wash – Page 7 – Africantapestry

Posted on June 17, 2007July 6, 2008 by Myfrenchkitchen

Unknown faces on the train

Some faces on the train to Paris. All done in pen in moleskine and given a wash later at home.

Anita said…: They are all wonderful Ronell but I especially like the 2nd with the woman facing away, adds a sense of mystery and gets the imagination pumping!; June 17, 2007 3:58 PM
Lin said…: BEAUTIFUL!! The softness of the wash is outstanding!; June 17, 2007 4:29 PM
Meinhild Selbach said…: Great work! I really like your style.
Greetings from the Lyons area 😉
Meinhild (inselfan54); June 17, 2007 4:37 PM
Nancy Van Blaricom said…: These are beautiful. Was it ink or watercolor you used for a wash? Your portrait sketches are so well done.; June 17, 2007 5:18 PM
Nina Johansson said…: Great with those grey washes, I love these drawings!; June 17, 2007 5:19 PM
mARTa said…: love these too! I did my daughter on the train into Los Angeles on friday….she was right in front of me so I could see her!!! I love how these don’t have color…the washes are beautiful.; June 17, 2007 11:31 PM
Jenny said…: Enjoyed your train sketches. Ink and wash is perfect for these.; June 18, 2007 1:19 AM
Arty Velarde said…: These are nice, I like the washes for the gray scale.
It looks cool!; June 18, 2007 3:12 AM
juj said…: These are fabulous Ronnell – Your linework is so free and easy, and the washes are the perfect touch. I love the sleeping man at the top and the one at the bottom. And there is something so compelling about the posture of the girl with the pony tail. Sly girl – capturing the people who wouldn’t notice what you were doing!; June 18, 2007 4:19 AM
Sandy said…: Gosh how do you do this!!! I would love to learn watercolor wash like this…just beautiful and delicate. sandy; June 18, 2007 7:35 AM
Africantapestry said…: Thank you to verybody for the kind comments…I really appreciate your encouragement.
Nancy – I just used some black watercolor.
Marta – will have alook at your daughter’s sketch today. I think someone right opposite me is a bit intimidating(a stranger)…I expect them to bite me any minute!
Judi – Yip, that is exacty how I caught Hartman…!
Sandy – I feel like I’m is actually cheating; really good sketching can stand on its own with only the lines, but I feel mine needs that extra bit of “oomph”..
Ronell; June 18, 2007 8:28 AM
biteyourowntail said…: Sneaky drawings of people – love them. And what better way to spend a train journey? Lovely work; June 18, 2007 11:01 AM
Dave said…: These are lovely. So expressive and the wash adds a lot to the line work.; June 18, 2007 3:21 PM
Robyn said…: Wonderful people! I too love the girl with the pony tail but they are a delightful lot. I think the sketches would stand up very well without it, but the wash is a lovely touch. Paris! Sigh! The last time I saw Paris….; June 18, 2007 5:47 PM
Tonniece said…: A real wow factor here Ronell.
Great sketches; June 18, 2007 10:17 PM
hfm said…: Great work! Don’t know how you can draw on the train! I’ve tried but I can’t; June 18, 2007 11:25 PM
Ujwala said…: the ink and wash portraits are beautiful ronnel! now i need me some trains to ride in 😀 actually i’d be too shy to pull out my sketchpad at such close proximity to the subject! 😀; June 19, 2007 12:59 PM
Claudia said…: Oh, Ronell, you did so nice paintings and drawing while i was away on my hiking tours! I nearly can’t decide which I like the best! Your glass bells are so wonderful! But your garden sketches turned out so good as well!!! I like the colours you use!
And your train sketches are very nice, too! I want to see more!!!; June 19, 2007 1:03 PM
Carole said…: You are so talented, Ronell. You’ve captured a lot of character with these simple lines.You are brave, sketching people. I always feel too self conscious to attempt it, which is a shame as it would be a good way to spend the time on the train.; June 19, 2007 2:35 PM
Anonymous said…: HELLO, i CANT TELL YOU HOW MUCH i LOVE YOUR WORK AND BOTH BLOGS. sINCE iM LEARNING ON MY OWN YOUR WORK HELPS ME ALONG IN LOOKING AT HOW YOUVE PAINTED THNGS.
tHANK-YOU SO AND HAVE A WONDERFUL DAY.
lINDA; June 19, 2007 6:17 PM
caseytoussaint said…: I somehow missed this post – it’s wonderful, Ronell! These are so full of character, so individual – I really love them. This seems like a new departure for you (?)

