Two sketches from a sketchercise walk by the Loire, where I do my usual thing…sketch with a pencil or pen in watercolor sketchbook and adding a wash at home.
A waterpump in the tiny knotted garden by the Maison de la loire .
The narrow tree lined pathway by the Loire.
And lastly a sketch of my “chicken” in the garden.
All sketches with pen/pencil in watercolor sketchbook
Having the youngest daughter finishing her studies in Caen.., had us renting a truck and taking off in the directionof Caen to empty her apartement and bring it back home. Another chapter finished. She starts in Paris next week for a long “stage” and then we’ll take on another chapter, who knows where. Always an exciting life when you have kids – it never stops!
Sketch in rotring pen and watercolour in watercolor sketchbook, 15.3x25cm.
When all was packed and we waited for the estate agent to come over for the “etat de lieu” – checking that we didn’t steal the ceiling or the shower etc…I sat on the windowsill of an empty apartment and scribbled a sketch of the building opposite her window, as well as the pigeons of Rue St Martin, trying their best to hide from the pouring rain and the cold. Not much in terms of great sketching, but at least some pen to paper!
sketch in pencil in wartercolor sketchbook, 15,3x25cm.
We were for a quick weekend at Coin Perdu, starting some work again. but it was raining and we didn’t get alot done. Went for some nice walks though. On my sketchercise walk I took my pen and sketchbook and roughly sketched some dry weeds from last season. The fileds are covered in flowers, especially the bright yellow marigolds, but since it was overcast, they were all closed.
Here are dry Scottish thistlel, some goutweed and young Plantain.
All sketches in pen/pencil and watercolor wash in Sketchercise book, 18x25cm.
This morning on my walk here in Montlouis, the weather was as bad, if not worse. It is alwasy a few degrees warmer in Correze than it is here. I went for my walk, having a hanglip becasue of the weather. My bones are asking for good spring and summer weather now! I need to be outside now, in nature and in the sun and by the river and bare arms and walking barefoot!
So here are some frustrated sketches from this morning’s walk in un temps de chien(awful , dog weather)!
A daffodil and hyacinth and tulip encountered on my walk, as also an underground water pipe.
A sunny Forsythia in bloom, and a curb and flowerbed near my home.
We were in Oslo last week. My first time. I mentioned how much I loved Helsinki, but I fell head over heels for Oslo! It is a lovely city, with beautiful architecture, a warm ambiance, wonderful views, great people…it is wonderful! I can’t wait to go back for a longer and a decent visit. My next stop will be Greenland!
Time was too pressed to do much, but at least I got to see “the scream” by Edvard Munch up and close, definitely not one of my favourite paintings. The secret to his work, I think, is that it should be viewed from a distance. His strokes are sometimes so messy and careless from close by that it bothers and disturbs the eye, but from far, his work has magic and I could even fall for “the vampire“, though I dislike all kinds of vampire pictures and tales. His dawings and sketches and lithographs also attract me far more than his paintings and there you can really see that he has a swift and sure hand. I especially enjoyed his “Towards the forest” drawings, his alpha and omega series, his “Starry night“, so different from Van gogh. I still can’t really make up my mind whether the art of Edvard Munch “speaks” to me…but Oslo certainly does!
Photos of Oslo can be seen on Salmon-with-a-creamy-herb-sauce-and-a-trip-to-Oslo at Myfrenchkitchen.
All sketches done in pencil and watercolor in watercolor sketchbook.
Well, never too late to be back…or something like that…
I went sketching just in time yesterday. It was beautful and sunny with clear skies and warm. to suddenly fall upon today where we have one of the coldest days I have experienced so far this winter..we have the blue skies, but icy icy cold with a wind that slices us relentlessly in juliennes!
After a long time of no sketching, I found myself back in that corner where I fixate on detail and try to put too much on to the paper. So my objective for the next few weeks will be to get back into only capturing the necessary, sketch faster and not worry about doing it right!
It is good to be back…!
…vouvray 1…
So, Yesterday. I stopped across the river Loire at Vouvray, a quaint village with houses set into the cliffs next to the Loire. Parking my car in the sun, flinging open the door, basking in the warmth of the sun, I did these two sketches at the same spot. Just moving my focus on with the road. With the first sketch, Vouvray 1, I used my new bottle of black ink to draw with, not realizing I bought water soluble ink. So when I washed with the watercolour, all the ink just flooded all over. With the second sketch, Vouvray 2, I just fell back on my rotring tikkky graphich pen to draw with and then added my wash of water color.
…vouvray 2 – further down rue du petit coteau..
Both sketches in pen and watercolor in watercolor sketchbook, 15,3 x 25cm.
A while back I bought this lovely handmade book. It has the look of an old book with handmade paper pages. The cover had me immediately think of ink sketches, particularly olf etch-like drawings…statues, architecture…all things I love to sketch. I’ve started doing some statues in it…the paper isn’t very forgiving and not ideal for sketching and it doesn’t take watercolour at all, but maybe it only adds to the “ancient” look that I’m after. In any case this book is not about art, but about a look – I am looking forward to see it one day when it is done, filled with ink drawings, thick and used! by then, it might be REALLY old…
I use only ink and a pen with nibs and afterwards I wash gently with a little ink and water to just add a shadow and a stain here and there. The book is 11.5 x 17cm and I found it at Les milles feuilles in Paris.
…an old touch…
…statue 1-St sulpice…
…statue 2-…
…statue 3- chateau de vincennes…
…statue 4-chateau de vincennes…
Africantapestry 