Embarking on a Transatlantic Crossing!

On Friday, August 11th, we awoke to see that our ship, the Queen Mary 2, had come into port overnight.  What a thrilling sight!

We checked out of our hotel and walked our luggage down the streets of Southampton to the Mayflower Cruise Terminal, named for the historic Mayflower, which departed on August 16, 1620 from Southampton on her journey to the New World.  

After waiting in lines with other passengers, and going through the embarkation process, we settled in on board.

Our room. The little desk at right was where I painted scenes in my travel journal.

By evening, the ship was ready to sail from the port, and David and I knew where we wanted to spend this stage of our journey -- the deck 11 observation area directly below the bridge.

I spent the evening with a pencil in my hand, sketching the landscape and birds as quickly as I could.  

Leaving the port of Southampton

The Hamble Sea Scouts were out sailing in the Solent, the water between the mainland and the Isle of Wight, as we passed.

The harbor pilot had to navigate around a variety of sailboats, jetskis, and other leisure watercraft, as well as "The Brambles," a shallow bit of water opposite the Isle of Wight.  Our pilot expertly zig-zagged to get through this narrow bit of sea lane open to big ships.

We also saw this drone, and later found the footage of our ship's departure on YouTube: 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jZvJPp16sWw

A castle on shore near Southampton.

One of the two Solent Forts, originally built to protect the port area from attack, and now rented out for events with luxury accommodations.

As the sun set, we entered the English Channel.  Looking  back towards the Isle of Wight and sunset.

We were glad to have spent our evening watching the adventure begin!

The dramatic scenery made for some amazing photographs.  Feel free to use any of these images for your creative practice.

Happy painting & sketching!

Travel to Southampton and the Isle of Wight

Leaving London, we hopped a train to the port city of Southampton.  

I had intended to paint the landscape from the train, but we traveled at such high speed, and the train was packed with riders. So, I just enjoyed the experience.

Arriving at our hotel, we stopped in the restaurant for lunch, and I sketched the scene outside the window while we waited.

Later, we walked around Southampton, and I snapped photos of the quaint old town scenery.

The next day, we took a ferry to the Isle of Wight and the town of Cowes, 

where I bought this giant scone.

We walked down to a pebble beach to eat our scone,

 and I took the opportunity to paint.

 I hope you'll make use of these photos of the scenery of southern England in your own creative way!

The Natural History Museum of London, part 3

Down the hall from Hintze Hall, the Images of Nature Gallery (NHM information link) displays natural images important to their time. The artworks on display are both artistically inspiring, and scientifically accurate. 

This oil painting of insects by Jan van Kessel the Elder is so rich with color and details, it drew me in to study its intricate beauty.

The drawing below by Bryan Kneale stopped me in my tracks. 

Kneale rendered the Giant Tortoise's skeleton so well that I can feel the weight of the shell.  At the same time, he conjured the noble life force that once animated these bones.

Further down the hall is the very modern Darwin Centre (NHM link here), where  I found a quiet exhibit exploring the importance of backyard wildlife.

Inspired by Jan van Kessel the Elder and Bryan Kneale, I made a page of sketches, including a live pigeon & magpie outside the museum where I waited to meet up with my husband at the end of the day.

If you'd like to be an armchair travel journaler, here are some photos from the Natural History Museum of London for you to create with:

A Gogotte, a naturally-occurring sand formation cemented in place with silica 28-33 million years ago in France.  Wouldn't this make a fascinating value study?

For more information about this specimen, you can visit the Joy of Museums Virtual Tour.

A Garden Tiger Moth (Arctia caja).

I've always found skeletons difficult to draw as I get lost in all the little bones.  

What if you took a bigger picture approach of this Giant Ground Sloth, beginning with a gesture of the larger shape, and adding shadows and light?  

For more information on this extinct mammal, and a better photo of it, here's a link to an article on the Natural History Museum of London's website. https://www.nhm.ac.uk/discover/what-was-megatherium.html

Happy sketching!

The Natural History Museum of London, part 2

The Natural History Museum of London is a British treasure, and an incredibly popular destination in August.  

I had made a mental list of areas I wanted to visit, but found the crowds were so dense, I couldn't make my way down some of the old hallways.

So, I let serendipity be my guide, and sketched where I could find an eddy in the constant flow of people.

  I was charmed by the old style of displaying fossils by filling the walls with cases, and picked out this Ichthyosaur to sketch in pencil. 

The ink & watercolor were added later.

I don't think I would have noticed this fossil if it hadn't been for the crowds, but I enjoyed studying the structure of this extinct marine reptile and noticing where the spine had been broken in the intervening years.

Whatever we draw, we observe closely.  What would you like to really see?  

Why not get your pencil out and sketch it?!

Travel Journaling in England!

 

We made it to England! 

