Sketching from the road (in a rainstorm)
I took a day to drive down to Indiana with Chewbacca for a masked + social distanced afternoon with my sister. Halfway through the trip it POURED. Like, can’t see brake lights 30 feet ahead of you pouring. Not ideal for highway travel.
I was getting a little hungry anyways (and assumed the pup would be too) so I pulled into a gas station to let the worst of the storm pass, munch on/share some popcorn, and make a few sketches.
And as quick as it started, the storm passed and we were back on the road.
Materials*:
Fabriano watercolor sketchbook
Derwent water-soluble graphite
popcorn.
<3
*Some links are affiliate links via Amazon. The price doesn’t increase for you, but I earn a little bit when you purchase via these links.
The rain was intense and angry, spattering the roof of the car with what sounded like hail from time to time, but was just heavy heavy drops.
The best kind of storm.
I made a few contours of the rain as it fell, the streaks it left on the windows, the ripples in the puddles on the asphalt.
Sketches from Mackinac
We went up to the Mackinac/Mackinaw area this weekend.
I’ve been wanting to get away for a weekend; to sleep in, see the water, find a diner for some greasy breakfast and explore nature with the pup (And of course, to paint a bit…) so we decided to make the 4 hour drive northward.
I had just gotten a new sketchbook that I was really excited to try out. It’s an accordion fold from Hahnemule with really heavy watercolor paper. It felt a bit like a AAA map from road trips of yesteryear, so I decided to make some contour drawings of the land and use the colors of our drive to be a ‘map’ in another sense.
I also brought along these water-soluble ink blocks from Derwent that I tried out a few weeks ago.
It was a beautiful drive up. Seriously, Michigan is a gorgeous state.
We got in a bit later than planned, so we let the pup walk around and headed straight to dinner. I was hoping to make a few beach-side color studies but had lost all my light. Sketching would have to wait until tomorrow.
Mackinaw City Sunrise.
The next morning I was greeted with a spectacular sunrise and whatever irritation I felt for missing a chance to sketch by the water last night, was totally gone.
Once the sky had lightened enough I gathered my ink blocks, drawing board and a fresh rolled canvas from Fredrix and set up on the chilly, windy beach.
I didn’t exactly dress for the weather, so this was a quick painting session. The Inktense blocks worked beautifully on the canvas (pre-gessoed) allowing me to get the color and motion down in quick strokes.
A new thing I just discovered with the pup; usually I bring back my work to dry on the hotel floor. I can’t do that anymore unless I want to add little paw prints to the design ( paint is definitely not something that should be on dog feet…) so I had to get creative about where to store the wet canvas overnight.
Luckily, there was a perfect sized luggage rack in the cabin’s closet.
We’ll head home in a few days, hoping to get a few more chances to paint along the water - the colors up here are just so incredible.
Hope you’re all having a wonderful weekend!
Baltic Adventure Part 3; Sketching in a Tallinn Courtyard
Tallinn is amazing. The old city is gorgeous, the new city is beautiful and bustling with friendly people, and the food. Oh the food. I could beets for the rest of my life and be so happy.
We’ve been here for a few days now, so I thought I’d take a bit of time to sketch in the courtyard of our hotel.
Starting with a little graphite volume study.
Adding the water-soluble pastel.
Wet paint.
It’s still pretty chilly, so I’m wrapping up with this sketch here and heading back inside.
The plan is to translate these to my Fredrix roll canvas later on tonight, once we get back from a dinner which I hope involves more beets.
Baltic Adventure Part 2; Art Museums and Sketches
Work by Elina Autio
Today we visited a few art museums, ate some beets and I got some time to sketch. A few of my favorite things <3
We started out at Taidehall, a smaller museum but focused on young emerging artists. These wood pieces by Elina Autio were immediate favorites.
From there, we moved onto Kiasma which was a huge, beautiful place. On the top floor was an exhibit I’ve been hoping to see for awhile, by Shoplifter.
It was amazing.
If you get a chance ABSOLUTELY go see this installation.
When we got back to the hotel there was a bit of time before heading off to find dinner, so I thought I’d make a few sketches based off our time at the museums.
I’m using my Caran d’Ache water-soluble pastels (really great for working while traveling!) on squares of 12 oz Dixie pro-series cotton canvas from Fredrix Canvas.
I looked through the photos I had taken earlier today and wanted to pull out the colors that spoke to me and combine them. I built up layers on the canvas, letting some parts dry and some parts stay wet and just kept adding pigment until I was satisfied.
Then I spent the next 20 minutes positioning them around our hotel room trying to find decent light, only to discover it was in the bathroom. Note to other traveling artists - when looking for good lighting, check the bathroom first!
Baltic Adventure Part 1; Helsinki
End of the month recap in the air!
Checking in from Helsinki today!
We’re spending the next few weeks traveling between Helsinki, St. Petersburg and Tallinn. We’ve been trying to get over here to explore the Baltic region and finally found good airfare.
As is tradition (and necessary to stave off my flight anxiety…) I spent the first part of the flight working on my schedule, planning projects and preparing ideas. I began with the recap worksheet I try to do at the end of every month -downloadable here- and ended with planning works for my upcoming solo show at The Inn at Harbor Shores in St. Joseph Michigan. (With Spiderman into the Spiderverse playing in the background!)
We’ll have a few days here in Helsinki to explore, then we’re off to St. Petersburg by boat.
Travel Supplies!
Our airfare was pretty good - but it also meant no checked baggage, so I had to be very particular about what supplies came along. Pictured above are;
-Watercolor sketchbook
-Watercolor postcards
-Caran D’Ache watersoluble pastels
-Fredrix Canvas squares (cut from a roll).
-Fredrix canvas sheets rolled in my travel tube.
From the Helsinki harbor
Today’s plan is a few art museums, naps to adjust to the new time zone, dinner out by the harbor and some time to paint later on back in the hotel, but we’ll see just how much our internal clocks let us accomplish.