Posted on April 6, 2007July 6, 2008 by Myfrenchkitchen

The elegant fences of the countryside

The countryside provides a wealth of “elegant” fences…
I took Robyn(http://havedogswilltravel.blogspot.com/ ), up on her suggestion a previous time, and did these sketches on site with a water soluble pen and 2 waterbrushes and my moleskin, along with nerves of steel(for standing right on the edge of the narrow French countryroads) and a pretence(so I would at least give the impression that I know what I’m doing) and chewing gum – that is for the nerves and the pretence…

Deborah said…

Once again a lovely little series of fences. They all look like cool breezy days but you have given them a real softness.

April 6, 2007 7:42 PM

Shirley said…

These are such fun – interesting fences and nice loose sketches.

April 6, 2007 7:57 PM

Lin said…

AWESOME!!! I LOVE THE BITS OF DETAIL YOU PUT IN IT — AND THE SHADING IS TERRIFIC!

April 6, 2007 8:13 PM

bec said…

You’re makin me want to get out and try the pen, brush and water plein air thing too! Nice atmosphere in your work….each of your fences seems to tell a story.

April 6, 2007 9:42 PM

Carole said…

I could use some of these in my project! I really like these lively sketches. They inspire me to try and loosen up a bit! Great stuff.

April 6, 2007 10:00 PM

Teri C said…

You are spoiling us…I love all your little answers to a challenge. Each one of these is wonderful!!

April 6, 2007 10:01 PM

jill said…

fantastic job. amazing how interesting an old fence can be and how truly beautiful when done well. i really liked these!

April 7, 2007 1:54 AM

caseytoussaint said…

Ronell, these are exceptional. And I know how utterly terrifying it can be to stand on a country road in France. Your sketching style is so free and expressive.

April 7, 2007 9:01 AM

Africantapestry said…

Thank you for all the comments, I really appreciate them!Bec…You should give the plein air etc. a go, you’ll get hooked and there is a very special satisfaction in looking back at your sketch and remembering the experience.I’m looking forward to seeing yours soon!Carole, your latest landscape/fence is already a nice lively and loose sketch!

Thanks!
Ronell

April 7, 2007 11:34 AM

Lindsay said…

These are completely CHARMING! I love every one of them. You make them look as if they were done in color with the beautiful grays.

April 7, 2007 1:34 PM

mARTa said…

oh Ronell, they are all wonderful. I love your sketches and would love to sit with you and Casey and sketch sometime!! If only we didn’t have an ocean between us!

April 8, 2007 6:47 AM

MrsSnowy said…

I’d just like to clarify that I did NOT suggest you stand on the edge of narrow French roads, Ronell! You must have nerves of steel. Your fences are full of atmosphere and that tone looks very classy.
I’m grinning from ear to ear, from getting a personal mention in your blog. Thank you 🙂

April 8, 2007 10:37 AM

platitudinal said…

To Ronell whose nerves are made of steel,I admire how you can produce such lovely sketches under strenuous circumstance. I especially love how the lines seem so lively and lithe … they told us a tale of how your pen and brushes danced deftly on the paper.*Many thanks for the chewing gum tip!

April 8, 2007 3:28 PM

Emma Pod said…

I like your somewhat dilapidated fences! Each one has such good tonal values and they evoke the countryside. I think the gum-chewing was a good trick to give you courage and fortitude.

April 8, 2007 10:00 PM

Africantapestry said…

Thank you for the comments, everyone!Marta..oceans, in my opinion, are there to be crossed! So, cross it and come visit for a 3 nights or so(I have more than enough room) and we can sketch whatever stands still long enough to give us a line and a color!My pleasure to you, Robyn, after all, it was your idea that roamed in my thoughts when I set out to do this challenge.

And, I actually hate chewing gum, apart from it being groase seeing someone chew constantly and stepping in it in the streets, it hurts my jaw!
Ronell

April 9, 2007 9:07 AM

Sandy said…

Each fence study is very interesting, and quite intriguing – you found unique subjects. Bravo!

