Learning to draw, by drawing daily, is akin to developing a language, Each mark is a vivid description of the topography of the shape, regardless if its a quick full figure gestural sketch or a detailed observation of the hands or feet. Portraiture has always amazed me, the way the slightest variation in a mark can completely change the expression and emotional content of the subject. A well rendered study of any three dimensional form writes an essay, sometimes a book about the landscape. It can describe in great detail the shape itself, the texture, temperature and in the case of human subjects emotional content and expression. I have been studying hands, feet and faces with the Seattle Artist League, I zoom in friday mornings for a class with Ruthie V., an exceptional artist and teacher, and former Bellinghamster.https://seattleartistleague.com/

My studio time is basically working on large paintings, these days which are mostly trees, each piece can take weeks to develop and it can be challenging to keep the energy and enthusiasm for the intial inspiration. Daily drawing, sometimes watercolor sketches, of portraiture, hands and feet uses a different skill set and the quick results are very satisfying. The attached images are from my sketchbook and I typically fiddle around with them for 1 to 2 hours through the day, they are charcoal and Conte on tinted paper. The top left image is my feet, the next is Nancy’s feet, the remaining images are from photos, one of the casualties of Covid quarantine is no life drawing group with live models, really miss that.

I am writing this Blogpost on the kitchen table at my brother’s house in Kamloops B.C. I crossed the border into Canada yesterday and am officially quarantined for two weeks, I had a negative covid test in Bellingham before I left but the Canadian Government is very serious about containing and managing this virus, unlike the american authoritarian nazi goon squad cult spewing nothing but daily lies and misinformation. https://democrats.org/where-we-stand/the-issues/vote/

I am here because my 90 year old mother is having increasing mobility issues and my 91 year old dad is trying to cope with their lifestyle changes, so 12 more days until I can move about freely and help out my folks, so I will having plenty of down time for lots of drawing and painting, my backpack is about 75% art supplies.

Lets hope for better, saner days ahead in 2021.