Inspiration from an Antique Photo

Recently, David and I toured the Photo Antiquities Museum of Photographic History, where I snapped this phone image of a stereoscope card. The museum has a remarkable collection of early photographs, and Bruce Klein, the owner of the museum, fascinated us with lively stories about the artifacts on our tour.  

The most amazing part was being able to hold daguerreotypes, ambrotypes, tintypes, & lantern slides -- original antique photos on glass. Holding a rare piece of history like this transported me back to the 1800's in a way that reading about the subject never could.

By the 1850's, stereoscopic images like the one above, became popular. Stereoscope cards were made by photographing a scene once, then moving the camera 3.5 inches to the right or left, and taking a second photo of the same scene. Viewed in a wooden holder like the one below, the pair of images would allow you to see the scene in 3D. 

photo by By Judson McCranie https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stereoscope#/media/File:U&U_Stereoscope_(02).jpg

If you hold an index card between your eyes and line it up with the yellow line between the two photos, you might be able to watch the two photos merge into a single, three-dimensional view of this old ruin in Shropshire, England.

 As artists, we take inspiration from our daily lives, and the Shropshire ruin photo caught my artist's eye.  Here's a pen & ink drawing I made.

I started with a pencil sketch on 140# watercolor paper.  I inked over the pencil lines with my Lamy fountain pen (EF tip).  Initially, I thought I'd add sepia watercolor washes, but I like it as is.

 Does the past fascinate you?  Why not find an old photo to use as a reference and make a sketch! The trick to making progress with your art skills is persistent practice.  It doesn't matter what you draw or paint as long as you keep it up!

Happy Creating!

Weekly Planner Design: Mugs and Tea

It's no secret that I love drinking tea -- black tea, herbal tea, all sorts and varieties.  And, each week I make a weekly planner page, and list out the week's appointments.  Why not fill that page with sketches of what I love? 

What do you love?  What would you enjoy making no-pressure sketches of? 

A weekly planner can give you that format.  Use any sort of notebook -- lined, dotted or blank -- and any sort of drawing implement.  I sketched this page with a mechanical pencil, then inked the finished design and erased the pencil lines. After this photo was taken, I filled up the week with events, appointments, classes, & even some fun things like bulb planting.

Happy Creating!

More Fun with a Weekly Planner

Sometimes your world is so full of beauty, that you feel inspired to include it wherever you can make sketches -- in the borders of notes, even your planner.  

 I love this time of year for taking walks and picking up the bounty of nature - like this pumpkin and the little green apple.

When I make my week-view planner page, I start with a concept, like having a circle in the center of the page, and arranging the days of the week around it.  Then I label the days and decorate with watercolors (pumpkin & acorns) or colored pencils (apple) and add my week's events.    

The sky's the limit when you're experimenting like this.  You may find that you make a sketch for your planner, and that starts you down the path to creating more.  And isn't it fun to look back on your sketches each week, reminding yourself that you are an artist?

Happy Creating!

Paddle, Picnic and Paint

David & I capitalized on a beautiful late summer day to take our inflatable paddle boards out to the state park lake.  We packed in lunch and my travel art supplies.  

As we drifted on the lake, I found the gorgeous Sugar Maple leaf on the left. After we ate lunch, I sketched the contours of the leaf with my Lamy fountain pen.

I began to lay in watercolors with a layer of warm and cool yellows (Winsor Yellow and Cadmium Yellow Hue).  

After that dried, I began adding in cool reds (bottom left of the leaf) mixed with Alizarin Crimson and Burnt Sienna.  On the right and upper parts of the leaf, I mixed warmer reds with Cadmium Red Hue and Cadmium Yellow Hue.  

The few touches of green were created by mixing Winsor Yellow and Ultramarine Blue. A mix of Ultramarine Blue and Burnt Sienna made the shadows.

Spending time outdoors in a peaceful natural place just to take in the scene instills calm and serenity for me.  I notice that adding the layer of drawing and painting to my nature time slows me down as I focus on one facet of the scene.  The meditative stillness magnifies the benefits of nature for me.

I hope you get some time out in nature to make art and connect with nature.  

Happy Creating!

Getting Back in the Groove: Nature Journaling

Sometimes, the simplest thing to draw is the most enchanting thing to draw.  

An afternoon walk around my farm yielded this collection of acorns under a young oak tree, as well as this crisp Winesap apple from the little orchard we planted 15 years ago.

Observations of the change of seasons deepen the experience of simply sitting outside.

My cat joined me in the late afternoon sunshine.

This was our perch:

When you're getting back in the groove of making art, a nature journal can slip you right back into your old routine.  A favorite pencil or pen and a little book are all you need to record what you see right now in nature.  If you make a sketch you don't like, simply turn to a fresh page and start again.  No pressure.

I hope you take time to create this week.  See where it leads you!

Happy Creating!

Armchair Travels with a Brush

A recent Google search (unrelated to finding photos to create from) brought up an image of this gorgeous Greek villa that swept me away.  

I sketched the scene with my Lamy fountain pen and waterproof black ink on Arches cold press watercolor paper, then added Winsor & Newton watercolors loosely. 

Have you recently been dreaming of a fantasy vacation?  Why not paint or draw your imagined getaway?  You can visit your own personal paradise every time to look at your artwork.

Happy Creating! 

Playing with Watercolor Paper Samples

I received this sample packet of New York Central watercolor paper free with an order of other art supplies.  I love playing with paper samples, and experimenting with each type of paper.

Above is the hot pressed paper.   The smooth texture worked well with the permanent ink and Inktense colored pencils I used.

