BIRD SKETCH: RUBY-CROWNED KINGLET

....The birds around me hopped and played,

    their thoughts I cannot measure:_____

    But the least motion which they made,

   It seemed a thrill of pleasure.....

                       from the poem "Lines Written in Early Spring"

 by Wm Wordsworth

I look forward to the season that brings birds to my feeders.  Each bird seems to have it's own personality and type of behavior.  This is a Ruby-Crowned Kinglet.  It's eggs are a creamy kind of pink with brown splotches all over it. It's quick, energetic and full of mischief!

WOODLAND FLOOR: PEN AND INK STUDY

I love the tiny details of leaves in the woods.  This study is in preparation for finishing a painting I started a few years ago (and lost in the last move).

TEASEL SKETCH: PEN AND INK

The end of the summer brings with it the most unusual dried grasses and weeds!  This is my attempt at teasel.  I think I was a little overwhelmed by all of the spikes and seed pods  in this small plant.  It started to look like my hair in the mornings!

HUMMINGBIRD PHOTO



PHOTO BY MICHAEL ALTOM

It is time to stop feeding the hummingbirds here in Tennessee so that they will continue their migration south.  I have really enjoyed them this year!  They are such territorial birds, and pick fights with each other, and even the wasps that liked the sugar water.  I expect them back by mid-April.

END OF THE SUMMER RABBIT



PHOTO BY ROSE ALTOM

It's the end of the summer, and the beginning of autumn, my favorite season!  I look forward to crisp, fall mornings and color in the trees.  I look forward to walks in the woods (with no threat of ticks!) and a trip into the Natchez Trace, where waterfalls and deer are around every bend. The end and the beginning...it's always happening, isn't it?

GERANIUM AND A CUP OF TEA

I draw as many of the plants that people give me as possible, because they are doomed from the start!  I have NOT got a green thumb, and tend to forget to water them, water them too much, or just look at them and they shrivel up in terror.  Drawing the plants at least lets them continue life existentially!

RIVER WALK FOUND OBJECTS: GRAPHITE



ALONG THE RIVER

Walking along the Mississippi River, you can find all sorts of interesting bits and pieces.  I just love anything rusty, anything I don't know what is, and driftwood.  This pencil sketch of hinges, wire and wood was a fun study in shapes and shadows.  I really think that it wouldn't be quite as interesting if we actually knew what this stuff was...don't you love a treasure hunt?

PHOTO: TRANSPARENT-WINGED HAWK MOTH



PHOTO BY MICHAEL ALTOM

Isn't this an interesting and beautiful moth?  Hubby was able to take pictures of it on our butterfly bush in the front yard!  It flutters it's wings just like a hummingbird, and is at least 2 inches long! What amazing things you find in nature.........

QUICK STUDY: IVY IN COLORED PENCIL

IVY

Just a quick study of an ivy leaf...my intent was to show how many colors I could see in the leaf and shadow, and intensify it.  This is an experiment for a later oil painting, continuing to increase color into my rather dull pallette!

CATS, KITTIES, AND KITTENS: THEN AND NOW

HALLOWEEN GREETING CARD
1991

KITTY ON A PILLOW
1991



SLEEPY CAT
1999



SLEEPING PUSS
2011

I have had a lot of cats over the years, as they are easy to move with and fairly unflappable when it comes to change (unlike my children!)  As most cats sleep approximately 14 hours daily, it is a natural subject available for sketching.  I thought that I would let you decide whether or not the years have improved my sketching skills, or just changed them.

CHOPPING WOOD: INK ILLUSTRATION

While I am busy working on a painting, I thought that I would dig into my archives, and share with you an illustration that I did for the cover of a spouses' magazine during our military days.  This was a September cover, with the main story of the magazine dealing with the safe use of fireplaces.  We were living on an historic base that used to be a fort for the army in the days of cowboys and cavalry.  All of our homes were on the historic register, and most had at least 2 fireplaces, some of which were usable.  The house we lived in had three fireplaces, and only one was working.  It had the worst draft ever!  We had to open the door to get an updraft for the fire...not the greatest thing to do in -10 degree weather.  We used it very seldom!

TEAPOT AND PHILODENDRON: PENCIL SKETCH

You'll have to look hard to find the teapot in this sketch.  My philodendron has been running amok!  I am sure that this would be really effective in colored pencil or even oils.  I will consider this for a painting later, when the studio offers no enlightenment or inspiration!

