Sketchbook Archives: 16

Here’s a snapshot of September 2012, when we spent a lot of time in hospital, visiting elderly relatives. The three at the top were patients in the ward with our relative, and the bottom two show one of our younger family members on a visit.

Sketchbook Archives: 15

August 2012 was a very good year for my sketches en plein air, it must have been good weather because I was out and about a lot. The first four drawings were at the Balloon Festival at Ashton Court in Bristol and the last one was on Swansea beach with Mumbles in the background.

A Blast From The Past…

From 2012, a sketchbook scribble of Oystermouth Castle in Mumbles at the western edge of Swansea. I used to do a lot more drawing en plein air directly into sketchbooks, but I fell out of that daily practice during the Covid19 lockdowns and I haven’t really got back into it. I should, it’s good forContinue reading “A Blast From The Past…”

Sunning In The Park.

Husb and I went to Mumbles this evening, for the opening of a new exhibition at Tides Gallery. It was lovely, it spilt out into the Ponderosa Bar next door and Elwyn’s Bar just along the street. Then it spilt out across the road to the little park where Ian Thomas played an acoustic set.Continue reading “Sunning In The Park.”

Bare Bones

I started doing charcoal drawings into this Khadi sketchbook a few weeks after lockdown started. When I realised that the pandemic was going to be here for a while, I found that I was struggling to do any creative work so I decided to focus on improving skills instead. I have been doing a weeklyContinue reading “Bare Bones”

The Stand Of Trees

Another quick sketch in willow charcoal on Khadi paper caught as we left the allotment this evening. I’m getting used to being very sparing with it now, not doing too much detail. I find it helps to squint to see the blocks of light and dark more clearly. This stand of trees caught my eye,Continue reading “The Stand Of Trees”

Just Five Minutes

If you’ve only got five minutes, draw. Even when you’re so short of time, draw. It only takes a few minutes every day to keep up that regular practice and it all adds up over a year, decade, lifetime. I only had five minutes this evening after we left the allotment with our first summerContinue reading “Just Five Minutes”

The Sausage Fingered Stick Of Doom

For most of my life I haven’t been keen on charcoal, I thought it was a bit clumsy. Husb calls it “the sausage fingered stick of doom”. Maybe that’s a bit of an exaggeration, but it isn’t much good if you want to do fine detail on small paper. My Khadi sketchbook isn’t big soContinue reading “The Sausage Fingered Stick Of Doom”

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”

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”