Clean, Green And Safe

Husb and I have gone out for a walk most days since the pandemic lockdown started. We’re not at risk so we can have a government sanctioned hour a day. It’s really made me appreciate how lucky we are to live in such a beautiful city. Swansea is so green with loads of parks, wildedContinue reading “Clean, Green And Safe”

Carving Blocks And Charcoal At The Castle

Today was pretty productive. I inked, traced and transferred seven texts onto little lino blocks and cut two of them. These are part of my series of words and phrases I’ve written down through the course of the Covid19 pandemic, from the first day of lockdown. Eventually, I’ll be printing them onto home-made cotton masks.Continue reading “Carving Blocks And Charcoal At The Castle”

A Cityscape, A Lush Loaf And A Spider Man

Earlier, before the rain started, we went to visit an elderly friend who lives high on the hill, observing social distance of course. I did a scribble into my Khadi sketchbook with some willow charcoal. It’s hard drawing a cityscape – it’s so packed with detail and charcoal is quite a blunt instrument, so IContinue reading “A Cityscape, A Lush Loaf And A Spider Man”

Out The Back

This is the sort of subject that I really don’t like to draw, it’s way outside my comfort zone. Give me people and animals any day, or even a bit of open landscape. But. I need to challenge myself, so I had a scribble looking out of the back door into my garden. It’s aContinue reading “Out The Back”

Charcoal And Baps

I took my Khadi sketchbook and willow charcoal to the allotment this evening and drew from inside the allotment site, which is tucked away in a corner of the Castle park. It’s on a fairly steep hill dropping away to the coast and we’re near the top. It’s surrounded by woodland, which can be aContinue reading “Charcoal And Baps”

Mucky, Messy and Mumbles

Yesterday evening after Husb and I watered the allotment, I did a charcoal sketch facing Oystermouth Castle. Today, we walked around the castle park and I sat on a bench with my back to the Castle, looking towards the beach. My view was mostly trees and the park in the foreground, with a glimpse ofContinue reading “Mucky, Messy and Mumbles”

Willow And Khadi

Husb and I went to our allotment to water the plants this evening, it’s been boiling hot and we don’t want to lose any. As we left and walked past the castle (Oystermouth) I had a quick scribble with willow charcoal into a Khadi sketchbook.

Pandemic Portrait – Willow Charcoal

  So today I did a bit more work on the portrait I started yesterday, working from a photo. I developed the image with willow carcoal, putting in the shadows by squinting my eyes. I’m using willow charcoal at the moment because it’s easy to rub out mistakes. Once I’m happy that I’ve got theContinue reading “Pandemic Portrait – Willow Charcoal”

Pandemic Portrait – Making A Start

I made a start on a portrait drawing today. I rarely work from photographs, I’d much rather draw from a live model, but we’re in pandemic lockdown so I’ll do this one from a photo. I’m using a lovely sheet of vintage British hand-made paper with a deckle edge made by W H Saunders mill,Continue reading “Pandemic Portrait – Making A Start”

My Geographic Palette #3 – Walnut Ink

  About 3 or 4 years now some friends gave me a bag of fresh walnuts – that’s walnut fruit – the nut is in the centre of an apple sized green fruit. I made my own walnut ink from them, please click here if you want to see the technique I used.    Continue reading “My Geographic Palette #3 – Walnut Ink”