The other side of the bouquet

This bouquet from Lutaflore was really quite spectacular when I picked it up last week — full of showy lilies and dahlias. But I can never paint showy flowers. I prefer the softer, faded ones, so I had to be patient. I waited until all the colours softened a little, and even then I turned the vase around until the showy flowers were in the back and the quiet ones faced me.

As for where these come from, I am really quite fortunate to have connected with Maryse Hudon this year. She grows all of these flowers in her backyard, and each time I go there she gives me a tour of the garden and her studio. It’s a real treat to see what she picks and how she puts together the bouquets. Next time I go, I hope to sketch there too.

Summer car sketching

It was one of those perfect days on the lake. Not much wind, good reflections, puffy clouds, and free parking in the right spot facing my favourite boats. I know, I know. Painting in my car in the middle of summer does sound a bit strange. I could have set up an easel outside. But after all these years of painting in my car, it really is the most comfortable place for me to paint, even in summer. I can easily lean a quarter sheet like this on my steering wheel and it does help to have that support when I paint all the masts and rigging. And with the windows open and a breeze coming off the lake, it’s rather pleasant.

I’ve been using a few new Da Vinci travel brushes which I will list in an upcoming blog post, but the new favourite is this one: the Casaneo Inlaid liner travel brush. It’s a synthetic brush with a fine point and a fat belly to hold lots of wash. It’s great not only for rigging but also wonderful for all the small details on the boats themselves.

Back of the sheet

It’s a good year for Echinacea. Last year they barely bloomed, and when they did open they were stunted or barely had any petals. I have no idea why. But this year they are much improved, and as they flower next to the Liatris and the Veroncastrum, the bees are having a party. Sketched on a pad of Arches, on the back of painting that didn’t work out as it should.

All over daisies

I missed my opportunity to paint the daisies in their prime when they were upright, bright white, and had petals open to face the sun. Now they are shriveled, brownish and flopping over. Maybe that makes them more interesting.

In a composition like this it’s hard to find a focus, but I knew that when I started. Instead I tried to tie them together with a darker background that shifted from red (that’s a purple smokebush on the left) to green to dirty yellow. Painted with a limited palette of Hansa Yellow, Hooker’s Green and Alizarin Crimson, with a little blue for the shadows on the petals.

Boathouses and a weekend of sketching

When we visit our friends at their summer cottage in upstate New York, I always bring along my painting supplies. My favourite place to sit is on the dock, especially in the early morning, when it’s just me, Alice, and a few loons enjoying the stillness of the water.

The dock is situated on a narrow channel between two larger lakes, so the opposite shore is quite close. I love drawing the boathouses, and this time I drew and painted them four times — in ink, in ink and wash, and in pure watercolour.

I also drew a few other things around the property. I think they knew I would bring a sketchbook so they left a wheelbarrow hanging around. It’s a good one, as far as wheelbarrows go — a bit banged up and a little wobbly.

I also like the firewood shed with all the great shapes in front of it.

My sketchbook is usually with me when we are sitting around chatting at any time of the day, including at happy hour on the dock. Maya and Oslo were moving around too much for me to draw them properly, probably hoping for chips to fall on the dock, but I put them in anyway.

Announcing “Wet-in-Wet Blooms” — a new online course

The first time I saw a demonstration of wet-in-wet watercolour was at an Ed Whitney workshop in Kennebunkport, Maine. After doing a quick pencil drawing on watercolour paper, the great master dipped a natural sponge in water, soaked both sides of his paper, and then rolled a squeezed sponge over the surface to remove the excess water. I was in awe that anyone could paint on paper that was that wet. But of course he painted something wonderful that day, and every other day, for that week. And I was hooked!

Over the years, I’ve painted many watercolours using Mr. Whitney’s technique, and happily, I’ve finally created a new online course “Wet-in-Wet Blooms” where I demonstrate how it’s done. It does take a bit of practice to get control of this damp paper but once you do, you’ll understand why I love it. In Ed’s words, “The wet method is the most forthright subscription to the nature of watercolor. It gives the medium a greater chance to obey its own laws, achieving lovelier effects than you can paint“.

If you’re curious, have a look at the trailer. The course is available at a special rate of $30 US or $42 CDN for this week only, and after Sunday, it goes up to $35 and $47.

Tom’s Burned Down Cafe

I’m posting Madeline Island sketches in reverse order. This is actually the last one I did, but I haven’t had any time at all to scan this week, and I had a photo of this one. On the last morning before saying our goodbyes, the whole group of us (students and instructors) spent a final few hours together in the town of La Pointe. People sketched all sorts of things (boats, motorcycles, storefronts) but I had to get in one last one of Tom’s Burned Down Cafe. It was my location when I taught last year, so it was a reunion of sorts with the big white tarps, the jumble of crazy signs, and the assorted flags. It’s my favourite subject on the island. Sketched on a block of Hahnemuhle The Collection Watercolour paper.