Our first day after recovering from jet lag, we visited museums in London. I toured the cathedral-like Natural History Museum.

It was a rainy Tuesday, and the weather filled the museum with visitors.  Still, I found little nooks to ferret myself away into and make pencil sketches.

I had initially thought to make watercolor sketches, but the masses of people made that impractical.  I decided to keep it simple,

and make pencil sketches on the spot. I took a few reference photos with my phone,

and added ink and watercolor washes back at the hotel.

After the crush & noise of people in the museum, the quiet, meditative practice of inking and adding color felt soothing, a lovely way to review the day and gather in peace.

If you'd like to travel along with me and sketch, here are a few photos of the things that caught my eye:

A terra cotta detail in Hintze Hall.

A display showing the architecture of Hintze Hall and the inspiration for the terra cotta decorations.

A magnificent Barn Owl!

Happy creating!

Travel Journal Art Kit

Here's the final collection of supplies I chose to travel to England with:

• A Stillman & Birn Mixed Media Sketchbook

• A Winsor & Newton Travel Watercolor kit (Lemon Yellow Hue, Cadmium Yellow Hue, Alizarin Crimson, Cadmium Red Hue, Ultramarine Blue, Phthalo Blue, Viridian, Sap Green, Yellow Ochre, Burnt Sienna, Burnt Umber and Chinese White).  I use this tiny kit a lot at home!  It packs a wide variety of colors into a small box.  You can see the array of colors I mixed in "Discover New Possibilities with Color Swatching!"



• An Altoids Tin Palette with Cadmium Yellow Pale Hue, Permanent Blue Violet & Permanent Rose.  It's tricky to mix a rich, vibrant violet, and I love the rosy color of Permanent Rose. Also, I found I was using so much Lemon Yellow Hue that I emptied the well and had to refill it.  Since I had the extra space, I added Cadmium Yellow Pale Hue as a back-up.
• Faber Castell Polychromos colored pencils, 36 colors
• A selection of Derwent Inktense Colored Pencils for added pop.
• A Faber-Castell Pencil Sharpener.
• A Faber-Castell Kneaded Eraser
• A gum eraser
• Binder clips for clipping book pages open,
• A small sponge, a rag and a piece of paper towel for blotting.
• A Water cup for rinsing brushes,
• A Water spray bottle to wet paint palettes,
• Several fine point waterproof black pens: Faber-Castell Pitt pens, Winsor & Newton, and one by Bic.
• A mechanical pencil (Bic Velocity #2, 0.9),
• A Conte a Paris 2B graphite pencil,
• A Pentel India Ink Brush Pen with refill, &
• Sakura Water Brush Pens in 3 sizes.

I fit the little items into a small makeup case I found at my local Goodwill Thrift Store for a dollar, and stuffed it all into my carry-on backpack, ready for adventure!

It was thrilling testing out supplies, planning and preparing for this voyage.  And I find that having a small kit of materials makes it easier to create, even when I'm at home.  It prevents overwhelm in searching for the "perfect" material, as there is no such thing as perfect in real life and art.

What is your minimum kit of supplies?  Even if you don't have plans for a getaway, why not put together a grab-&-go kit that you can stuff in a backpack or purse for mini sketch expeditions?!

I hope you make an Adventure Kit & put it to use this week!

Travel Journal Practice

I'm preparing for a vacation in England, and have been Googling little towns south of London.  

A photo of this mill in Winchester caught my eye, and I sketched it in colored pencils, and added Neocolor II watercolor crayons to bump up the color in a few places.

Below is the first layer of the drawing, using Faber Castell Polychromos colored pencils.

I have been selecting the art supplies I want to take with me on my journey, and I realize that my tiny Winsor & Newton watercolor palette at 2.5"x 5"x .5" packs a lot of color into a small box.

As much as I love my Neocolor II crayons, they take up more space and complicate my kit. When I compare them with what my watercolors can do, I love the transparency and vibrancy of my Winsor & Newton watercolors.  I'm going to leave the watercolor crayons at home.

Whether you are traveling the globe or armchair traveling, I hope you'll take the time to make a travel journal. It's a wonderful way to document the journeys of your life, to slow down & enjoy the moment.  All while building your drawing skills.

Happy journaling!

Travel Journal Close to Home

When I traveled to England, and across the Atlantic Ocean on the Queen Mary 2 last summer, I took along a travel journal and painted scenes I wanted to remember.

But, you don't have to travel across an ocean to practice this delightful journaling activity.

I was walking to a modeling assignment down this charming alleyway earlier in the summer, and snapped this photo with my phone.  It served as my reference photo for the painting above.

I hope you'll take a photo of a favorite scene in your life, and make a "travel journal" of your own local travels. Whatever medium you choose, you'll be building your art skills and making discoveries as you journal.

Happy journaling!