I’ve been sitting with my dear aunt in her nursing home and spending the time drawing her. She mostly doesn’t recognise anyone and stares into space or dozes quietly, but now and again she’ll look directly at me, smile and give me a broad wink before slipping back into quiet isolation. It’s a hardContinue reading “A Life Lived Fully”
Tag Archives: illustration
Heavy Man, Little Women and Huge Corset.
A load of artists got together in the centre of the city last Saturday to do two hours of disruptive art events, a mostly humourous approach to involving the public in some off-beat art and completely independent of any funding bodies and their agendas.Although the organisers had cleared the event with police and localContinue reading “Heavy Man, Little Women and Huge Corset.”
Cat On A Rucksack On A Blanket On A Footstool
This drawing had to be done! Little one-eyed Ming the Merciless, our fluffy Tortoiseshell [Calico] cat, doing her ‘Princess and the Pea’ stuff again earlier today, dossing on top of a large packed rucksack that had been left on top of a large, well-stuffed leather pouffee that was covered with a thick fleecy blanket. AnyContinue reading “Cat On A Rucksack On A Blanket On A Footstool”
An Elder On The New York Subway
I went to the New York International Print Fair a couple of years ago and spent the best part of a week travelling around the city to loads of print exhibitions and events. A lot of the time I was on the subway and as I always carry a sketchbook with me it gave meContinue reading “An Elder On The New York Subway”
On The Other Hand….
I draw everyday. It underpins my professional practice. Sometimes I go on courses to be shaken out of my complacency because it’s too easy to stay in your comfort zone and not take any risks. This means that you don’t develop. I’ve been working with a very good drawing teacher at a local college andContinue reading “On The Other Hand….”
Sometimes Less Is More
One of the hardest things in creating a work of art is knowing when to stop. It’s too easy to keep on going and overwork something which then loses its spontaneity and liveliness. I find it useful to do formal drawing exercises to try and overcome this; things like speed sketching, drawing with aContinue reading “Sometimes Less Is More”
The Alien in My Right Foot
Today I saw the chiropodist about the verrucae in my right foot and was transfixed for half an hour by his scientific lecture on the phenomenon of veruccae and viral infections. Turned out he did his dissertation on verrucae, luckily for me. I’ve had two on my right foot for some weeks now and myContinue reading “The Alien in My Right Foot”
A Watercolour Gorefest!
I don’t usually paint, preferring pen and ink, charcoal and chalk. Now and again I bring out the watercolours in life drawing sessions and have a bash. The received wisdom is that watercolour is a gentle, refined medium where you build up layers of pale delicate glazes. Some of the artists in theContinue reading “A Watercolour Gorefest!”
Small Boy, Big Icecream, A Bee and A Flower
Today I babysat for my six-year old nephew and as we’re having a glorious Indian summer I took him out, around the local museums and galleries and then to an ice cream parlour for a rest and something to cool down with. He loves mint choc chip so he had a huge cornet, almostContinue reading “Small Boy, Big Icecream, A Bee and A Flower”
Spying and Sketching: People Watching.
I sometimes go for a cup of tea to the café in Waterstones bookshop which is in a beautiful old cinema. The café is on the first floor and I sit in the large bow window overlooking the street below which has some lovely Indian Bean trees and benches and I sketch people. It’sContinue reading “Spying and Sketching: People Watching.”
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