"Mandarin Oranges in Silver Bowl" (watercolor on paper; 11" x 10")

 

"Mandarin Oranges in Silver Bowl"

The following is the description of what we did in the sixth week of the winter term, 2022 for my "Watercolor from Start to Finish" class (my online Zoom class with the Art League School in Alexandria, VA).

Yesterday I talked a lot to inspire you into doing more art and especially more drawing everyday. Bert Dodson's Keys to Drawing is an invaluable drawing resource any aspiring artist should have in her or his bookshelf and do exercises from daily. The fountain pen with waterproof ink (instead of Micron pens) I use when I am traveling or at home is the Platinum Carbon Ink Desk Fountain Pen. It has an extra fine line; the one I have been using for several years extensively shows no wear; I have two (one with black ink and the other, brown).

The brush pen I showed is the Pentel Arts Pocket Brush Pen. There are many similar brush pens in the market and this one is IT. It has a steep learning curve and not everyone's cup of tea. At the end of the day, all you need for drawing practice is a sketchbook and a pencil!

I am not sharing any links for watercolor sketchbooks. There are too many out there to bother and it's a personal choice. You gotta go through several until you find your favorite. And please finish all your sketchbooks so that you can brag about it (very few people do)!

I also talked about drawing in perspective with the aid of a ruler, which is not necessary but I bet opened your eyes. Some of your drawings were definitely wonky. Although I said a wonky drawing is preferable to a sleek, traced drawing, it doesn't mean you have to live with wonky drawings for the rest of your life. Nobody is born with the gift to draw beautifully. Even the great masters practiced incessantly.

After the light pencil drawing was done (erase the construction lines if you have any), we did the line work over with a dip pen and black India ink. This is when I "redraw" where I see drawing errors. Yes, you can draw without the prior pencil drawing. It's a nerve-wrecking, yet exhilarating experience. You have no idea how risky and dangerous an artist's daily life is! You don't have to be a snowboarder. Lol.

You can apply a slight pressure where you want an emphasis (this is called a varied light weight in art lingo). Be careful with this, otherwise you end up with a sprung pen (permanently ruined!). India ink also has a steep learning curve. Just because you felt awkward using the dip pen and ink first time, don't give upon them. Practice!

In the pen and wash technique, the pen line does at least 60% of the work, so the wash (watercolor part) goes fast with minimum fuss. That's why this technique is so popular among travel-journal artists. It has a bit of illustration feel and perhaps that's why so many illustrators use it (or is it the other way around)?

I am not going to tell you what colors I used for that reason. Keep colors of the mandarin oranges bright and glowing (don't forget the alizarin crimson core shadows though)! This glowing illusion comes from leaving the highlights pure white by painting around! (You can do that with the leaves or silver bowl or anything shiny you feel like painting). The darks were the usual mixture of ultramarine blue and crimson. For the silver bowl, I used cobalt blue as the base color and added different paints as fit.

Try to paint the shadow (luminous and beautiful purple, and not dirty-looking; remember overmixing results in dirty colors and it's the curse to the watercolorist) when the base of the bowl is still wet. Your painting should have a flowing look, not a disjointed and disharmonious one. That's why I often start painting the object B right next when the object A is still wet so that watercolor will bleed (yes, definitely nerve-wrecking).

Below is the image of the demo. In the demo, I didn't do any glazing because I ran out of time. It doesn't mean you shouldn't either. When the painting is "finished", assess the situation and do some glazing if deemed necessary. Remember that too many beginners and no-longer-beginners announce their paintings finished too soon! 

 

"Mandarin Oranges in Silver Bowl Class Demo"

 

"Sabrina at Makapuu Point Lighthouse, Oahu" (watercolor on paper; 5" x 7.5")

"

"Sabrina at Makapuu Point Lighthouse, Oahu"

 

Belated Happy New Year! I hope this blog post finds you well. I have been gone for 12 days on a long-awaited vacation to Oahu at the beginning of the year. It was supposed to be a celebration of our 30th wedding anniversary (12/15/90); then the first COVID lockdown and various variants followed. Finally, we and our darling daughter decided to take the risk. Armed with the vaccination card, which was required in all indoor places except in some hole-in-the-wall eateries, off we went. A little nervous, but everything was great in the tropical paradise. We came back safe and sound, except a severe jet lag.