If you are art supply shopping, don't forget to check for paper samples.  They're often free or quite inexpensive, and it's a fun way to try something new.

I used this sample artwork as a postcard, wrote a message on the back, and mailed it to my best friend.  Fun!

What would you like to make with a set of paper samples?

Happy Creating!

Bird Gestures

Because birds move so quickly, it can be hard to make drawings of them. 

You have to draw fast.

A scribbly gesture drawing is just the thing to capture the essence of the bird's pose.

My gesture of the mockingbird at the top of the page shows how loosely the drawing begins.

The Black-Capped Chickadee and the Eastern Bluebird lower on the page started as gestures.  After the birds flew away, I added details from memory.

You can also find photos online or in books to help you get the bird's markings just right.

When you return to a place again and again, even if it's your backyard, you will get to know the plants and animals who live there.  You can record the news of their lives in your nature journal.

This Mulberry tree is the reason we had so many birds flitting around the morning I made my sketches.  The birds were attracted to the ripening mulberry fruits.

Do you have a bird feeder, a berry bush or other food source for birds nearby?  Try some quick bird gestures to tell the story of your encounters in your nature journal!

Happy Creating!

Copyright Betsy Bangley 2024. All rights reserved.

Valentines Wrap-Up

I created a block print in January to use as my Valentine's Day card artwork, and printed up a stack. You can find that post here:https://betsyblissart.blogspot.com/2024/01/a-valentine-print.html

The only step remaining was to glue each artwork to a blank card, inscribe it and pop it in the mail.

I set up a work station on the floor, cranked up my favorite music, and got to work.

A basket of hand-painted papers, that I created earlier, caught my eye, so I started incorporating them into the cards.  You can find photos of the papers here:

https://betsyblissart.blogspot.com/2023/12/painted-collage-papers-for-care-december.html

My original plan was simply to glue the prints directly to cards, but the painted papers added so much more life to the final card.

A recent visit to the Pittsburgh Center for Creative Reuse turned up four bottles of Higgins permanent ink in shades of pink, magenta, green and purple, perfect for Valentine's cards!

Dropping the cards into the mail lifted my spirits, thinking of my friends and family who would receive them.

Handmade greeting cards are a great way to share your art and show your love for someone.  I hope you give card-making a try!

Copyright Betsy Bangley 2024. All right reserved.

Nature Journaling: Finding Color in Winter

A cold winter morning brought colorful birds to my feeders.  I grabbed my watercolor crayons and a black pen, and felt happy to get to splash bold colors into my nature journal.

I find that in winter, my eyes hunger for hues more vibrant than the lead-gray skies and burnt umber tree branches.  As I hike, I seek out splashes of blue, green, red, orange, purple & pink.

Where do I find these rich colors? Often in tiny pockets here and there. Here are some of my recent photos of nature's splashy colors tucked in the winter landscape.

Turkey Tail fungus boasts rows of indigo and vermillion.

Sunrises and sunsets will fill your eyes with color if only for moments.

On the rare sunny days, notice how blue the shadows are on snowy ground.

Even dead wildflowers still hold warm tones, even if they're muted.

Moss always seems incredibly green to my winter-weary eyes, but finding this fern growing out of a hole in a cherry tree lifted my spirits on a January hike.

I couldn't believe that these tiny mushrooms were still upright and not withered by the cold when I found them on January 12th.

As colorful as these scenes are, the birds at my feeder bring a special vitality.

A female Downy Woodpecker.

A Tufted Titmouse.

I hope you will take inspiration from one of these nature scenes and create art from them!

Happy Creating!

Nature Journaling with Pen & Ink

On a recent afternoon, I took a little time to sketch the simple things in my life around my home: my cat drinking water from a bowl, bare mint branches, and the birds at the feeder outside my studio.

David & I went out for a hike, and on the way down our long driveway, we had to stop to remove this dead spruce tree that had fallen over the drive.

Out at the park, we hiked down to the lake, and I took a few minutes to sketch the scene at the water's edge. Perhaps I will add watercolors or gouache to flesh out the scene.

Back at home, I brewed up a mug of tea, and sat out on the kitchen stoop in the 45 degree F weather.  I have an old, battered cushion retired from use on our wicker sofa. I pull it out of the closet and plop it down on my welcome mat to make a comfortable seat down at earth level.

 As I sat down to sketch, the weeds caught my eye, and slowed me down.  Why is it that simply following the contours of last summer's wildflowers and grasses makes me feel calm? 

My cats kindly posed for my sketches.  They seemed happy to take in nature's balm, too.

I hope you get the opportunity to feel nature's balm, whether by a window with a mug of tea or out on a hike with your nature journal.

Happy Creating!

Copyright Betsy Bangley 2024.

The Last Bouquet of Autumn

The night before the first frost, I stepped outside under the moonlight, with scissors and baskets in hand to collect frost-sensitive flowers, herbs and vegetables.  

Having all of that fragrant life indoors inspired me to sketch these zinnias, Queen Anne's Lace and basil tucked in an old Mason jar.

Later, I walked in a nearby corner of Raccoon Creek State Park, sketching an old cabin on top of a hill, and the woods in the floodplain along a big creek.

This is the season for nature journaling!  

Earthy color and beauty reside in the landscape, just waiting to be witnessed, sketched and enjoyed.  Journaling like this never fails to relax me, and make me grateful for the beauty around me.

I hope you find some time to walk in nature, make some sketches and take advantage of nature's healing balm.

Copyright 2023 Betsy Bangley.