Eagle’s Nest Rock and travelling light

I’m just back from a spectacular week of teaching on Madeline Island with Uma, Jim and Paul, but before I post any of my sketches, I thought I’d report back on travelling light.

I was pretty determined to travel for the week with carry-on luggage only. So many people wrote to me with suggestions and ideas. Thanks for that! I know a week is not a long time but when I teach I like to carry a lot of art supplies with me, and I appreciated the advice.

I’m happy to report that I was successful in reducing my load, and even happier to report that at the end of the week I sauntered out of the airport in Montreal with all my belongings, and breezed past hundreds and hundreds of lost bags that have been accumulating there over the past few weeks.

Full disclosure: I did have one extra bag for the week. My friend drove to Madeline Island from Montreal, and she offered to bring some of my completed sketchbooks so that I could participate in an evening exhibition with the other instructors. Merci Nathalie!!! I would not have been able to bring those with me in my small suitcase.

Travelling with tubes of paint

People often ask me if you can bring tubes of paint in your carry-on luggage. I tested this out and yes, in North America you can, as long as you follow the 3-1-1 rule. All your liquids and gels need to be in a clear bag that is not bigger than one quart, you can only have one of those quart bags, and no single tube of liquid or gel can contain more than 3.4 oz or 100 ml of liquids. I brought along a tube of Titanium White watercolour and am happy to report that it did not trigger any alarms at security. After all, what’s the difference between that and a travel-sized tube of toothpaste?

Art Supplies

I carried one A4 sketchbook, and two pads of paper with me. That was plenty for the week. In fact, it was too much. I also filled two travel palettes, and that turned out to be sufficient, although we did have some paint from our sponsors Daniel Smith and Winsor & Newton, so I might have refilled a few wells of blue after two days of painting. All of my brushes, pens, pencils and erasers were in my Maxpedition bag, and the only other item was my lap easel from Stablo.France.

The lap easel is wonderfully light for travel, but after this workshop, I realize that I will have to bring along a tripod easel for teaching. I think students get a better view of the demo when it’s on an easel. Plus, the next time a deer fly bites me right through my socks, my sketch and my art supplies won’t end up in the dirt.

And since I can’t resist adding one image to my post, here’s a sketch I did of Eagle’s Nest Rock (reproduction quality is poor), at Big Bay State Park on Madeline Island.

Boat Launch

It’s still testing week for me. I packed the new and improved version of my travel sketch kit, and unpacked it at the Beaconsfield Yacht Club. I worked from my folding chair, with my Stablo Easel on my lap.

The lap easel is great. I clipped a pad of watercolour paper to it, and the only issue I had is that when I angle it too much, or over-fill the cup, the water spills out a bit onto my feet. But that is a minor issue than I can overcome if I pay attention to it. A while ago I put out a video about my plein air sketching tools. Recently I added a new demo about working while seated. In the video, I show the Stablo easel, as well as using a piece of Coroplast to attach your gear to. If you’re interested, have a look.

What’s in the bag

Thank you to everyone who responded in the comments from yesterday’s post. So many great suggestions!! I feel encouraged by all of you who are successful at travelling with carry-on bags, and it’s making me feel hopeful than I can travel light too!

I started the process last night by filling my travel palettes. I could probably bring some tubes of paint but this will last at least a week, if not more. On the left is my regular FOME palette, on the right is the Folio palette from Art Toolkit.

My very favourite recent addition to my kit is this bag from Maxpedition. It’s the Beefy Pocket Organizer. One of the students in my class in Santa Fe had one, and since it seemed to fit so much stuff in it, I bought one last month. This one bag replaces a bunch of pencil cases and pouches that I used to use. It’s a little over 6″ x 8″, and you can jam it FULL of stuff. I’ve been using it for the last month and it’s super practical.

Here it is, open, with all my pens, pencils, brushes and other assorted stuff. Those elastics are amazing. You can just keep adding things to the bag. I have a tiny spray bottle in there, my kneaded rubber eraser, a viewfinder, a ruler and there’s still room for more. And it feels very satisfying when I open it up because I can see all my tools of the trade at a glance.

And since it’s quite deep, I can add my two palettes in there before I close it.

One thing I have trouble with is reducing the number of travel brushes I carry. Good thing they don’t take up much space. I have an assortment of Da Vinci and Rosemary ones, in all shapes and sizes. Once a brush addict, always a brush addict, but I do acknowledge that I have a problem.

I will also bring along my mechanical pencil, extra leads, a few Pitt pens and my Platinum Carbon Desk Pen.

Also in my bag will be a lap easel from Stablo, a few pads of watercolour paper, my Etchr Perfect Sketchbook, a water container and a cup. Oh, and a few bulldog clips which I forgot to photograph. You can’t manage without those!

This trip will be a test to see if I can paint and teach without a bulky easel. I will report back when I return! Wish me luck!!