At the window
Posted: November 8, 2012 Filed under: Uncategorized 7 CommentsMy Thursday lunchtime spot is often the Jean Talon Market because I have a longish break between classes. I often sit near the window of my favorite café so I can have a firsthand view of the action in the alley behind the market stalls, which is sometimes more exciting than the stalls themselves. This week things are really winding down in the alley, with most of the merchants moving indoors, so today I sat a bit further back and instead watched the people watching the market.
November sky
Posted: November 7, 2012 Filed under: Uncategorized 5 CommentsThis was painted as a demo for the Dorval Artists’ Association last night. Never really got around to finishing it (because I talked so much!) so I did that today in studio. I don’t usually do the drawing on site and apply the colour later but that was my method for this demo. (I brought a poor quality phone photo with me just for colour reference.) I sketched this near the lake in Lachine, facing the Resurrection of Our Lord Parish.
Distant bridge
Posted: November 6, 2012 Filed under: Uncategorized 15 CommentsI picked Dorval as my sketching spot today because I am giving a little talk and demo tonight to the members of the Dorval Artists’ Association. With temperatures at just about freezing I managed to stand outside to do this — holding my sketchbook and using a park bench as my work surface. I realize that this may be stretching the outdoor season somewhat but when it’s this cold you tend not to overwork things as much because you just want to get back into the warm car.
Vise
Posted: November 5, 2012 Filed under: Uncategorized 8 CommentsWhen I don’t have much time to get out to paint I have been trying to draw objects in my house. But today I think I learned my lesson. This was far too complex! Next time I will keep it simple and go draw a gothic cathedral or something.
My broken rake
Posted: November 4, 2012 Filed under: Uncategorized 16 CommentsThe leaves from my oak tree are always the last ones to fall and the hardest to pick up. They have the texture of leather so they are impossible to mulch. And my broken rake doesn’t make this chore any easier.
At the library
Posted: November 3, 2012 Filed under: Uncategorized Leave a commentI wanted to do a couple of quick sketches in the Westmount conservatory but it was closed due to an upcoming event so I had to content myself with a bit of drawing in the library next door. As of tonight, when we wind the clocks back one hour and the daylight hours get shorter and shorter, I will have to find more indoor destinations to draw in. The library is another good one to add to my list because, as I observed today, students who are focussed on their studies are not really aware of people drawing them.
Rusty blade
Posted: November 2, 2012 Filed under: Uncategorized 2 CommentsI would love to have a bit more time to work on this but only had a short time today. This was done in a Moleskine sketchbook with a water-soluble pencil and an Inktense pencil.
Man reading
Posted: November 1, 2012 Filed under: Uncategorized 16 CommentsDrawing someone in a cafe is a delicate dance. You start drawing, hoping that you won’t be noticed, hoping that your gestures are surreptitious, your glances casual. Gradually the person being drawn gets the sense that they may be the object of your study. They look up and you quickly look away. They think that perhaps they are mistaken, that you are simply writing some notes in a book. This goes on for some time until they catch a glimpse of your page and realize that the likeness is of them. The charade is up so they choose to ignore you or possibly get up and leave. The dance has ended.
House on Seventh
Posted: October 31, 2012 Filed under: Uncategorized 8 CommentsI have been experimenting with painting first and adding line second, instead of the reverse. It makes me look at the big shapes and as well, it forces me to determine what areas I want to keep light and which areas should be dark. Of course after I draw in some lines I always need to go back to add a second wash in the really dark areas. What I like the best about this method of working is the little offsets that happen because the painting is not that accurate — in this case the parts of the porch roof that don’t quite meet up.
Looking down Pontiac
Posted: October 30, 2012 Filed under: Uncategorized 6 CommentsWhen it’s really cold out (and you are not in your car) you have to work FAST, before your fingers freeze. I have tried drawing with gloves on but that just doesn’t work for me (although I have yet to try the ones with the finger tips cut off). The view down rue Pontiac, in the Plateau Mont-Royal district, is full of great shapes and colours but I was sitting on some cold concrete steps so I did this pretty quickly and then made a beeline for a warm café.