April 9, 2007 6:06 PM

Linda said…

Great studies! I particularly like the top one — although I’m having a hard time imagining what it would have been like standing on the side of a narrow road with no shoulder to draw! You get points for bravery!

April 9, 2007 11:29 PM

Jana Bouc said…

Charming sketches and fun to picture you there chewing gum trying to look confident. I like the way you’ve suggested detail in a painterly way.

April 10, 2007 4:36 PM

Fanta said…

I simply adore these dramatic fences. I like this “organized mess” that comes with it in your compositions.

April 13, 2007 12:18 PM

andrea joseph’s sketchblog said…

These are fabulous studies. Really nice indeed. I think the new pen has worked well. They actually make me want to get out and do this challenge. The top one is my fave!

Posted on March 26, 2007May 1, 2013 by Myfrenchkitchen

People in Amboise and one window

Tuesday Casey and I had our weekly art afternoon, this time at her place and since it was such a beautiful day, we decided to go out into Amboise and sketch some people. It was sunny and bright, we enjoyed a coffee, moved to new spots every so often, searched for a new pen she wants to try out, got sunkissed and lastly, looked for a birthday gift for a mutual friend, which we couldn’t find…some people are just hard to buy a gift for. I hope I’m not one, I adore gifts! Once again a great day, although the sketching truggled a bit. Here are my results. See Casey’s as well at http://fr.blog.360.yahoo.com/blog-Agz0ThsyaL8P0qvejInpNJXD9QY-?cq=1

17 comments:

Dave said…: Nicely observed sketches! What materials did you use?; March 29, 2007 8:24 PM
artín said…: beautiful sketches. same question than dave…; March 29, 2007 8:33 PM
phthaloblu said…: These are so beautiful and full of life. Wonderful job!; March 29, 2007 8:40 PM
Africantapestry said…: Hi, thanks for the nice words..I used black pen, no 01. I always use a thin point when I sketch these type of sketches, since I don’t make single lins, but I keep my pen going all the time. If I use a thicker pen, it is just a black blob after a while. Then I gave the sketches a monochrome wash later.; March 29, 2007 9:08 PM
caseytoussaint said…: T6hese are really wonderful. I love the wash – it adds a lot!; March 29, 2007 9:13 PM
Teri C said…: Wonderful sketches. so full of well-observed life. You two sure had fun together.; March 30, 2007 1:43 AM
Kay Cox said…: You had a very productive day. These are such nice sketches. What fun you two must have had.; March 30, 2007 3:55 AM
Deborah said…: These are great. Wonderful gestures and I really like the washes you colored them with.; March 30, 2007 7:04 AM
Karen said…: Nice job with these, Ronell. The monochrome wash really works great.; March 30, 2007 4:05 PM
Jana Bouc said…: I really like this style with the monochrome washes. They’re quite lively and expressive.; March 30, 2007 8:46 PM
Emma Pod said…: Very nice sketches and washes. They guy with the glasses looks a bit like Clint Eastwood! Dontcha think??; March 30, 2007 8:54 PM
Carole said…: I also like these, especially the chap with the dark glasses. I was going to ask how you did the wash on site, but you’ve answered my question if you added them afterwards. They do work well.; March 30, 2007 9:57 PM
Felicity said…: It’s wonderful when EDMers meet up! I’m going to Google Amboise and see where you are. Lovely sketches, I love that monchrome wash effect!; March 31, 2007 10:17 AM
MrsSnowy said…: Terrific sketches – and so many of them for one outing. Just lovely. Have you tried using a waterpen for washes on location. If you sketch with a non-waterproof pen you can just drag the water over the lines to create the wash.; April 1, 2007 11:11 AM
Fanta said…: Wonderful, Ronell.; April 1, 2007 10:40 PM
Fanta said…: There’s a broken link in Casey’s address. Try copying this into your address bar: http://tinyurl.com/2re5jy It should take you there.; April 1, 2007 10:49 PM
Africantapestry said…: Thank you for the lovely comments, everybody…
Fanta…I fixed the link to Casey, I think it works OK now, thanks..
Ronell

Posted on March 19, 2007July 6, 2008 by Myfrenchkitchen

A bowl is a bowl…is a bowl

According to most dictionaries a bowl is a round container, wider than it is deep and holds foods or fluids….That is apart from all the other meanings…shapes, sports, etc. So I took to searching my house for bowls. There are many. But then I also found other “containers” which I find have no boundaries in terms of their function.
I often use this big platter for meat dishes, salads, but I have also used it as a bowl, since it is just deep enough to prevent sauces from dripping over the sides…platter…or bowl?

