Category Archives: sketching

Things that fall

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Final image

I’ve spoken often about how I love to go walking in my neighbourhood, and I didn’t let the previous night’s storm put me off. It was still blowing furiously yesterday when I took off, cap on under my red jacket hood. Sunglasses too, to keep the wind and salt air out. The debris on the footpath had me stop at the end of the block, and there I stooped to uplift a fine collection of fallen goods. I picked up a large leaf, (from a magnolia I guessed), two small pōhutukawa leaves sporting radiant autumn colours, a seed of some sort and a small feijoa. Feijoas are loved and disliked in equal number here. I love them. To eat, one should slice them in half and scoop out the middle with a teaspoon, But this fallen delicacy was way too small to eat.

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A lull in proceedings

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For all my excitement about my new novel, and tripping about to speak at book stores etc., I admit the busyness over the past few weeks has seen me flop on my bed for ‘Nana Naps’ most afternoons, my thoughts of sketching lost in dreams.

However, I woke feeling fresh this morning (ye ha!) and made a start on sketching three small figs on a saucer, before taking off to walk by the sea. So lovely with the hint of autumn in the air and tui going crazy in the trees.

My batteries were re-charged.

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The things we do

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It’s been a very busy time with family staying (there were many spread over the weeks), and me working on promotional material for my novel throughout to meet the publicist’s deadlines. But there were nice moments, like drinking Prosecco on the patio with family. It was a brother-in-law who spotted the clay forms clumped on the outside table, and said “what are these?” “You may well ask? I replied. “I made them years ago, as part of my teaching degree.” I was a late starter regarding my education, and began this, my first degree, at fifty. And although I had been tutoring art to adult students for years before this, I decided to give academia a go.

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The penultimate session

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Last week I started to work on an invented background for my painting, as the room lacked ambience. Once home I spent some time trying to improve on the colours and build more interest to the painting as a whole.

First thing was to correct the position of the right leg. I was still struggling to get the thickness of my paint as I wanted, and it always seemed to come out too thin even with medium. Never mind I told myself, I can always let it dry and add more layers.

And so, that’s what I did. At least by the time I’d put the canvas aside I could say that I almost liked it. But there was a way to go.

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From sketch to canvas process

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Continuing on from last week, when I showed you the charcoal sketch (see above) which I would be transposing onto an A2canvas. As I am going to take you through that process I thought it would help to include it here as this is the pose I shall continue to work from.

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The next phase: sketching towards a painting

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Week Three. In this session we were to work on A2 paper, using pencil or charcoal for our preparatory sketch. No photocopies this week. The model Lulu is similar in build to the figure we had copied in Goldie’s work – the idea being, we were told, was to execute a painting in tones similar to the one we had copied. But first, the pose needed working out, and so a few minutes were spent moving a stool, arranging a cushion, and having the light in an appropriate position to suit both the model and the class. We would be working with this same pose for three weeks. Hard on the model I thought.

I was pleased to be using my favourite drawing medium for this stage. Charcoal is such a forgiving medium and I just love the nuance of tone it allows one.

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The last stages

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I worked a little on the painting yesterday, and this is the image here. I left it to dry overnight and returned to it today.

I will work on it a little tomorrow and hopefully it will be done.

I should have waited until the paint had dried to take the photo as every brush stroke is laid bare (unintentional pun).

I have decided to trim the image and focus on the model and not include the barely discernible chair at the periphery of the scene in the original. I think this format works better in my view.

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The work in progress: week two

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Last week’s underpainting

Following last week’s effort, I thought a good deal about how I would approach the second class, realising there was a chance of not been offered any specific way in how to apply oil paints. I decided to progress my painting by instinct; it wasn’t as if I haven’t drawn from life, and although my painting history has revolved around fiddling with watercolour, I have used acrylics before. And, I do know a reasonable amount about colour, albeit using pencils rather than paint. During this session we were encouraged to go and view the original painting again. It was difficult to see the actual paint strokes as it was behind glass but we did agree the painting was lighter in tone and showed the colour more effectively than the photocopies we were working from.

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Occasion markers

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Great Stupa at Kathmandu, Nepal

I love the way something you buy, whether travel mementos, or presents received or given, stand as markers in one’s life. Take the ceramic teapot I’ve decided to sketch (below), which was the first present I gave my husband not long after we’d met. It was April 1992, and I had the great fortune to travel to Nepal on a 29 day trek with three other women from New Zealand; such a fantastic experience. (Link above takes you to a post from a few years back). The day I returned to my hometown, I helped out a friend with an exhibition opening at our art gallery, and there Kerry was, also helping out. We chatted for ages before parting ways, thinking maybe we just might get to chat some more – sometime. And, surprise! surprise, by the end of the year we were chatting a lot.

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Reaping the benefits

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Kerry: water-soluble pen and aquarelle pencil

I am lucky to have a husband that enjoys gardening and is chairperson of our local Ngataringa community organic gardens (affectionately known as NOG). A week back he brought home some Seville oranges with the intention of making marmalade and might have, had I not said, ‘I’d like to draw those,’ as the orange of the fruit contrasted perfectly with the green leaves still attached by short stems. I hauled out my very heavy drawing easel ( circa 1960s! with a metal base) and started to arrange pencils and paper needed for the job. Three closely drawn pieces of fruit takes a while, so I started, hoping not to have many delays.

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