inktober 2016

Every October, artists all over the world take on the InkToberdrawing challenge by doing one ink drawing a day the entire month. Jake Parker created InkTober in 2009 as a challenge to improve his inking skills and develop positive drawing habits. you can check out his work by clicking on the link below.

The Inktober Initiative - Mr Jake Parker

mrjakeparker.com/inktober

This October I  decided to work with walnut ink,which has a lovely warm tone.   I was asked to do a

 series of Sepia tone drawings for a commission and walnut ink fit the bill for that as well.  

"Charlie"

walnut ink

9" x 6"

"Klaus" 1,2, &3

walnut ink

all 9" x 6"

"Daisy"

walnut ink

5" x  4"

'"Clover"

walnut ink in sketchbook

"Anny"

walnut ink in sketchbook

So far this October I have stayed on the subject of dogs but I have squeezed in a portrait or two as well.  ( Last September I did only portraits, of my daughter, using walnut ink.)

Whatever the subject, it is always good to get back to basics, and polish those drawing skills!

Day 6, Clover

"Good Morning Golden"

10" x 7"

watercolor

This is my Golden Retiever, Clover.  I love the head tilt he does, as if to say, "What? You don't want to bring me out in this 16 degree cold morning?"  Good thing he's cute!

Day 5, Sleeping Golden

"Sleeping Golden"

11" x 14"

watercolor

Clover and Sport

Clover and Sport

10.25" x 13"

watercolor

This is the final of the painting I showed the sketch for yesterday.  I didn't end up submitting it to the show because I wasn't sure it was right.  I like parts of it, but it wasn't exactly how I envisioned it.  Part of me wishes I just entered it anyway...

Clover is my dog and Sport is Clover's (toy) dog.  Sport started out as my daughter's toy, but too much dog slobber and she willingly handed him over to Clover... he lovingly carrries that thing everywhere, and would never dare tear him apart.

working bigger

I am trying to start working bigger, slightly bigger anyway...

Clover and Sport, sketch

9" x 12"

watercolor

I originally created this sketch as an idea for the "Possessions" exhibit at the Attleboro Arts Museum.  I liked the color and general gesture of the initial sketch but needed to go larger in order to incorporate the legs and the "Possession" (his stuffed dog, Sport).  Seeing how that was the point of the painting, that needed to be the focus.  Increasing the size of the paper to 10.25" x 13" helped but I still think it could use a little more breathing room, compositionally.

Next time I'm starting with a full sheet and cutting down once the painting is finished!

One more Dash...

Okay, just more more of Dash...

"Dash, from above"

9" x 12"

watercolor

And here is the process for this one...

Dash, take 3

"Everyday is like Sunday"

8 1/4" x 9 3/4"

watercolor

Way back in January, when I was doing the 30 Paintings in 30 Days Challenge, I saw my old friend Melissa's photo of her Golden Retriever, Dash, and just HAD to paint it.  I fell in love with the pose and of course I'm a big sucker for Goldens...I painted twice in January, and just couldn't seem to capture what drew me to it in the first place.  I tried again this week, but I think the lesson here is that some photos are SO good as photos, that they don't make good watercolor paintings...

golden

"golden"

9" x 12"

watercolor

This is not my golden, but he looks a lot like him!

Day 21

"Close-up Clover"

6" x 6"

watercolor

This is my dog, Clover, a golden retriever.  The reference photo for this was not great, just a fuzzy close-up from my phone.  But sometimes that is the best thing to work from, because you are seeing those big shapes first, and you don't get caught up in the smaller details. I used only three colors, ivory black, yellow orche, and cadmium red light. I like how this turned out but seeing on the screen I now see little things I could tweek.  How do you know when to stop on a painting?

Day 4

"warmin' up"

4" x 6"

watercolor

I'm just warmin' up, playing around with watercolors to figure out where I want to go.  This is from a photo of my dog Clover, warnin' up in the sun.  I've painted from it before and so I thought it would be fun to play around with it.

second day, second try

I thought I'd take another go at this reference photo because I love it so much.  This is actually just a tiny study, and I am going to try again, larger...

