Seagull Poo And Nettle Brew

Today was one of the rare sunny days this summer, so Husb was up and out early getting a run along the promenade. Then a seagull spotted him. Literally. All over his head. I couldn’t stop laughing :D. Luckily he doesn’t have the thick verdant growth of his youth and he was able to scrapeContinue reading “Seagull Poo And Nettle Brew”

Model And Me

I’ve been photographing and cataloguing all my old sketchbooks, no small matter, there are dozens. This drawing is 6 years old. I was still using drawing pens but working on size A3 and sketching not just the model, but the life drawing room and whatever was reflected in the large mirrors. Here I am inContinue reading “Model And Me”

A New Male Nude [parental guidance]

Got home late from life drawing last night, too tired to blog and today I’ve been framing and mounting prints all day for next week’s printmaking exhibition at Oriel Canfas in Cardiff. Then this evening Husb and I went to the opening of this year’s MA show at Ty Bryn Glas – excellent. I thinkContinue reading “A New Male Nude [parental guidance]”

Sneaky Scribbling

I was at a meeting yesterday and while I was concentrating [honest!] I snuck my sketchbook out and scribbled away under the table for a few minutes. I like doing these very quick, surreptitious little portraits because it forces you to identify and capture what it’s absolutely vital to record because you don’t have theContinue reading “Sneaky Scribbling”

Life On His Own Terms

Sitting on a public bench in the city centre at the end of a long day, waiting to meet Husb to walk home and watching other workers doing last-minute shopping and heading for buses and cars, I spotted a local character standing opposite, so of course I grabbed my sketchbook and had a scribble. IContinue reading “Life On His Own Terms”

Discipline And Plotting

I’m an expressionist scribbler, preferring to draw freehand as much as possible. But now and again it’s good to get some discipline into my work to refine my technique. Here’s a plotted drawing I did a while back, using a very simple rough grid to plot the main points of the body and relate themContinue reading “Discipline And Plotting”

Quick Kitteh Scribbles

Some days I really don’t want to draw. Mostly though, I grit my teeth and do it because I don’t want to fall into the trap of being undisciplined. That’s when the cats come in handy. They’re great for speed sketching because, unless they’re snoozing, they don’t keep still for long, they’re very fidgety littleContinue reading “Quick Kitteh Scribbles”

What’s In My Handbag?

At last, a break in the appalling weather, sunshine and a trip to Tenby! I’ve been to Tenby so often recently that I should buy a house there, I love the place. I went with some of my family, three generations of us, and we decamped to the beach for a picnic and a fewContinue reading “What’s In My Handbag?”

Colour, Vibration, Reality

I’ve been re-reading one of my favourite art books, Victoria Finlay’s ‘Colour: Travels Through The Paintbox‘. Most of my books on colour are dry and rather academic but this is a rare book – well researched, informative, intelligent AND beautifully written. She’s a social anthropologist turned journalist with a passion for art and that passionContinue reading “Colour, Vibration, Reality”

Comfort Eating

I know the British summer is notoriously fickle but today takes the biscuit. It’s been so cold and wet that Husb and I went to the Continental Cafe for a full roast dinner at lunchtime, and lashings of hot tea, wrapped in layers of jumpers and raincoats. And now this evening there’s a storm goingContinue reading “Comfort Eating”