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!

Book Report: John Lidzey's Watercolour Painting Workshop

A gem from 1995, John Lidzey's Watercolour Workshop has been a great discovery for my watercolor education.

Lidzey walks the reader through basic watercolor instruction and step-by-step projects,

so you learn as you go.

The book is chock-full of inspiration in the form of luscious paintings of simple, everyday scenes.

Lidzey treats everyday places and vignettes with reverence. His romantic paintings make me rethink my habit of painting only nature and landscapes. 

If you're curious about what's included in the workshop, here's the list of contents:

John Lidzey in his home studio.

Though it's been out of print for some time, I found this book online on a used book site for less than $15.  That's an inexpensive workshop! You might look for it in your local library.

I find that books like this one let me dive more deeply into watercolor studies than a quick video would. And there's something peaceful about flipping through pages rather than gazing at a screen. I can take it at my own pace.

I hope you'll find a new-to-you art book to inspire you and help you grow!

Make a Mini Color Journal

Sometimes you want to do something creative, something playful & relaxing, and not too complicated.  

I have the ideal activity -- Create a mini color journal!

With only 4 small pages to cover, it's perfect to fill a summer hour or two.

I made my color journal (see instructions below) out of watercolor paper, then drew designs with a white Crayola crayon.  

It's hard to see white wax on white paper, so just be bold; press hard; and keep it simple.  If you need to double-check where you've drawn with the crayon, hold the paper at an angle to the light, and you can see it faintly.

Over top of the white crayon, I painted a scene loosely with watercolor paints.  Any type of watercolors or watery ink would work.  The waxy crayon repels the watery paint, so your crayon design shows through magically.

After the watercolors dried, I added more designs with alcohol markers & paint pens.

Use whatever materials you have: Sharpies, markers, gel pens, or colored pencils would work well.  You could even use the other crayons in the pack over top of the watercolor paint.

In some places, I didn't press down hard enough with the white crayon, so it was washed out by the watercolors.  I strengthened the line with a white paint pen in these cases.

Ready to make your own mini color journal?

Here's a short video on how to make your own little booklet out of a single sheet of paper. The video uses copy paper.  I used Canson XL 140# cold-pressed watercolor paper. You'll also need scissors and a glue stick or other glue.

I love playing with colors simply for the sake of celebrating color itself. I find it's a great form of relaxation and self care for me.

I hope it does the same for you! 

Painting Classes on Board the Queen Mary 2

Among the lovely offerings during a transatlantic crossing on the Queen Mary 2 is an array of speakers and classes.  

I took advantage of 3 sessions with a skilled artist and teacher, George Burch. 

In each class, he walked us through basic information on watercolor paints, brushes, papers and techniques.  

In our final class, he set up this still life for us to paint.

One thing I like about still life painting is that you can choose whatever portion of the scene you'd like to paint.  I chose to paint the whole scene, but you could always leave out the wine glass or select just the fruit.

Why not give it a try? You can paint from this photo or set up your own still life!

Osher Figure Drawing with Model Sophia

 In my final Osher Figure Drawing class of the summer, we were fortunate to have model Sophia.  Her graceful presence on the stand inspired us all, and I stole a few minutes from instructing and assisting students to make this sketch in pastels on Canson Mi Teintes paper. 

Many thanks to Sophia for her uplifting performance!  

Painting Flowers with Pastels Final Week

In the final week of my class Painting Flowers with Pastels, I picked zinnias, Queen Anne's lace, mint & clover from my own gardens and fields for my students to paint.  Here's my classroom demonstration sketch.

I used a combination of Rembrandt, Grumbacher, Schmincke and Sennelier soft pastels -- a collection of materials I have picked up secondhand at places like the Pittsburgh Center for Creative Reuse.

I have a habit of bringing in a variety of different brands of materials to my classes, and inviting my students to try them out.  I think it's valuable to "test-drive" high quality art supplies before investing in them.  

I must admit, the few Sennelier pastels in my collection are a dream to work with -- soft, with dense, rich colors.

I hope you'll join me for an art class.  The Community College of Beaver County schedule of fall classes is online and open for sign-ups.  You can find my art classes here:

https://ccbc.coursestorm.com/category/arts