"everyday is like sunday, study"

4" x 4"

watercolor 

I did this small one to try out a limited pallette of just ultramarine blue and light red, but I end up adding raw sienna and phtalo blue too.  Looking at this now I even want to go back into this one a little...

Happy New Year!

For me the new year always brings so much promise, so much potential, so many opportunities to start something new.  Today I started a new sketchbook, that I hope to draw in every day of 2015.  I call it my coffee sketchbook because I will spend the time it takes me to drink my morning coffee sketching here...

day one

I've been reading about getting organized and focused and what it comes down to is committing a certain time each day to what it is you want to accomplish.  I drink coffee every morning, and usually read the paper or make a list of to-dos.  If I spend that same time sketching, warming up for a painting or just mindlessly doodling, I'll still have drawn something that day, even if I don't accomplish anything else.

The something else that I'd like to accomplish is painting everyday, and with any luck, selling my work, or at least exhibiting more.  To that end, I've signed up for Leslie Saeta's Thirty Pintings in Thirty Days Challenge.  Here is my first submission:

"everyday is like sunday"

9"x9"
watercolor

This is a painting of a friend's photo of her dog, that looks a lot like my dog, and I just couldn't resist.  I rushed into it too quickly and didn't get the drawing quite right so I think day 2 will be a redo of this very same picture...

Happy

"Happy"

6" x 6"

acrylic on panel

 I need try this one again.  Too much fur, not enough structure. Or I need to pay more attention to structure...

Sunning Himself

"Sunning Himself"

5" x 7"

acrylic in gessoboard

This is my Clover, again, sunning himself on the back porch.  I think it's one of his favorite spots.  I liked the way this one was coming along, but then I laid in some colors in the shadows that I did not like and but did not want to cover them up because I was trying to keep the darks thin.  So, I decided to leave well enough alone and there you are.

Anyway, I came across this quote on another artist's blog and I think it pretty much sums up why I paint...

"In order to be happy," said Winston Churchill, "you need to find a task that requires perfection, is impossible to achieve, and spend the rest of your life trying to achieve it."

The painterly approach...

6" x 6"

acrylic on panel

Sometimes its best to quit while you're ahead.  I thought I had a clear plan on this one, but somehow lost my way and decided it was best to head home before I got lost in the (muddy colors) woods!  I almost scrapped it altogether but there was some little bits that I liked about it, so here it is.

It was been hard to keep up with the 30 in 30 Challenge now that someone doesn't nap (and by the time she does go to bed, I want to too!) but I am glad get back to painting, even if it is just once or twice a week.  

Made in the Shade

"Made in the Shade"

4" x 4"

acrylic on panel

My Clover again...This is from a super hot day last week at the playground.  He had to follow us around and check everything out, including climbing up the stairs, until he finally plopped himself under one of the slides, in the shade.

I started getting too fussy with this one and had to stop.  I'm trying to keep to a painting-a-day schedule, but so far this week I've only done two, sending the day after revising.  I find I miss a lot of things when I paint it all in one sitting, without stepping away from the painting.  But usually I can commit only one hour or two to painting, so...  I'm far behind on the 30 in 30 challenge, but at least I'm still going.  20 in 30 isn't bad, right?

Day ? - Clover

"Clover"

4" x 4"

acrylic on panel

What day is it? I think, being the sixteen of September that it is Day 16 of the 30 in 30 Challenge.  But this is my 11th painting and I'm not sure I'll catch up at this point so...

Here is a painting I did for a Daily Paintworks Challenge, to paint a pet from a black and white photo, so as to make sure you establish a light and dark pattern.  I started with this photo of my dog Clover, from about 5 years ago.

All I had was a photocopy so I really had no reference for color, other than Clover himself.  I used a limited palette of Cadmium Red Light, Yellow Ochre, Phtalo Blue and Titanium White.  I started working with the reference photo and my painting upside down to block in the major shapes of light and dark...

Then flipped it once I felt I had that in place, and add some smaller details...

Then painted out the quilt that is to the left because it was distracting and didn't make sense.  Not sure is this is better, composition-wise but overall I like the painting.