For the last 10 days, I have been meaning to share my travel journal pages with you, but one thing or another intervened. Here you go! All the sketches were done in watercolor with occasional black waterproof fountain pen lines. If necessary, white gouache was used discretely. 

Except a few, they were all painted while in Oahu. I spent hours and hours on my travel journal, foregoing naps and walks on the beach. I am a professional artist who draws and paints. Then, I go on a vacation and what do I do? I draw and paint, exactly the same thing. So, I guess my life is a never-ending vacation!

The following images are more or less chronological. I painted a lot of sunsets because they were beautiful and they could be painted quickly. There are some still lifes, flowers and fishes. Only one was done on location, sitting on the side of the crowded Waikiki Beach Boardwalk; the rest, in the comfort of the hotel room using the image of the phone screen as reference.

Although I returned home exhausted from walking (I averaged 10,000 to 15,000 steps per day instead of my usual 5,000 steps!) and non-stop sketching, I am glad that I have done it. These pages bring back happy memories and will be shared with my students in class. Enjoy and if you have any questions or comments, please don't hesitate!

 

"Me at Haleiwa Beach Park, Oahu"

 

"Cairns of Volcanic Rocks at Makapuu Beach Park"

"Sunset at Kaena Point State Park"

"Me Hiking on Kaena Point Trail: Western-most Point of Oahu"

"On the Road to Haleiwa, North Shore"

 

 

"French Toast at Waikiki Kangnam Style Restaurant"

"Koi Pond at Hilton Hawaiian Village, Waikiki"

"Hanauma Bay Snorkeling"

"Reef Fish at Hanauma Bay"

"Reef Trigger Fish: the Hawaii State Fish"

"My Hat with Orchids from Goofy Cafe and Dine"

"Strange Bird with Japanese Statue at Hilton Hawaiian Village"

"Sunset Jetty at Waikiki Beach"

"Palm Trees along Waikiki Beach Boardwalk"

"Sabrina Hula Dancing"

"Monkey Orchid on the balcony of Goofy Cafe and Dine"

"Fort DeRussy Military Reservation"

"Waikiki Beach Sunset Looking Toward Diamond Head"

"Lanikai Beach Sunset, Looking toward the Moku Islands"

"Pink Hibiscus"

"Siberian Tiger" (pen and watercolor on paper; 9" x 12")

 

"Siberian Tiger" (pen and watercolor; 9" x 12")

 

I decided to blog about my online Zoom classes with the Art League School in Alexandria, VA. This is what we did in the seventh week of the fall term, 2021 for my "Watercolor from Start to Finish" class. 

The first business of the week was finishing up "Storm Moving In". We continued the painting with the top panel on the left. First we wetted the paper and painted the glowing sky shape with the pale mixture of Winsor lemon and cadmium red pale. When the paper was dry, we wetted the paper again and dropped the blues in the clouds with the blue mixture of cobalt blue and burnt sienna. 

When the first layer (which took two separate steps to avoid contaminating the blue and pale peachy yellow shapes) was dry, we glazed the clouds with a little darker mixtures to create some edges and drama. When this layer was dry, we painted the seagull with the dark mixture of ultramarine blue and burnt sienna.

The last panel (the one at the left bottom) was painted with the same colors and same techniques as the first panel, except here it starts with the yellow and alternates with blue, yellow and dark shape. The sea shape is slightly larger than in the first long panel and has layers of waves; make sure you don't paint over the waves in the first wet-on-wet stage to keep it light and foamy-looking.

 

"Storm Moving In Demo"

 

The main business of the week was "Siberian Tiger" done in the pen-and-wash technique. We did the line work with the quill nib pen and the black India ink. If you press the nib a little bit, the lines become thicker. This thin and thick line quality is called the varied line weight, something you will never achieve with the markers such as the Micron or Sharpie pens. If you are brave and you know the fortune favors the brave, you can also try the Pentel Pocket Brush Pen. This sensational pen with waterproof ink makes drawing with the varied line weight portable and fun. It has a steep learning curve, but once you get used to it, you will never go back!

