around, I finally feel like scanning all my Inktober 2015 sketches and posting the collection. (Tap or click to zoom)

Bee Super Deluxe 6x12"sketchbook, Lamy pen, watersoluble ink & Aquash water brush.

My faithful Lamy fountain pen lasted until the very end. In fact, I think I could possibly do one more sketch with what's left in the cartridge. Wouldn't want to waste any ink now, would we?

Have you ordered your Perfect Sketchbook yet?

Want a "custom designed" sketchbook with your name embossed on the cover?

Read all about this Indiegogo project here or search #theperfectsketchbook

I carry my pocket sized perfectsketchbook everywhere. 

It just so happens that two of my favorite watercolor papers are used in these sketchbooks:

Saunders Waterford in the pocket version and Fabriano Artistico in the new larger B-5 version. 

There is still time to get one! I got some with my name embossed on the front.

You might even win a pocket version and a travel brush! There are just 11 days left! Check it out!

21st Annual Studio Open House Today!

Hours: 10 am to 7 pm

I have straightened the rug and put on the kettle. Coffee is done. Madeleines fresh from the bakery.

What would be cozier on a rainy Saturday morning?

I will be posting updates on Instagram throughout the day!

Update! Mary R. won the drawing! This is the original piece she chose:

Mary won! And everyone else is so happy for her!

Fun with Leaves

I gave my demo as a door prize

I had a great time with brand new watercolor students today. It's Day 1 of my two day Introduction to Watercolor Workshop.

One of the lessons was practicing several color mixing and watercolor techniques while painting leaves. During lunch we picked up leaves outside and then came in to have some fun.

Here's what they did! Aren't they amazing students! Thanks, Kate K, for the photo!

After everyone left, I made my final Inktober sketch while cleaning up the classroom for tomorrow.

Inktober Day 31-Finished! Yay!

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.

Country Mouse, City Mouse

The crows roost in a tree across our street, pumpkins are everywhere and I visited two farms on Monday

It seems that I am alternating my sketching days this week: a day on a city street, then a day out on a farm, then city, then country. It's a fun way to keep finding something new to capture. Each round trip is about 90 miles, though, so I have fallen behind in scanning and posting my Inktober sketches. These are the ones for days 24-27.

The sun came out and gave me great shadows today at the Arlington Municipal Cemetery.

I was hoping to enter an online painting challenge today, but although I spent the better part of the day on location at the Arlington Cemetery, I still didn't get my 9x12 plein air piece done. So far, all I want to show is the value study of one of the gravestones that I did to warm up. (Conveniently, it serves as my Inktober drawing for the day!) Most of this section of the cemetery had stones from the early 1900's, people who were born in mid century 1800's. Many of the markers were leaning, especially the ones set on a steep hillside.

The light came over the fence and threw beautiful shadows down the grassy hill, catching a carpet of fallen leaves and turning them into gold. I'm not giving up on the painting just yet. So I will let you know when it's ready and post it here when I feel it's satisfactory. The thing that's taking me so long is that I am working in gouache, an opaque form of watercolor, and it's a bit of a brain twist from my usual transparent watercolor.