Next I thought of, was my mother’s silver sugar container, I now use as a spoonholder. Since I grew up never asking :” Please pass the sugarpot/caddy/bowl”, but simply: “Pass the sugar”, I still don’t know what it really is, and should I now maybe ask to be passed the spoonbowl?

The third find in my home was the bird bath. Although it is frequented now by the birds for bathing and our cats for drinking, it did in its newly bought years serve us humans of the house well as a fruit bowl al fresco style.

Birdbath, spoonholder, platter, bowl…it is all in the eye of the beholder.

17 comments:

karen said…: Very nice line and wash, Ronell!; March 19, 2007 10:10 PM
phthaloblu said…: These are really nice! Great job!; March 19, 2007 10:15 PM
Teri C said…: Really nice bowls! You did a great on all the bowls.; March 19, 2007 11:04 PM
Linda said…: Great, great, and great! Wonderful highlights, which makes them just zing! 🙂; March 20, 2007 1:02 AM
andrea joseph’s sketchblog said…: osh these are good but I especially love the top one. It’s funny how you can see the skill involved more clearly in the most simple of images. Gorgeous. What medium did you use?; March 20, 2007 2:30 AM
SCquiltaddict said…: Very nice work…love the wash; March 20, 2007 3:00 AM
Christeen said…: These are so beautiful- nice work!; March 20, 2007 5:07 AM
Sydney Harper said…: Nicely done! They are all lovely but my favorite is the third one.; March 20, 2007 5:32 AM
Africantapestry said…: Thank you for all the wonderful comments..
Andrea, my mediums were pen and just plain old black watercolor.
Ronell; March 20, 2007 8:33 AM
caseytoussaint said…: wow, you’ve been busy! I love these ink and wash drawings you’ve been doing – I agree with Andrea – they’re all really good, but the first one is a stunner!; March 20, 2007 8:58 AM
Emma Pod said…: These are all beautiful! It’s amazing what can be done with variations of just one color.; March 20, 2007 7:43 PM
Lin said…: GORGEOUS! Those washes are just scrumptiously done!! BRAVA!; March 20, 2007 9:52 PM
aPugsLife-laserone said…: Beautiful Bowls! There’s just something about the first one, the simple one, that I really like. 🙂; March 20, 2007 10:30 PM
Africantapestry said…: Thanks again for the encouraging comments…they really inspire me to keep working at it!
Ronell; March 20, 2007 11:08 PM
Deb Salter said…: Your use of wash is just magical!; March 21, 2007 5:28 PM
Africantapestry said…: Thank you, Deb…”magical” does make my heart go completely wild!
Ronell; March 21, 2007 8:36 PM
“Maggie” said…: I just love this sketch of the spoon bowl-beautiful. I have one too sitting on my table filled with silver spoons we use every day.

Posted on March 18, 2007July 6, 2008 by Myfrenchkitchen

Mood in a flame

After having glorious days last week, the rain settled back in yesterday, with a daring chill after the warmth of those perfect days. That drove me to a long, luxurious bath last night. As I watched my candle’s flame flickering mysterious images against the wall, I thought I’d post a drawing of this mood in a candle…

Ink and wash on Arches water color paper.

I made so many mistakes in this one – once again misjudged the size of my paper, tried to correct an off-centre line by putting in more line, thus accentuating the problem(left side above), keep on fiddling with the flame so it became completely without ambiance, and left too few “lost edges” by continuing coming back and doing more lines. The learning process is an uphill journey all the time….

