Upon the Horse

Upon the Horse
Pen and Ink on paper, 6x7

I have recently had a longing to draw in the western theme, and my civil war reenactment photos were the perfect aid!  Using my favorite superfine black Pitt pen, I have drawn this completely.  I have so many of these pens, in so many colors, but I continue to return to my one favorite!  It is the same way I am with brushes.  I must have hundreds, and I end up using just a few. Different ones for different mediums, but just a few in each.  I have only started to draw people in ink, and the trick is to leave them loose.  I will probably have to do a great many of them before I am truly comfortable with the process!  Drawing number 1325 in 1325 days :)

Chickadee in the Lilac

Chickadee in the Lilac
Pen and Ink on paper, 6x7

Today, I switch gears, and get into the ink!  I love the way pen and ink steps back in time.  This could have been drawn 300 years ago, or just today - it is timeless.  I can look back to the first ink drawings I did in January, and wow - what a difference!  As I have penned, I have learned, and the expression has come easier with each rendering that I do.  I no longer feel a stress about attaining the likeness and feeling I want to portray, they just happen organically, almost without thought, which is how my graphite drawing has always unfolded.  This ink journey has been a sweet one, and one I will pursue forever.  I will never be too old or feeble to pick up a pen and paper!  This drawing is 1306 in 1306 days.

Roses in Ink

After finishing a portrait of fatherhood, that I have been working on for days, I am trying my hand at vintage roses.  I love the wonderful, ageless quality of these blooms.  I have never tried them in pen and ink - or graphite - for that matter!  They are simple, and easy to round out their forms with a little shading.  I am really having fun with this media!  I never know when I might stumble on something magical!   Painting number 1283 in 1283 days.

Roses in Ink
Pen and ink on paper, 6x7
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Waiting

Tonight finds me drawing Carole Bowles in the vintage dress she wore for the civil war reenactment at our farm. I am really learning from each figure I draw.  The compositions come easier with each one, and the permanence of ink no longer scares me.   It is fun, and relaxing even.   Who knew?   Thanks to my friend Lyn Pharis, for inspiring me to take up pen and ink this January!   Painting number 1282 on 1282 days :)

Waiting
Pen and ink on paper, 6x7
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Watering the Horse

I have lately been wanting to draw some horses and riders, using my reference photos from the reenactment we had out here a few years ago.  I am using my Pitt pens and sketching in the figures loosely.  Too scared to jump in with the ink directly, I did a light sketch with my mechanical pencil.  This allowed me to make sure my proportions were right between horse and rider.  It was fun to sketch them in ink, so fun that I did another one!  Drawing number 1279 in 1279 Days :)

Watering the Horses
pen and ink on paper, 6x7
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Oriole in the Plum Tree

Oriole in the Plum Tree
6x7, pen and ink on paper

Today finds me pulling out the Pitt pens and sketching the birds.  I have a purple leafed plum tree in the side yard which produces some wonderful fruit, and makes for my subject today.  I have not kept up with my ink drawing as I intended in January, so perhaps now I can make up for lost time. I really do enjoy playing in the ink!  Painting number 1274 in 1274 days.

Cedar Waxwing in Ink

While visiting with my parents, I have my pen and ink in hand.  After having the family over all day, I am settling into the relaxing rhythm of drawing.  This very natural act quiets the mind, and let's the hand just take over, the pen is merely an extension of that.  I started this sketch journal, hoping to draw every day, and I have fallen short of that lofty goal.  But that's okay, just starting it has kept me coming back.  Which is more pen and ink than I have ever done, and I have found that I love it!   I am getting Michaela started with her own sketch supplies - and her favorite pen is also mine!   The Pitt pen - superfine.  Like mother, like daughter.  Painting number.....1274.   I have to catch up on my posts the next time I have good Internet connection.   So much for everyone in America having Internet :(

Cedar Waxwing in Ink
Pen and ink on paper, 6x7
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Rainbow Sailing Batik

Rainbow Sailing Batik
India ink, watercolor, wax on masa
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Today's experiment?  Masa paper!  It is a little thicker than the rice papers I have been using, which is a good thing when it comes to wadding the waxed paper up into a ball.  When the wax does not crack enough in the first stage, I wad it up again, and sometimes a third time until the paint will be able to reach the paper's surface in the cracks.  There is a smooth and rough side to all of these rice papers - be sure to paint on the rough side for better workability.  I used the hot wax for the resists in the water using a small, round bristle brush.  Once you did any brush in wax - it will always be dedicated to that purpose. There is just no coming back from the damage of wax on brushes.  The wax permeates this paper so much that if I flip it over, the back side looks exactly like the front side - only the image is reversed!  Crazy!  I painted today from reference that I took out at the Perry Yacht Club on a race day.  I have so many wonderful photos to work from - and this technique must be done in the studio.  There are no electrical outlets in the great outdoors for hot irons and little crockpots!  Painting number 640 in as many days and Day 30 of the 30 Day Painting Challenge!  That sure went by fast!