Classwork project

Here is the latest project sketch for my class.

It's a landscape based around shapes we cut out of a magazine. My shapes were tall skinny things with rounded tops and round things with ridges.

So, the buildings are based on a tall zippo lighter, an eyeshadow pencil, microphone stand, fence post, shovel, and the top of a gazebo. The spaceshipy part is based on a overhead shot of a botanical garden, and the landscape behind is based on a muffin top.

We'll see how this goes.

Craft Booth

This one is from the booth across the aisle from me at a weekend craft show. I was selling my small wooden frames, but the lady across the aisle was selling these floral/santa lighted arrangements.

I had to work quickly, because I was worried that she'd sell the one I was working on.

End Mummy

Here is the end result of the Mummy drawing and then the Abstracting the Mummy.

In the original abstract, it looked a lot like hair. I didn't blend the colors so tht it has a more graphic feel.

There's a slight sheen from where I used the flash, but the colors are very close. It's monochromatic, working from yellow ochre.

Pettiti's

The annual visit to Petitti's garden center is more than enough to put me in the holiday spirit. The set-ups always look different. But, I was especially fond of this one with the gumdrop snowmen.

Foo Dog From my Home Studio

Playhouse Square

Finally did something with the sketch I did at Playhouse square last weekend during the sketchcrawl. First of all, I actually had forgotten a sketchbook, and the only thing I could find was blank letter writing paper at CVS.

So, I redrew it in my sketchbook, and then used the photo I took as a color reference to do the watercoloring.

Now, I have to tend to the 55 gallon fish tank for the weekly water change. One of the fish is acting peculiar this morning. It's "Piggy," which is an orange platy with black spots on her snout (thus the name, "Piggy"). I'd move her to the 30 gallon tank, but I have a betta in there, and I hear bettas will tear into any reddish fish.

Gotta love friends and candy!

Now if I can just muster some willpower in order to not eat them all.

Class Theme Project

This is from the class project that I'd mentioned yesterday. This is a xerox of my sketch, because the scanner wouldn't pick up the original which was done with a hard pencil on tracing paper.

My theme was Christmas, and I had to think of 25 words about it. Then, I had to pick random sets of 6 words and work them around another theme for a sketch. I was once again told not to go "cute" with my work. She said that I had to find something to say about Christmas; to make a point or statement.

My first sketch was with a Santa devouring cookies. I elaborated on it to have him all wide-eyed and crazed over a plate of sweets, and even did one with his belt buckle undone. But, this ones seemed more like a poster and less like a cartoon.

So, I started to think of all of the waste after the holidays. The strings of lights that no longer work, the toys that get broken quickly, smashed glass balls, wrapping paper, unfinished candy canes (I have a theory that nobody eats a whole candy cane), and dead pieces of evergreen or dead Christmas trees.

This is what I have so far. We're supposed to get very realistic about it, but when we paint it, we're supposed to use analogous colors, which means that I can't use both red and green in this. I also can't use brown at all.

As a side note, I had no idea why news helicopters have hovered over the area all morning. I just looked out the window and see where fireman are up on high ladders spray water all over a smoking warehouse a few blocks away. I know that we just drove by the warehouse fire near Superior last week, and that took a very long time to get under control.

REM

I think I made his one eye too big,b ut I think you can look at this and kind of tell it's him, which I guess is an accomplishment.

The article had this great quote, and I wanted to keep it to look back on. I worry an awful lot, and I have t say, after I did this sketch this morning, I launched into a huge fit of worrying that started to make me physically ill. I've moved past it, but I'll be home all day for these worries to nag at me.

I'll probably be posting what I did last night in class soon. We were supposed to pick a theme, and then do our design based on a combination of words that describe that theme. I kind of got an early idea which may work. I picked Christmas, but the teacher is forever trying to stop me from doing "cute" things. So, I had to make some kind of statement about what I was going to draw. I'll post it later and you guys can comment or send an email like usual.

Reigning over a Chocolate Kingdom

Frankenstrat

You aren't allowed to take pictures of things at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, and I wanted a photo of Eddie Van Halen's famous guitar. They've had one on display since Van Halen was inducted earlier this year.

Snowmen Everywhere

The elves have been at work in downtown Cleveland, putting up the Christmas decorations.

When I went on the Cleveland sketchcrawl, we drew inside Playhouse Square, but I snapped a photo of the snowman decoration across the street at what I think used to be the old C-tix booth.

Saturday was a good day overall. Nothing bad happened at all. I did the sketchcrawl, and then went to lunch at Fat Fish Blue. Then, went to work and it was busy. The computer crashed, but it didn't crash until we closed. And, I think 1 of my black ruby barbs is about to drop some eggs, which means baby fishies!!!

Hope the whole next week goes well for all of us.

Ornament That Stayed Up All Year

I like this drawing, but when I drew the ornament laying on it's side, I forgot which way the sketchbook was going. So, when I wrote the text, it's actualy upside down.

Oh, well. . . .