When the line work was done, we switched to a brush to fill in the fabulous patterns on the tiger with the India ink. With the inking finished and totally dry, we went to play! When you introduce line work to your painting, it does most of the work so watercolor takes the second stage. Thus less layering is required. That's why the pen and wash technique is so popular among the travel journal artists. Quickly put down the lines and whip out your watercolor box to add some color notes. Voila, you are ready to enjoy the next site!

I painted the blurry background on dry paper with quinacridone gold, cadmium yellow pale and cobalt blue to suggest the vegetation in the sun. When this was dry, I began to drop paints on the face, making sure I leave some white areas untouched. I used the yellows, cadmium red, permanent rose (on the pink nose), and the purple mixture (cobalt blue and rose) over the shadow areas. I didn't get to finish this fun part, but it won't take long to finish the painting next week! 

 

"Siberian Tiger" demo in progress

"You Are Nothing But A Pack Of Cards" (watercolor on paper; 11" x 8") sold

sold

Recently I reread Alice's stories and fell in love with her. After checking first the famous black-and-white illustrations by Sir John Tenniel are out of copyright, I decided to render in color some of my favorite illustrations. I drew with a watercolor pencil, then inked my drawing. The colors are my invention.

Alice has had enough with the Queen, who insists on sentence first and verdict afterwards at the trial. Honestly, the book is so full of nonsense that I don't even remember who was being tried on what crime! When the Queen cries "Off with the Head!", Alice responds with "Who cares for you? You're nothing but a pack of cards!" Hurrah for my brave girl!

"Autumn Bouquet" (pen and wash; 8.5" x 8.5")

click here to buy

I have forgotten about this quick painting I have done last year.  My elderly neighbor sent me this gorgeous bouquet as a get-well/Thanksgiving gift.  I was overwhelmed at her kindness.  A bountiful bouquet of yellow and orange flowers--roses, chrysanthemums, and lilies--evokes a perfect autumn day. The orange ribbon is the icing on the cake.

"Delft Blue Love" (pen and wash; 11" x 5")

click here to buy

My irises bloomed again in the fall to my great joy. I put a stem with two flowers and a bud in a Delft blue vase for this minimalist still life in pen and watercolor wash.  I love it so much that I am going to a series of paintings in pen and wash!

From the Illustrated Journal Pages of My Summer Vacation (watercolor, pencil, and pen)

"Anne of Green Gables"

I have always wanted to see Prince Edward Island, the birthplace of Lucy Montgomery, who wrote "Anne of Green Gables".  This year my wish came true as we chose the Canadian Maritimes as our summer vacation destination!  As pictures are worth a thousand words, I will share some of the pages from my illustrated journal.  I spent the happiest hours, sketching on location or in the car.

Yes, in the car during bumpy rides!  I think I strained my back as I tried to balance the sketchbook precariously laid on a thick book on my lap, while holding the watercolor box in my left hand and wielding the brush or pen in my right, with the paper towel constantly sliding down from the slot in the door!  Was it worth all the pain I came back with?  Absolutely!

I always pack my watercolor sketching kit first!  I highly recommend the Strathmore Mixed Media sketchbook; it takes watercolor well.

We saw the fragrant wild rose from Rhode Island all the way to Nova Scotia.

Alas, lupines were past the season; we only saw them in a few places. 

The world's highest tides created Hopewell Rocks in New Brunswick.  We visited these "flower pot rocks" during a low tide; we obviously couldn't sea-kayak.  It would have been fun, but one couldn't do everything when one had a place to get to.

The itty bitty harbor at French River in Prince Edward Island

Sandcastle building is a big deal at Prince Edward Island.  I even saw a park ranger doing a demonstration of how to build one at Cavendish Beach.  You need wet sand!

Lots of sand dunes at Prince Edward Island.  It's too bad that the girl with a straw hat is smack in the middle of the spread.

The Best Western at Chocolate Lake, Halifax in Nova Scotia has got to be the most idyllic hotel we've ever stayed at.  The hotel ground is on the lake.  I spent an entire morning sketching, reading, and taking a nap on the lawn that looked out the lake while my husband, coming down with his illness, rested and my daughter read in the room.  Yes, he became so sick that we had to go to an emergency on the following day!

