Trick or Treat

                                     Trick or Treat for Sketchbook Project and EDM

Sorry about no posts for the last little while. I'm finally back home, and trying to adjust to being back in my own space. I forgot how much work it was! LOL! I feel so much busier here than at Mom and Dad's. I guess because I'm trying to catch up on cleaning and laundry and cooking, and all the mommy and wife stuff, so art's been taking second place. Sigh...well, hubby has a gig tonight. He's playing the Halloween Dance at the pub, and I can't go, so I took the silent opportunity to do my Halloween sketch.

I know, I'm shameless about painting and sketching my kids, but I can't help it! They're just so awesome:)!! They were fooling around with their costumes (well, portions of their costumes)  on the other day, and I snapped a few pictures...enjoy:) Happy Halloween!!

Snoose Commission

Snoose Commision 24"X36"

Here is the reason I haven't posted anything but sketchbook stuff in a while. I've been working at least five hours a day on this guy, for three weeks...(planning, sketching, etc...) I've finally come to the point where I don't know what the heck else to do with it. I'm always amused by commissions, because they are never how I would choose to paint something. It always seems to be the classic, pose for the camera thing, which I'm personally not fond of, but whatever...So, I'm not really satisfied, which is nothing unusual for me when I finish a painting anyways.  She wants him to look happy...he's a basset...enough said. I don't know if I succeeded or not. 

The color in this photo is not great, so ignore that. Otherwise, anyone have any great constructive criticism?? I would be thrilled to hear from you. Cheers!

What Are Little Boys Made Of?

So...my last post was the first part of the poem...What Are Little Girls Made Of, so it only made sense to do the second half next. I had fun planning this one. I couldn't find anything to paint from life that seemed creative enough, so I gathered photographic references of critters, and a pic of my beautiful boy...I like the result. Black ballpoint with colored pencil accents. I can't decide whether to put more color in, or leave it as is. What do you all think?
PS: this looks way better big, so make sure to click:)

What Are Little Girls Made Of?

What Are Little Girls Made Of?

This poem was going through my head last night while I was thinking about what to sketch for my Sketchbook Project Moley...it's not so easy to find things around the house to represent girls and boys. I need to exercise my imagination a bit more.

Anyways, this is the result, all drawn from life in colored ballpoint. 

A Couple of Hardbodies

A Couple of Hardbodies -- Sketchbook Project

Please click on this one -- it looks way better big!

I know that all I've been showing you all lately is sketches, but I am painting, really. I sketch at night, and paint during the day, trying to get this commission done so I can finally go home!

I stayed up until 3am last night working on this one...I am addicted to sketching now! Now I'm tired, and not looking forward to painting at all...oh well.

Anyways, I was wracking my brain, trying to come up with an idea for my "boys and girls" theme, while browsing my europe photos, and I found this one, of David. The reference photo is of the bronze replica at Piazza Michelangelo. I thought, why not do a sculpture of a man and one of a woman, hence...this sketch. I've never seen Victory, but would have loved to have made it to the Louvre. I got the reference photo from Google...Enjoy!

These Old Shoes

These Old Shoes--Sketchbook Project

Some more shoes....they're fun to draw. Blank ballpoint with some blue details. They took about three hours. Funny, I have patience to work on a sketchbook picture that long, but a big painting on canvas? Not so much, lol! I suppose there's always a feeling that the canvases are serious, too dear. No room for error. Do we get too attached? Afraid to make mistakes? I don't find much joy in painting lately, but this sketchbook project is helping me find joy in art again. 

View from the Gazebo

View from the Gazebo-Coast Mountain Lodge

I'm feeling a bit homesick today, missing my friends and family. My best friend is getting married today, too, and I'm missing it, because I'm still stuck here. Congratulations, Jen! I love you!

This is a sketch I did while I was still in Bella Coola, before the flood. I bet it doesn't look like this anymore...sigh.  It's the view from the gazebo at work. It was a beautiful sunny day, and I went for a jog to have a coffee there. I decided to sit and sketch it on a piece of printer paper. I cut it and glued it into my moley, to cover up a godawful sketch I did of my daughter this morning. 

It was going beautifully, in pencil, the likeness was great, and I spent about an hour on it, and then I decided it needed some color and the lines needed to be darker. I tried to ink and color it, and DISASTER! It was ruined, completely...sorry Rhiannon...it was cute):