Try something new

One of my favorite technique books for learning how to travel with a sketchbook is given exactly that title: THE ART OF TRAVEL WITH A SKETCHBOOK: Six Tips to Get Started, by Mari Le Glatin Keis. I mentioned it once before on this blog and am now reading it again.

One of her techniques involves drawing over an article in a local newspaper. News junkie that I am, I do buy newspapers when I travel. I have never drawn over an article. In our own Sunday paper today there was a cute article on waitering when everything goes wrong, with an accompanying photograph. I decided to attempt this draw-over-it method.

I tore out the article because I liked the ragged edges and glued it in my Moleskine. Then I painted over part of it with white gouache to give myself some drawing space. Then I sketched from the photo -- if I were traveling I would draw my surroundings -- and used Prismacolor pencils to make the ink drawing more colorful.

I'm glad I practiced before using this idea on site because I learned that it is easy to apply pencil and black ink over gouache but the colored pencils weren't happy with that surface and balked a little. I also learned that when I tried to thin the gouache the paper began to wrinkle with the extra water. And I was reminded that I still don't know how to draw faces and it's beginning to cramp my style. Still and all, when I travel I would consider this technique for added interest in a sketchbook and fully intend to use it. Now.... where should I go?

Cheep, cheep, cheep, cheep, cheeeeeeep!

I finished my chicken panels this evening. The little chick looked like it was wearing a hair shirt at first but I added some gouache and that helped a little (until I learn how to show fluff).

Today was an outstanding day here in northern California. Temperatures are about ten degrees above normal, into the low 70s. The dogs have been sunbathing out on the deck -- the boards are warm and they lay there like basking turtles or teeny boppers in their new swim suits. In and out, in and out, they love their new freedom of being able to wonder outdoors as often as they like.

Hamish, the highland "coo"

In Scotland, north of Stirling, lives Hamish, the hairy cow. Officially, I guess he's a bull, but everyone refers to him as a hairy cow, or coo. There's a sign posted, "DO NOT GRAB HAMISH BY THE HORNS"- but every now and then someone does, Hamish gets riled and the visitor lets go....fast. I don't what it is that makes Hamish so revered and so loveable, but I admit to being smitten too when I chatted with him a couple summers ago. This morning I tried to draw and watercolor him, then covered him in gouache. I'm going to try again with watercolor because, for some reason, I want to get Hamish right.