Drawing Black

It’s hard, drawing black. Very hard. Sparta Puss is tortoiseshell so there are a few lighter bits on her. It was even harder to draw my late, great kitteh, Bola, who was as black as a panther. It’s all down to the marks you make, varying them to delineate the different areas of the subject.Continue reading “Drawing Black”

Drawing Night

Drawing at night isn’t too bad in the city centre, because of illumination from street and shop lighting. But on the beach, Swansea Bay, unless there’s a clear moon, there’s very little light and no clear landmarks. So drawing a deserted night scene is about interpreting the different elements of the darkness with varied materialsContinue reading “Drawing Night”

Drawing In Darkness

Husb and I went to Taliesin Arts Centre this evening to see a version of Dreyer’s 1932 silent film, Vampyr accompanied by live musicians. It was fantastic. I had a bash at drawing in the dark, using a complete set of sepia Faber Castell Pitt drawing pens in sizes S, F, M and B andContinue reading “Drawing In Darkness”

My drawing blog: Black Dogs After Midnight

A weird thing happened after Husb and I visited some friends the other night.  As we drove home in the dark,  three large black dogs suddenly loomed on the road in front of the car. Husb managed to brake in time and the dogs disappeared as quickly as they had appeared. It was a shock!Continue reading “My drawing blog: Black Dogs After Midnight”

Big Cushions And DIY

We’v had a long weekend of D.I.Y. and we’re grubby and tired so catching some relaxation with BBC’s ‘The Voice’. Iwasn’t expecting to like it at all but Tom Jones is such a legend and Will.I.Am is delightfully funny and the standard of singing is good to spectacular. Husb is chilling out on the bigContinue reading “Big Cushions And DIY”

A New Model! A New Muse!

  I’m a gingery Celt living in a predominately gingery Celtic part of the country so it’s an absolute joy to have a new model from Africa working with our life drawing group.  Swansea has had a fair bit of immigration in the past, as it was a thriving port and is a thousand yearsContinue reading “A New Model! A New Muse!”

Speed Scribbling!

There’s always a temptation when you’re working with a model to make the most of the time you have and launch straight in to a formal detailed drawing but sometimes it pays to try out some quick scribbles first, putting the models in a variety of poses and making some very small, scribbled sketches. AContinue reading “Speed Scribbling!”

Things to Do With a Four Inch Screw

Instead of lino or wood for making block prints, I use offcuts of ‘Foamex’ signwriters’ foam board, which local firms throw out, so it’s free AND recycled. It isn’t easy to cut with conventional cutting tools as the blades need frequent sharpening, which I do with a leather Slip Strop, but it’s very easy toContinue reading “Things to Do With a Four Inch Screw”

Total Artgeek – Soft Pastels: Portrait of an Elder Man

  I don’t often do portraits, preferring nudes and cats, but I’ve been trying harder to get a likeness over the past year because it’s good discipline and forces me to be not only very observant but also very accurate, which feeds into my professional development. This is John, a life model I often workContinue reading “Total Artgeek – Soft Pastels: Portrait of an Elder Man”