Currently Browsing: In Context 174 articles
In Context: Mixed Media Chickens
Sometimes it’s late and you want to get one more sketch in. I find this especially true when I’m trying to take a looser approach. Past bedtime—too tired to be fussy about details and accuracy—it’s a great time for one more sketch. But if something isn’t keeping you up I suggest you get to bed […]
In Context: A Portrait and Some Beans…and Some Paint
You can click on the image to see an enlargement. This is an “In Context” peak into my journal. (Hand-bound journal with the now defunct Winsor & Newton Watercolor paper which had gelatin sizing. I do not recommend the current paper sold under this name.) Fill some journal pages this weekend!
In Context—Sarcasm and Compliments
The page spread is the post. You can click on it to enlarge it for reading. (A brush pen sketch in a gridded journal from Hemlock & Oak.) I always think it’s a good idea to capture these discussions in my journal.
In Context—Painting Rocks
All my students are groaning right now as they read the title of this post: “In Context—Painting Rocks.” Don’t worry, I’m not going to go on about Ruskin, today. I just wanted to post this rock portrait because April marked a return to painting in color for me, after a long bout of pen and […]
In Context: Compliments from an Engineer
On the journal page in today’s post I’ve done a TV study (verso page) and a watercolor sketch of a man from a 19th Century photo (exaggerating his hair of course; recto page). But I’d like to call your attention to the top left corner of this spread when I jotted down the best compliment […]
In Context: Still Good Advice
I found this Earth’s World Fairgoer in my digital file from October 2024. The advice is still good. In fact I think I’ll do that as soon as I post this. (Click on the image to read the text.) Meanwhile, more advice, this time from me to you—if you want to think about color it’s […]
In Context: The Difference a Year Makes
The journal reminds us about our lives—what happened on a given day; what questions we’re asking ourselves; what answers we discovered… I thought this glimpse of an interchange between me and Dick, in a happier time, when I still skipped, would bring a smile. Despite the writos—”I careened into a wall.” And “a conversation I […]
In Context: My Life with Dried Out Pens
I am surrounded by dried out pens. I love that. Here’s a page that pretty much captures my day. Remember: If you don’t have “time to paint,” you’ve still got time for a sketch and some ink wash! (Brush pen and ink wash in a hand-bound journal made with the now defunct Nideggen. An Earth’s […]
In Context: Spices, Spices, Spices
If you’ve been reading the blog you know that my “recent” move was protracted. But the new (to us) house did have a large, lovely kitchen that several people can move about in at the same time without endangering each other or any food prep. In other words it sure beats the 2 feet of […]
In Context: Notes, Notes, Notes, Yes More on Notes
Here is an “in context” post showing notes, notes, notes. Make some notes this week! They help you understand your process, progress, and your life. (I was working in an 8-inch square book I bound with the OLD version of Winsor & Newton watercolor paper—90 lb. Hot Press. This paper was changed around 2017 and […]