Gouache

This is the first time trying gouache. The background is wet on wet for the plants, dry brush for the water, and pen and ink for the legs.  Paper is 140 pounds Arches off white paper.  This is a sketch from my journal on my trip to Las Vegas.  I did a pencil sketch their and painted yesterday at home. The stork is made up of flowers on metal legs. His body turned out darker than I wanted, but for my first time with gouache I think it turned out well.

Urban Sketching

I have been looking for this book in the store for a few months now.  I guess it was back at the printers for another printing.  Just received this today.  I can hardly wait to go through it.  I hope to improve my drawing of buildings in a landscape.  Well, I guess we will see how it goes.

Wet on Wet Wash = Sunset?

Decided to do a wet on wet wash to make the sky for this sunset scene.  I think my sky turned out well and I would do this again. My picture isn't 100% correct in color.  I think next time I will take a picture with my digital camera and see how it turns out. I used Daniel and Smith watercolors on Arches 140 pound off white watercolor paper. Part of my imaginary trip to Japan.

Bellagio Conservatory

I decided to include another sketch from my trip to Las Vegas.  This one is of the conservatory at the Bellagio.  The poppies stand about 20' tall and the bees are suspended on wires from the ceiling.  The bee are made of flowers.  They look like mums.  I simplified the background to show off the flowers.  Painted on 400 Series Strathmore 140 pound watercolor paper with Daniel Smith watercolor paints.

Showing Force

Black and Red China Markers on Strathmore Smooth Newsprint.  Strathmore Paper Co. Had free workshops this spring that were fun and very educational.  One course was How to Draw Force by Michael Mattesi.  I used models posing on http://www.pixielovely.com/gesture/figuredrawing.php.  This drawing I feels is my best so far in showing the energy of the model in the pose. It is also how to draw on the surface of the skin, the lines of force.  I plan on working more on this in the next few months.

Stone Lantern

 I like how this first lantern turned out better than the second. I just can't get the colors to photography well in the second lantern.  It is also darker than I wanted.  In the photo it is in sunlight with branches throwing shadows across it. I find itt is hard to make the grays turn out right.  I will need to work on this more.  I think I will try one more lantern.  Sketched in pencil then painted in watercolors on 140 pound Arches off white watercolor paper.

Dragon Sketching

This dragon statue was fun to paint.  I am glad that he wasn't real.  I wish I had written dragon differently.  I somewhat wanted it to be serpentine and it just didn't turn out that way.  Done on 140 pound Arches watercolor paper in off white with watercolors.  I used pencil lines to give me guidance.

Lantern vs Lantern Tree

I am working on watercolor sketching without ink.  Tying to get the look you want can be difficult.   I had wanted the gray wash around the seed pod to fade more instead of the hard edge. I feel that all things considered, this turned out well.  This is my journal page from my virtual trip to a Japanese Tea Garden.

Lotus Revisited

I didn't like the competition that the background and the lotus flower was having.  It was suggested that I go over the background with a light yellow green to tone down the background and bring the flower into the center of interest.  What do you think?  I think the blossom look more delicate and lit from above and the background is more subdue.

Grays

 Working on colors that look grayish. I like the quin. burnt orange, french ultramarine blue with mineral violet the best.  Using burnt sienna instead of burnt orange is also nice.  It is funny that painting with colors that don't look that gray can look gray when you use them to paint.   I am going to be painting stone lanterns and garden statues with these colors and will post them soon.

Mixing Colors-Testing 1

 Decided to make up some color cards and mix up various colors from my pallet. I wanted to work on greens and pinks for my lotus sketch.  Here is what I made.  I need to do more of these to see what these colors can do.  I know having these cards will help me in the future when I want a certain color I will be able to know what to do.

Sketching in Watercolors

I am taking an online course in sketching in a travel journal with watercolors. The class is being run by Laure Ferlita http://www.imaginarytrips.com/ImaginaryTrips/Visits.html .  It is a virtual trip to a Japanese Garden. The class is 4 weeks long and we learn different techniques along the way. I was suppose to finish the whole sketch in 30 minutes. It took 60 for me to finish as I took too much time in making the background.  I needed to make the background more simple and concentrate on the main subject the flower. It is also scary to draw a few pencil lines and then do the rest with paint.

Quick Sketching

Decided to sit out on the deck and enjoy the wildlife and do some quick sketching.  There were two chipmunks in the tree by the feeder that I decided to sketch.  One of them came down and started to eat by the feeder.  The grass made it difficult to see him.  One chipmunk came up on the deck and was suddenly surprised when he noticed that he wasn't alone.  He stood still for so long that I was able to draw him quite well.  I only wish that I had noticed that I grabbed my blue water color pencil instead of a graphite one, I may have been able to show more detail.

Getting use to color pencils

Tried my hand sketching poolside with color pencils on colored paper.  Just when I thought someone was going to stay still they would move.  I finally got someone to stay still long enough to get enough of the sketch done.  Finished the rest from memory.  Sketching is so nice as I can add and subtract from the image whatever I want.  The 3 people I drew here were in the area at different times.  I was planning on going to the pool at least two more times before we left, but high winds came into the area and the temperature dropped to a high in the low 70's.

View from a room

This is my first time drawing a view of buildings from a window.  I like this even though the court house building is not 100% correct. Drawing allows me to show what I feel is important and leave out pipes, other buildings etc.  In photography everything is shown and the view gets lost in all the details and some of the buildings are blurry because the camera focuses on what is closer.  I took a reference photo just so I could finish, but many of the more distant buildings didn't show as much detail as I had.  I added some of the watercolors there using color dots and finished it at home.

Drawing Food

Each time we are in Vegas we take time to eat at In-n-Out Burgers.  My favorite burger is the double double animal style.  They take two burgers grilled with mustard and grilled onions, two slices cheese, lettuce, pickles, tomatoes and special sauce.  I didn't draw this at the time we ate as I was too hungry.  I took a picture so I wouldn't have to wait. 
I used prismacolor pencils on Stipple Paper by the Bee Paper Company.  I added a sheet in my handmade journal to try it out.  I need to get use to how the paper works.  I found it is hard to use a light color pencil next to an area where a darker color has been applied without polluting the color.