SHAGGY MUSHROOM STUDY

It rained last night and a wonderful, marvelous cold front went through!  It was only 65 degrees today, my favorite temperature.  These lovely, shaggy top mushrooms had popped up in my nearby woods this week, and with the cold coming in, I decided that I had better get my sketches done before they were gone.  I used a bit of everything to do this study. A bit of pen, some charcoal, and some conte.

PORTRAIT IN CONTE CRAYON: WOMAN IN HAT

AMY RAIN, REVISITED

This is my last portrait of Amy Rain.  She was an incredible model and I enjoyed every minute of sketching her.  Drawing from life is challenging, but so much better than from a photo!  You learn so much more about their personality that way. 



SEARCH BLOG WITH KEYWORDS!

Check out the latest gadget on my blog...a keyword search engine!  I am so excited to discover I could add this in. 

Instructions:  Want to see if I have any sketches of a shoe?  Just type in 'shoe' at the search engine in the upper right corner of the blog (under the main painting).  It will take you to any of the posts from the beginning of this blog that mention 'shoe'.

I feel so tech savvy!  Next, I will figure out how to put in a gallery slide show (that has been a difficult one for me!)

Hang in there with me....I try to grow and learn with every day that passes.

ILLUSTRATION: LEAVES

I have always wanted to be an illustrator, of childrens' books, mostly.  We all have to have our dreams, something to aim for.  This is a study of leaves with a style that I am considering for illustration.  I love a clean, simple line.  I have tried a cartoon style of illustration, but hated it.  Not my forte.  I think that my motto should be K.I.S.S....Keep It Simple, Silly!  The more complicated I try to make things, the more gummed up a mess it becomes.  This study is simple and fun!  I think I will try more.

KITTEN SKETCH: PITT BRUSH PENS

Here is a classic example of proportion mistakes.  I started this sketch and discovered half-way into it that its' little head was too long!  Rather than scrapping the piece, I continued on to complete a rather startled kitty.  Granted, it looks like there is a hat on its' ears, but I am pleased with most of this piece, and I had fun just working with the brush pens.  NOT EVERYTHING HAS TO BE PERFECT! I keep telling myself that over, and over, and over.....................I sure hope that you aren't expecting me to only publish my successes. That wouldn't be part of the creative process!  Expect the unexpected, and you'll never be disappointed.

JOURNAL ENTRY: LOVE OF MUSIC

Journal pages should reflect your feeling and thoughts...this is about my joy of music, and the need for it in my life.

Just an update on how the Mammoth painting is going...I am repositioning the tusks, as you can see with my rough underpainting.  He is looking a bit bow-legged as I am refiguring his body.  Yes, I know his legs go too far up! Remember the process is a creative one!  (Kind of reminds me of one of hubby's uncles, who used to wear his pants up to his chin)  I have enlarged his ears, and I am now trying to reposition his body to the left.  I am already happier with the results.  Tomorrow I will lower the horizon line, as I think it is competing with the ears.  Hubby has made me a moll stick, which is rather like a drawing bridge, to help me.  The stick is about 30" long, with a ball at the end.  I can lean it across the painting and steady my hand on it.  It will really help when I start working the details of this huge piece!  It is slow going right now, but once I get comfortable with the position of the underpainting, the rest will fly by!  By the way, just because I wasn't sure what I was painting was a mammoth or a mastadon, I went back to do some research again (it has been 3 years since I started this painting!) and the differences between the two are unmistakable.  This is definitely a Wooly Mammoth from the Siberian Tundra area.  The mountain range behind is an actual place in Siberia, and the designs that I am carving into the tusks are from early native folklore.  Hope to have much more done when I check back in!

LUSTERWARE TEACUP: CONTE AND CHARCOAL DRAWING

I discovered this antique tea cup in a tiny shop in Montana.  It has been one of my favorites for drinking herbal teas.  I drew this with conte crayon and charcoal on tinted paper.  I am not real happy with the wobbly-ness of the base....I just may have to go back and set it more firmly upon the table!

EMOTIONALLY DRAINED, PIPES AND ALL!

My art journal entry for the week...I was trying to figure out how to express how I felt after dealing with Dr.s and Cardiologists, hospitals and protective hubby.  This is it!  What a relief to have this week done, and something new and different coming in next week.  Surely it is something positive, and happy.  This week I will work on a new painting!  Something colorful and silly.  Time to let off a little steam!

PEN AND INK BIRDBATH SKETCH

This is one of my favorite features in my garden.  I have spent many happy hours watching the birds, squirrels, and even a raccoon or two getting drinks from this birdbath.  I used a fine tip Pilot Pen to do this drawing.  There is nothing more satisfying than a brand new pen and sketchbook!