Peggy's Cove Lighthouse in Nova Scotia.  I stopped counting how many lighthouses we saw.  I wanted to bring back a small lighthouse for our lawn, but my husband said it would look ridiculous.  Dang.

Covehead Lighthouse in Prince Edward Island.

 Cabot Trail in Cape Breton Highlands National Park in Nova Scotia.  This small sketch simply doesn't describe the world-famous, windswept, panoramic views that greeted us at every stop.

Broad Cove along the Cabot Trail.  While I sketched, my daughter waded in the water and got herself all wet.

Oysters.  I ate seafood for lunch and dinner everyday to my heart's content.

With a dessert after every meal, I gained a few pounds!

"Azalea Heaven" (pen and wash; 10" x 8")

"Azalea Heaven"

My family had a health scare recently.  My husband has been sick for a while and was hospitalized for three days.  He is now on the mend and recuperating at home while trying to catch up with his work.  My quiet life was turned upside down briefly, leaving me with little time or energy to make art.

But who am I without art?  I draw/paint, therefore I am.  I sketched in the hospital room, during my daughter's flute lesson, and at night at home, which calmed my nerves.  I believe in the healing power of art!

"Red Sailboat" (pen and wash; 8" x 5")

"Peter's Sickbed" (pen; 5 1/2" x 7")

"Two Sabrinas" (pen; 5 1/2" x 7")

"Lavender Fields of Provence" (pen and wash; 10" x 8")

Oregon Trip Sketchbook Pages (watercolor and pen; 5 1/2" x 8 1/2" each)

"Multnomah Falls on the Historic Columbia Gorge Highway"
Hard to look up (620 feet) and draw!

Twelve summers ago, when my daughter was three and I could still pass as a "young lady," my family took a two-week vacation in Oregon.  I loved the place so much that I suggested we should retire there.  My husband, being pragmatic as always, scoffed at the idea: "Two months of sun, ten months of dreary weather. No, thanks."

Another reason why Oregon will always remain one of my favorite places on earth is because of my intense sketching activities during the trip.  I sketched while my husband and daughter took a hike or a nap.  I sketched in the car. I sketched at a busy market.  I sketched at a zoo and at tidal pools.  I sketched while getting eaten alive by mosquitoes.  I was unstoppable.  Alas, I no longer have that kind of energy level.

Here are some of the sketchbook pages. Please enjoy.  If you have any questions about my procedure, don't hesitate to ask!

"John Martin and His Band at the Saturday Market, Portland, OR"
Great music and dance, a fantastic weather!

"At the Thai E-San Cuisine in Portland"
Excellent food; I ate stir-fried Thai eggplant with shrimp.

"Sunrise Point (6,100 ft), Mt. Rainier National Park, WA"
Snow-capped in July, I felt like I landed in Switzerland.

"Alpine Wildflowers at Sunrise Point"
I sketched them in the car.

"Chanticleer Point, Columbia River Gorge"
We picked wild raspberries--intense, sweet taste. Hot!

"Dean Creek Elk Viewing Area"
Elk were too far, we couldn't see them very well.

"West Coast Game Park in Bandon"
We went to this zoo because our daughter slept through the entire Oregon Zoo in Portland and was sad about missing the animals. Honestly, I sketched these animals on location!

"Sunset Bay"
We went back at sunset. There were a lot of people to enjoy the view.

"Myself Sketching at North Jetty Beach with My Daughter"
She was a very patient child!

"View from the Whale Cove Inn Restaurant, Depoe Bay"
My daughter was tired from the hike down to Sea Lion Caves, so she again slept through the entire lunch. The  restaurant people kindly made her a PJ sandwich to go.

"Yaquina Head Lighthouse"
The first cloudy day during the trip! Windy and cold.

"Tidal Pools at Quarry Cove"
At low tide, Yaquina Head

"Depoe Bay; the World's Smallest Harbor"
We all sat in the car; I sketched, while my family waited patiently.

"Surfers at Cape Kiwanda"
We leave the coast now. Bye!

"At the Chateau Benoit Winery"
The journey has come to an end. The exhausted, but happy, artist with her daughter.

"At the Portland Airport"
Waiting for boarding. Bye, Oregon!

"Oregon Trip Sketchbook Covers"; I had them bound at Staples.