7 comments:

SCquiltaddict said…: LOVELY JOB …sweet candlestick…; March 18, 2007 6:53 PM
Sandy said…: Maybe you had problems with is flame but I love the cherub and the overall structure and depth you achieved (yes we are all on the same journey uphill 😉; March 18, 2007 7:20 PM
phthaloblu said…: So beautiful! And I think the flame just adds a mysterious prescence to the overall piece. I love it!; March 19, 2007 2:41 AM
Emma Pod said…: The cherub candlestick is exquisite! Great job. And all of your vine drawings/paintings are beautiful. This is my first visit to your blog – lovely! Thanks for visiting mine.; March 19, 2007 3:16 AM
aPugsLife-laserone said…: This is realy beautiful. 🙂; March 19, 2007 8:22 AM
Lin said…: This is incredibly beautiful! Such wonderful shading!; March 19, 2007 12:00 PM
Africantapestry said…: Thank you everybody for visiting, I appreciate all your comments!
Ronell

Posted on March 9, 2007July 6, 2008 by Myfrenchkitchen

Airport people

Being back in France for 3 days after a holiday of almost 3 weeks, leaves me a bit off balance. I’m in slow motion and struggle to pick up the pace. I think my spirit is still lingering in the sun somewhere in the Cape, South Africa. I feel inspired, but at the same time, sad. Having had the most glorious time with friends and family, being spoilt rotten…it is hard to be back and just pick up where we left off 3 weeks ago.
I did do a lot of sketching, took close to a 2000 photographs, soaked up the sun in the vineyards by picking grapes(and sketching and eating and taking pictures, all at the same time) and had close conversation with some elephants (all in good spirit…!), heard a lot of good life stories filled with great humor, ate a lot, drank a lot(I was in the wine lands after all…), laughed a lot, in fact indulged way too much in everything of all sorts, which is a good thing every now and then, no?I’ll post some sketches in batches, starting off with CdG- airport, where we had to change planes because of a technical problem and could therefore only depart 3 hours later. So, here are some sketches of people wandering around…waiting, watching the clock, reading, chatting on their mobile phones, some extremely bored, others not showing any emotion….strangely enough, I couldn’t find anyone sleeping…maybe in fear of being left behind?

I’m still not comfortable sketching people in public….I still have a lot of practicing to do, before I’ll feel competent and at ease doing people in public, but I do enjoy it once it is done, until the next time! These were all done in the small moleskine, which I sometimes find a bit restricting.

So, here they are – all those waiting people at the airport…….

11 comments:

E-J said…: Hello – there are some lovely sketches on your blog! I wish I had such lightness of touch when sketching with watercolour. Bookmarking you. 🙂; March 9, 2007 7:00 PM
Deborah said…: These sketches of the people are wonderful. The gestures are great. Can’t wait to see more from your trip.; March 10, 2007 1:42 AM
caseytoussaint said…: Hi Ronell – great sketches! I’m thrilled to see you getting addicted to drawing people in public too, shall we go on some sketchcrawls? The nice weather is coming too…..; March 10, 2007 10:16 AM
phthaloblu said…: These are wonderful sketches, and the washes look great. I’m curious, did you do the washes while you were sketching, or after you were home? Well done!; March 10, 2007 6:31 PM
gabi campanario said…: hi ronell,
these are great, the person talking on the phone is my favorite. looking forward to seeing more!; March 11, 2007 5:57 AM
Africantapestry said…: HiThank you for your kind comments on my blog.To answer your question, phtalobu, ….It depends. The drawings at the airport didn’t have any specific light or color that I wanted to capture, it was more just gestural, so I just washed them later, no specific order. I actually considered leaving them as pen sketches, but then started putting a wash in on one and liked it…I enjoy color, what can I say! With some sketches, I’d like to capture shadows or light, and then I would do it there on the spot. I carry a small watercolor and 2 waterbrushes with me. And then sometimes I would do a sketch, and would just make notes on the colors or shadows or light and do the washes later, but not too long afterwards, or else I forget!! (Or even become too lazy…hehe!; March 11, 2007 7:14 PM
Jana Bouc said…: Wonderful sketches. I love the painting on the upper right of your site. Is that a self portrait? It’s so expressive and charming.; March 12, 2007 3:56 PM
Africantapestry said…: Thank you Jana…yes, it is kind of a self portrait – oil on canvas..; March 13, 2007 8:31 AM
Renate said…: Lovely sketches. I can’t see that you did not feel comfortable doing them.; March 13, 2007 11:39 PM
martha said…: These are wonderful! Airports are indeed great for people sketching.; March 14, 2007 3:28 AM
andrea joseph’s sketchblog said…: Great studies.

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