Sketches of old Fench soupiere and plates.

I love my old French tableware…soupiéres, platters, plates, bowls and other dishware. Sketching them is quite challenging though, since they have such nice old patinas that I would love to capture. The only way for me to get that is to use different media. In the 2 sketches below, I used J. Herbin inks, De-Atramentis inks, watercolour, watercolour pencils, nib pen, pilot prera pen and gouache. I think I sort of got some patina on the dishes..

The sketches below are an old French soupiére, a Polish jug with my chickens’ feathers that I stick in at will.The second sketch is an old French platter and oval plate.

French soupiére and Polish jug

mixed media in Stillman & birn sketchbook, epsilon series14X21.6cm

french soupiére

Old French platter and plate

mixed media in Stillman & Birn sketchbook, epsilon series14X21.6cm

old french platesà la prochaine

Ronelle

Hibiscus in watercolour.

It is raining outside, proper weather for a nice tajine, which I already have simmering on the stove. In my atelier corner, stands a vase with white hibiscus from the garden and in my Stillman and Birnsketchbook, a sketch of those hibiscus flowers.

HibiscusAfter turning the sketch around several times, I felt finally that it looks better upside down, as in the image below. when looking at the top picture the eye wna&ts to get in at the top right corner and run down diagonally towards the bottom. Most of the time it feels uncomfortable to let the eye travel from the top to bottom. It feels more natural to travel from the bottom , upwards, over the painting and out, which is what happens in the upside down version, bottom sketch.

Hibiscus 1

à bientôt

Ronelle

EDM-art 12 & 13: Steps and latest purchase.

I visited our children in Toulouse this week. La villa rose, it is called, because of the typical red brick of the architecture. The fountains, quite different to those in Paris, have a charm that entices you to sit on the steps and eat your sandwich. Or watch the people go by. Or sit opposite the fountain and watch the people sitting on the steps. Life is always interesting around a fountain.

..la fontaine a la place de la Trinité.

watercolor and dip pen with Sennelier ink in S&B sketchbook

escalier fontaine0001

..coffee tables next to la fontaine on place de la Trinité..

watercolor and dip pen with Sennelier ink in S&B sketchbook

coffeetables0001Opposite the fountain is a tiny shop with  the very appropriate name, La Fontaine De Boulou. This is where I spoiled myself with something summery…a large necklace and an even larger ring; I love large jewellery and since I don’t have loads of jewellery I figured it was time for a splurge.  These 2 pieces are from the createur Parisien, Dominique Denaive who makes gorgeous  jewellery. Now I am waiting for the occasion to wear them…” Mon cheri, will you take me to dinner?…”

..necklace & ring Dominique Denaive..

watercolor and dip pen with Sennelier ink in S&B sketchbook

bijoux

EDM art 8: Handles.

I first considered sketching my seductive love handles in a mirror and I even started, but in fear of having my grotesque image become viral on internet, I thought the better of it. So I stuck to an ordinary door handle. On the stable door. Our 2 year old filly loves this handle and discovered that it is a great scratching tool for her nozzle and head and everything which can reach so far. She also discovered that she can open it. She fits her nose right under the latch and with a quick swift she lifts and pushes at the same time, making the door swing backwards. And then of course she just casually steps out as if this is normal everyday routine and hits the road. Fortunately the door has swollen now from all the rain and gets stuck at the bottom. She couldn’t yet figure that one out. To her utter dismay, I might add.

..Dumêla and the stable door handle..

watercolour and nib pen and J. Herbin inks in Stillman and Birn Alpha sketchbook, 22.9×15.2 cm

Dumela and the stable door handle

à demain avec “something with an interesting label”.

Ronelle