Monday, July 30, 2012

dissection

drawing-a-day in process

when i walk
around town
with wee grub

we often stop
to examine
plants
and
tree leaves.
i tell her
what i know,
if anything,
about the plant.
usually it
is bug-related.
i pick a leaf
or flower
and put it
in her hand
to examine.
she holds it
tightly
and often
i find
the flower
or leaf
shredded
still in her grasp
an hour later.


the other day
when i came
in from
our walk
and pulled
her out
of the carrier
a whole
series
of parts
tumbled out
onto the bed.


vee's flower dissection

it reminded
me of the plant
dissections
i would have
my students do
in
introduction to biology
class.

. . . . .

to some respect
that is what
i do when i draw.
i carefully
dissect
the object piece
by piece
and try
to reassemble it
on the page
part by part.

sometimes
somewhat
successfully,
sometimes
not.


drawing-a-day: 22-28 juillet

week 4:
22 juillet: pin cushion
23 juillet: sewing scissors
24 juillet: tea bag
25 juillet: tiny ceramic pitcher
26 juillet: skein of yarn
27 juillet: large crochet hook
28 juillet: trumpet flower
(all in colored pencil, some with wash)

this week
i was happy
with the
drawings of
the
skein of yarn
and
my sewing scissors.


scissors

have a lovely
week.

xo

Monday, July 23, 2012

catching the light

sunday afternoon

on sunday
i came in from
my walk
with wee grub
and saw
our paris muji toys
lit up on the sill
in the afternoon sun.
i had
to put
wee grub down
immediately
(to much protesting)
and
grab my camera.

. . . . .

i wasn't
as productive
as i should
have been
this week.

at least
i have
been
enjoying
the summer
by the lake.

feeling quiet
lately.

wee grub: sunday by the lake

week 3
of my
drawing-a-day project.
i am learning
to draw with color.
i may try
a little painting
next week...

drawing-a-day: 15-21 juillet

week 3:
15 juillet: banana
16 juillet: flower from walk home
17 juillet: wee grub's nijntje toy rattle
18 juillet: miniature metal lawn chair
19 juillet: chili pepper
20 juillet: yellow daisy-type flower
21 juillet: thistle flower
(all in colored pencil)

i am happy with
my drawings
of the chair
and
nijntje toy.

hope
you have
a wonderful
summery
week.

xo

Tuesday, July 17, 2012

a mobile souvenir

making a mobile

it all began
when i was
in puerto escondido
this january...

mobile_example1

i saw
this mobile
at a little
vegetarian
restaurant
near our apartment.

mobile-example2

i usually
think
that things
made with shells
are pretty
cheesy...
but for some reason
i loved this mobile.

i decided
that
i wanted to make
a similar mobile
for wee grub
from the shells
i collected
on her first
big adventure.

sea ranch: my collections

i have always
loved walking
by the ocean
collecting
shells
and other
souvenirs
from my travels.

sea ranch: rock 2
sea ranch, california

searanch:collection1

riviera maya: coral collecting
quintana roo, mexico

each morning
and
each evening
in puerto
escondido,
when i walked
along the water
with
grub
and wee grub,
i searched
for
smooth pieces
of
beach wood
and
shells with
natural holes
to use for her mobile
(i also collected
other things 
that caught my eye).

mobile_collection
puerto escondido, mexico

when i returned
home
to switzerland
they sat in
a little box
in my office
for months...
until
finally
this weekend
i was determined
to make
the mobile.

mobile3

i was surprised
how meditative
and enjoyable
it was
to string
the shells
one by one
together.

mobile1b

i like the idea
of having
my souvenirs
out
where
they can remind me
daily
of the places
we have gone.

mobile5

a 3D
photo album...

mobile

i love
how it turned out.

i may just
have to make
another one
next winter
in mexico.

xo

lastmobilephoto

Monday, July 16, 2012

early bird

sunday morning: desk


i like the quiet
of sunday morning
before
the church bells
ring
at 10 o'clock.


sunday morning: entre deux

i was never
one to
purposely
get up early
on weekends.
having
a wee grub
has changed
my morning
schedule.

nowadays
i am
up
and busy
by 8am
at the latest.


sunday morning: window sunday morning: from dinner the night before

this weekend
i tried
to attend to
some projects
that have been
demanding
my attention
for quite
some time.

i crossed
at least one
off my list.
(photos soon).

. . . . .

i have
been doing
my daily drawings
although
i have not liked
almost all of them
this week.
i did like
the last one.
the apricot.

i think
that i prefer
drawing
with
color.


drawing-a-day: 8-14 juillet

week 2:
*drawing on top left from last week*
08 juillet: wooden covered bowl (colored pencil)
09 juillet: old metal nail (pencil)
10 juillet: wooden ladle (pencil)
11 juillet: wooden ball (pencil)
12 juillet: tomatoes (colored pencil)
13 juillet: lemons (colored pencil)
14 juillet: apricot (colored pencil)

have a
good monday!
xo

Thursday, July 12, 2012

drawing-a-day

drawing-a-day: 1-7 juillet

i have
been absent here
because
i have
not been
feeling creative.

i decided
to finally do something
about that
to kickstart
my creativity again...

lisa solomon
did a
drawing-a-day
project
a long while back.
i was
very inspired by it.

i always meant
to do the same
thing myself
but,
as usual,
never got around
to it.

recently
she
started it again.
this time
i will do it,
i thought.

that was in march.

well,
i like to start things
at the beginning
of the month...
so it took me
until july
to get myself in motion.

i am not
a trained artist
but
i want
to become
better at
drawing.
daily practice
is one way
to do that.
i was
hesitant because
i am rarely
pleased
with what i draw
(especially coming
from a family of artists)
but i was motivated 
by this post
and these words:

"... i am reminded 
that sometimes 
i make 
REALLY CRAPPY 
drawings... 
it's okay
to make mistakes
and 
hate what you've done."

the goal is
simply to 
do it daily.

i will
try it for a month
and see how it goes.
hopefully
i can make a regular
habit of it.

i allow myself
no more
than 10 minutes
per drawing.
otherwise
there are no rules.

week 1:
01 juillet: wooden egg cup (pencil)
02 juillet: grappa glass (ballpoint + white out)
03 juillet: feather (pencil)
04 juillet: slice of a tree branch (ballpoint + white-out)
05 juillet: pear (pencil)
06 juillet: same pear next day (ink)
07 juillet: heath mug (pencil)

. . . . .

okay.
next up
finish something
knitted
and
make a mobile.

stay tuned.

xo