No place like home

Alice is tired today and catching up on some rest. She swam on the weekend when we visited friends at their lakeside cottage, and it’s more activity than she’s used to.

In the summer she can’t run in the woods because of the tick problem. Instead she walks with me on the boring suburban streets, and it’s just not the same type of running and jumping over logs that she likes, and that keeps her in really good shape. So when she does get to run free and to swim, she has to recover for a few days afterwards.

I drew Alice today with two Pilot fountain pens: one extra-fine point filled with grey ink and one fine point filled with Platinum Carbon ink, in my Hahnemuhle portrait format A4 sketchbook. I didn’t have to go far to find her in the house. As always, she is by my side, whether I am in my office, working in my studio, or cooking in the kitchen. I have travelled a lot these past few months and feel quite bad about leaving her with our dog sitter when I go, even though she is lovingly cared for there. But of course, when I return, I can see that she is happiest here, on our daily walks, or in the house going from room to room and bed to bed.

Alice in blue

Posted: April 3, 2025 | Author: Shari Blaukopf | Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: Alice sketch, ballpoint pen, dog drawing, ink drawing | 24 Comments

My reward today for finishing up a tedious project was to spend some time sketching Alice. And her gift to me was staying still for the whole time. It’s nearly time for her walk, but she held her pose until I was done, as if she knew how important a bit of drawing time was for me.

When I set out to draw, I wasn’t sure what my subject would be but she was beside me, and thankfully I had a ballpoint pen and a sketchbook right on my desk. Getting up to find drawing tools would have disturbed her and ruined the moment. Now my gift to her will be long walk and maybe a few throws of a tennis ball since the snow is finally starting to disappear.

Alice watches football

Posted: December 26, 2024 | Author: Shari Blaukopf | Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: Alice, dog drawing, ink drawing | 22 Comments

It was the best kind of day for Alice. A long walk in the woods with the four people she loves best in the world, followed by an exciting football game on tv. And them some turkey leftovers with her dinner.

It was the best kind of day for me too. Besides the long walk and having the family all together, I received a new sketchbook and some new pens from Japan so I could draw while everyone else watched football.

August Alice

Posted: August 29, 2024 | Author: Shari Blaukopf | Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: Alice, dog drawing, ink drawing | 35 Comments

I’ve been painting quite a bit lately — filming a new course, working on some watercolours for fall exhibitions, preparing a few new ideas for videos — and you may have been wondering where Alice the dog is in all of this. As always, she’s by my side where ever I go. If I’m sitting on a dock by a lake drawing boathouses, she’s at my feet, watching the ducks go by. If I’m in my studio, she’s usually sleeping after her long walk. And if I’m working in the garden, she’s exploring the mini forest in my new backyard and putting her nose where it shouldn’t be, like into a nest of stinging hornets.

I always have several ink pens in my office and when I take a break from looking at my computer, I often draw Alice as she sleeps in one of her many beds. She doesn’t always stay in her bed while I’m drawing, especially if she hears the doorbell or someone eating in the kitchen, but she usually comes back and I just fill the page with another drawing.