PUPPY LOVE: SKETCH WITH BRUSH PENS

I just LOVE Pitt Pens!  This is their brush pen series in browns and sepias, and well worth the price.  I had been wanting to do a drawing with very few lines but a lot of action and expression.  This is it, and I am delighted with the results!  It is all about the right tools, people...talent is only a small part of being an artist.  Perserverance, hard work, good tools, and ambition are all key.  Too bad I only have one or two of those....

WOOLY MAMMOTH PAINTING - A FIGHT TO THE DEATH!

WOOLY MAMMOTH DETAIL


I am back to this painting AGAIN!  I keep trying to finish it, and it stands there, mocking me.  I have been encouraged by my last painting (actually completed), so I have dragged this half done canvas down into my kitchen, where it glares at me whenever I walk through.  It has rather accusing eyes, I think.  "Why have you taken 3 years to complete me?"  It is huge...my first attempt at a really large painting.  I think I am intimidated by it.  But I refuse to let it beat me!  I will get this painted by the deadline....October 3!

WOOLY MAMMOTH


I can see that the proportions are off somehow.  The poor guy looks like he is wearing an oversized cape.  Are his ears too big or too little???  Should the trunk be wider?  It is difficult to research an animal that has only a skeleton to go by.  I must guess, and rely on my own artistic license.  This is where I am getting off the track....I don't really trust that artist yet.  Not enough years of positive self-esteem, I guess.  I am giving him a few more days to talk to me before I whip out my paint brushes and come heck or high water ----I will finish this painting!

AUTUMN AT LARAMIE: WATERCOLOR

Autumn at Laramie

This watercolor was another attempt at getting some color into my life.  Often when we lived in Wyoming, hubby and I would take the children on outings, to hunt for fossils, look for wildlife, and explore where we were living.  We had to cram a lot of exploration in, as we usually were only at that military base for about 2 years.  Laramie had an especially beautiful prairie nearby, with lots of sagebrush and antelope.  The skies were always clear and deep blue, and in the fall, everything was golden and rust colored.  It was definitely one of my favorite places to live!

Laramie (detail)

Laramie (sagebrush detail)

HAVE SKETCHBOOK, WILL TRAVEL...TO THE RENAISSANCE FAIR!

If you are interested in fashion design and costume, this is the place to go!  I brought my pad and pencil to the Renaissance Fair and really enjoyed people watching and sketching.  This intriguing odd-fellow had the prettiest legs there!

COBALT GLASS AND SKULLS: COLORED PENCIL

Am I Blue?

This is a large colored pencil (16x20) on Bristel Board.  I wanted to do a study in transparency, and my grandmothers' old cobalt glassware were perfect.  I chose the skulls as a sharp contrast in opaque-ness, and an artists' comment on the fragility of life.  Deep, huh?  Occasionally I go there!  I am still a bit timid with the techniques of colored pencil, and having finished,wish that I had layered a bit more, or taken a class with an accomplished pencil artist.  But on the whole, I accomplished what I set out to do.  I enjoyed the experience, and learned something!

OKRA: MAYBE THEY'D MAKE A GOOD PAINTING?

For someone who doesn’t have a garden, want a garden, know what to DO with a garden, I have more okra and jalapenos (I don’t even know how to spell that correctly) in my freezer than anyone should have! They are in my freezer because I haven’t quite figured out what to do with those particular produce items that everyone keeps giving me. I remember the okra from my childhood being rather nasty. In cutting the strange vegetables, I learned that they surely must be the offspring of some mutant slime monster from the depths. They oooooooooooze! They drip and oooooooooooze! Eeww! As for the jalapenos, just cutting them up is a hazard. OSHA should be involved with the disposal of these fire- causing little green bombs. We could use these things in biological warfare against enemies foreign and domestic (that includes all brothers-in-law). I could really use the freezer space for more usable items, such as the wild boar someone shot, couldn’t eat, so gave it to us. I am a product of my upbringing, however. Never let ANYTHING go to waste. So I am now storing 4 years of okra and hot peppers with the hopes that someone will need them someday. Maybe there will be a big blight, and all of the world’s okra will be destroyed, and they will need mine to clone them (for some reason). Possibly medical researchers will come up with the cure to the common cold, and need my jalapenos. Or maybe you would like some? Do you need some yummy okra? Some spicy peppers to spice up your life? Hmm? Call me. We’ll talk……….