Musical chairs
Posted: January 27, 2017 Filed under: Uncategorized 12 CommentsI was back at school today, drawing in the cafeteria during a break. If you sit there for a while you notice two things — and this is not a new observation because I have mentioned this before— students leave their winters coats on indoors and they are always on their phones. I drew the girl with the fur collar first and when she got up, she was replaced by an almost identical figure in a fur-collared jacket, also on his phone.
I used a V-Sign Pen from Pilot for these drawings. It’s got a fatter nib than pens I usually use, but it’s great for quick drawings because the ink flows quickly, especially if you use smooth stock like this Stillman & Birn Zeta paper. It’s also really black! And a bonus for quick studies like this: it uses water-soluble ink so a quick once-over with a water brush will give you some good grey tones.
I haven’t had time to answer comments from my last post yet, but I wanted to thank everyone who sent me a note. I was completely bowled over by all of the truly wonderful wishes you sent my way.
Shari Blaukopf's Sketchbook 
I too wanted to weigh in and say how sorry I am. It’s a sad milestone when you reach the age of having parents no more. My husband, who is 91, finds that he can carry on a mental conversation with his father so maybe death isn’t quite so absolute.
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Hi Ruth. Thanks so much writing. It is a sad milestone but it has been heartwarming to read all the comments I’ve had this week. That has really been helping me get through all this.
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Nice title. Nice sketches.
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thanks!
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Sorry to be prosaic – how do you do the shading? Love the drawings, obviously!
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HI Anne. To do the shading I used a Koi water brush, you know the ones that have the water reservoir in them. I carry that around, filled with clear water. The ink if water-soluble so I just wash the brush over the ink lines and they dissolve, creating a grey tone. Magic!
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Love these drawings. Yes, how ddid you do the shading?
Reminds me when we lived in ND. I had -still have-a heavy parka like this. But when I taught art at UND, I had students that wore little short jackets, even in 30 below. And complained about the cold weather. Fortunately in those days they didn’t have cell phones.
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Hi Judy. I will give you the same response as Anne who asked about the shading.
I used a Koi water brush, you know the ones that have the water reservoir in them. I carry that around, filled with clear water. The ink is water-soluble so I just wash the brush over the ink lines and they dissolve, creating a grey tone. I could also do this with a grey marker but I like some of the ink lines to dissolve. I hope that helps.
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Thanks, Shari. I didn’t even think about using the two together. will try it.
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I meant to write earlier Shari and also express my sympathy over the loss of not only your Mom but also your Dad not that long ago! That’s a tough double-whammy for any of us and I hope you are holding up well. Your mother sounds like a wonderful person and perhaps you are finding some moments of comfort while working on your sketches. Bests, ~Tom
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Thanks so much for writing Tom. A double-whammy is a good way to describe it. Sketching is always a calming activity for me, but is especially comforting these days. Gives me lots of time to think about better days. Hope you are well. It’s always nice to hear from you.
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When my father passed, it felt like someone had kicked out a corner of the foundation I’d built my life on. Not a day goes by that I don’t catch myself filing away a question to ask or an observation to pass along, as if he were still alive.
I’m working my way through your landscape sketching course and drew a landscape on cheap sketch paper with water-soluble fountain pen ink. I decided to lay watercolor on it anyway, and found I really liked the ink smear at the interface between a meadow stream and the grassy bank. In fact, I liked it better than the “finished” version I did on watercolor paper.
The class is useful and interesting, but nothing beats seeing these techniques play out in everyday art.
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