Art Catch Up

I am way behind on my art challenge drawings, but I had time to do a few on vacation -- and a few NOT part of the challenge. Like this one, from a photo taken at the Tuileries.

The subject for this was "Over There" -- taken from one of my photos from the American Cemetery at Omaha Beach.

"Cool" was done straight from life, sitting on my beach at the lake -- sigh!

"Small Pleasures" is a piece I started LONG ago -- a peek at a window with its delicate lace curtains. You will never know how I struggled with this -- it just looked blah.

Then I read Vivian Swift's "Le Road Trip" and noticed she had made her lace curtains by making the background VERY dark and then the white tracery of the lace actually showed up. I tried it here using a white marker for the lace and while my work will never look like Vivian's -- it is a start. (You'll learn a ton about painting at her terrific blog with a weekly painting lesson!)

"Flowers" is neither from life nor drawing nor photo. It is from my brain as I was playing this week. I may cut this into pieces for bookmarks.

 

Try this version of "Flowers" instead -- sunflowers from a photo taken at one of last summer's farm markets!

For "Hunger Pangs" I went back to the France photos. I had been so motivated by the beautiful macarons Carol draws in her Paris Breakfasts blog. I had to try.

Somehow Carol's look like macarons. Mine look like pink blobs. But I still had hunger pangs! Here is the original.

"Wishful Thinking" again finds me in France -- this time in Giverny at the famed bridge. I don't know HOW I was able to get this photo without people in it!

Here's how it translated to my drawing.

 

Here are a few others -- the problem children, I call them.

 

The one above was my neighbor's little well (actually it is a faux well that hides some sort of outdoor thing). As you can see, I was having trouble with the perspective as I hit it from an odd angle that I just couldn't make right.

 

This one is from the Medici Fountain in Paris -- a tight shot of the sculpture. Oddly, the woman on the left looks like a man, and the man on the right looks like a woman, specifically like my mother. I think it looks more like a woman holding a child instead of her man. Try again (although I like it in its own way, just so long as I don't think about what it really is!).

 

And this one is from some photo I nabbed and for the life of me can't remember where! It's not so bad. I'm thinking the path leading to the beach at Myrtle Beach.

I call the one above "Road Trip."
It was done from this photo as we drove through Normandy several years ago.

Well, I'm caught up! What's next? Wait and see!

Drawing with Joanne and Jill -- Again!

Here are a few more images from my "Drawing with Joanne and Jill" challenge. The first two were done looking at a line drawing of a shape -- in this case, a balloon. It is definitely "from the past."

All the coloring, detail and depth is mine. (We are basically talking a circle connected to a square as a starter.

This one, "Spring is Really Here" also started with a line drawing of a cart as inspiration. 

I added the flowers, color and detail.

"Free and Easy" was done from a photo. 

Here's the original -- as you can see, I had trouble with the facial coloring! All that natural light and shadow was a challenge.

The background was the challenge for this one. It's for the challenge "Small Pleasures" and I call it "Tara's Swan."

"Tara's Swan" is from this photo of Tara Bradford's swan from the canal behind her Netherlands home. I was fortunate to have a spotting on my last day visiting a year ago.

I felt pretty good about the swan -- less so with the background.

The last time I posted, some of you asked what media I used. These are watercolor pencils. Basically you draw your work, then wet it and blend the colors. It's an easy way to start water color. I am longing for  little more time and space so I can start using "real" watercolors. I've been reading Vivian Swift's blog regularly and in each post she has a painting lesson. That'll have to wait till summer, but it is on the horizon!

More Drawing with Joanne and Jill

Well, somehow I have actually managed to almost catch up on my drawing assignments in our blogger art challenge with Joanne and Jill. 

I'm even ahead with this one. "You Take the Cake" is in April!

(On the other hand, I missed Christmas, New Years and 'Grateful'!) 

All this winter has me wanting a "Tropical Island." 

Of course, soon it will be time for "Rain." We've actually had some already -- but cold rain! Not that warm rain we welcome!

"All You Need is Love" if it's Lizzie!

This was a favorite -- the Netherlands Long-Eared Owl, drawn from a photo in the New York Times. (I was scared to death to paint this one!). The category was "An Animal," and I know -- a bird is stretching it, so I'll probably do another soon enough.

 

And finally, "Wynton's Hands" was the drawing for "Jazz." This was drawn from a photo by a photographer named Richard Galosy who took the shot of Wynton Marsalis at a concert. We had used it on our program guide cover long ago.

More to come. I'm on a roll! 

More Drawing with Joanne and Jill

In our merry band of art drawing challenge participants, I am the one lagging behind Joanne and Jill. But I have a few more to share.

The theme for the one above is "Around the House." After I titled it, I realized I already did that theme. Rats! Should have used this one for "Anything You Want" and maybe I will!

"Cold" was another topic and really, it must be cold for the snow person to stay put!

 "Comfort" was from way back in November. Is there anything more comfy looking than a fat cat on a pillow? I think not.

 

This is for "Shadows." I'm not sure it really conveys the theme so much as winter or even "cold" but it's what it is.

So there you have it! Hopefully I'll add a few to these soon enough. Perhaps I'm on a roll!