Ah, I have my head back! I don't make a very good invalid, I fret about the ever growing backlog of Things To Do and attempt to do them, then get frustrated when I can't finish them or make a horlicks of it. At least I was able to keep up with the two hundred odd blogs I follow. So this is partly for Eric Orchard, who stirred up an interesting discussion on his blog about sketching and its purpose. We have different approaches. Personally I don't generally think about the whys and wherefores of sketching or even if the results please me. They are just a tool, a stepping stone on the way to a painting, and a scribbelled biro mess on a scrap of paper means as much to me as a more finished drawing. And they often are messes - this is one I scrawled down yesterday. I was surfing the net, and something set my thoughts off. I imagined cats pretending to be birds, how would they disguise themselves? Grabbed a paper scrap, a pen and started banging my thoughts out - would they wear astronaut type helmets? Tried it, then thought that masks would be better, as then you can see the ears. They also wanted some kind of makeshift tail, and a bird nearby who isn't fooled by the rather clumsy costumes. Would it be a bird on wheels - no, tried it, and scratched it out, let's have one hanging from the ceiling. It's all about the unfolding of ideas and working through them, the nearest I can get to splurging my imagination instantly onto paper...
At a glance it looks like black and white spaghetti. When or if I get round to working it up, then it will make more obvious sense to the onlooker. But this one is just a memo for me, and will probably end up in the woodburner.
Now the other one, from last night, is in one of my precious Moleskines, and I do tend to be a bit tidier in them; a bit like minding one's P's and Q's with a respectable aunt. I was still ruminating about bird masks, and was trying to think of a way of depicting people withough resorting to human-types.
I rather like the way the cone-people are going, all kinds of interesting twists to be had on that theme. And just because I have a new camera and I want to play with it - lovely blue-green Old Cotswold Legbar eggs, from Clarence Court. (Almost) too pretty to eat.
At a glance it looks like black and white spaghetti. When or if I get round to working it up, then it will make more obvious sense to the onlooker. But this one is just a memo for me, and will probably end up in the woodburner.
Now the other one, from last night, is in one of my precious Moleskines, and I do tend to be a bit tidier in them; a bit like minding one's P's and Q's with a respectable aunt. I was still ruminating about bird masks, and was trying to think of a way of depicting people withough resorting to human-types.
I rather like the way the cone-people are going, all kinds of interesting twists to be had on that theme. And just because I have a new camera and I want to play with it - lovely blue-green Old Cotswold Legbar eggs, from Clarence Court. (Almost) too pretty to eat.
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Really beautiful drawings! I love the camoflaged cats. After thinking about what you've said I've decided that, like most things, it's about balance. Thanks for mentioning me! ( please don't throw the cats in the fire!!!)
Oh, I absolutely looove your first sketch with the bird people! They look ready to go to the carnevale in Venice! :-)
What wonderful eggs!
Feel better
Have you noticed there is a sort of run on birds in blogs lately?
I enjoyed the cone people too
May I put you on my blogroll - then I'll get to look at your site often
Hee hee, I like the cats in disguise! Know what you mean about sketches, too. Mine are like shorthand...the scrawls mean something to me, but are indecipherable to others!
I'm in the halfway house between being an artist with the soul of an illustrator. When I made 'Fine Art' paintings I would make a sketch to just get the feel of a subject, but now I draw for the same reason a guitarist might strum chords. I've gotta loada strumming to do though before I can move from the Fine Art side to the illustrational!
Love your cone people and the fabulous eggs. I am rotten at being ill for the same sort of reason. Much better just to let yourself crash out.
The sketch of the cats pretending to be birds made me laugh. The wheelie people are cute ... I imagine they are on the road to many adventures.
I wish I had eggs like that to eat. The only thing is that I would probably stare at them and never quite eat them.
I hope you are going to expand on the camoflaged cats - they appeal to me in a big way!
No, no, don't burn the cats! They're wonderful. I keep folders of all sorts of bits and scribbles which are at the very least, good for a laugh at some point down the road.
And the idea of the cats disguising themselves as birds is so much fun! (I'll have to check my cats' closets and see what get-ups they have hiding in there...if I discover any bird disguises I'll share.)
Those eggs are lovely.
Ah, the eggs! I'm lucky if I find brown eggs at the local market, much less mellow blue-green ones.
Your cats in disguise remind me a bit of James Christensen's "Six Bird Hunters in Full Camouflage."
I love your sketches! Your style is so comforting to me. Don't know why just yet. Kinda like a soft quilt to wrap up in. Don't know if that makes any sense, but it's meant as a HUGE compliment!
Cindy at Rosehaven Cottage
I know what you mean about the scribbled sketches, I enjoy that part of my work the most, coming up with the ideas, probably more than the actual painting of the finished artwork.
I like your cone people.
The eggs look beautiful!
love to you and A.
P.x
Wow, what gorgeous eggyweggs.