Paper and Threads

EDM Challenge # 219:  Draw a Window

Today several of us who met in Danny Gregory's class had another sketchcrawl in New York City.  We met in Grand Central Station and while I waited for them I sketched a ticket window for this week's Everyday Matters Challenge.

The weather was wonderful, so we walked over to Bryant Park, behind the New York Public Library,  and thoroughly enjoyed the wonderful flowers that were all in bloom, and the hundreds of chairs that are set up around the park for all to enjoy this fabulous area.  There were thousands of tulips, daffodils, pansies and hyacinths in flower beds and urns.  I was immediately drawn to the beds of pink tulips.

The Empire State building is visible above buildings on 41st St from the Park and we all did a sketch of the view.  In my sketch it is impossible to realize how tall it is behind the foreground buildings and trees.  I'll have to return to the scene and try again someday.

I ended the morning sitting in front more flowers - to document again the joy of sketching in the sun, on a warm Spring day, enjoying the company of Annie and Kathleen and surrounded by flowers in this fabulous urban setting.

Posted by Shirley at 4:37 PM | Permalink | Comments (8)

This is a picture from our recent play time in Central Park with 4 of our 5 grandchildren.

My journal page is my attempt to paint one of the Magnolia blossoms that was partially opened and photographed from above. 

I clearly need to learn how to achieve the sense of depth in the center of the flower- although I really did observe and paint the shadows as they appeared in the photo.  Painting the bloom in person was not an option with 4 under the age of 6 running around. 

Our two youngest were in strollers with my husband and I pushing them out of the Park and Syd (age 4) and her 5 year old brother Henry were walking in front of us.  Suddenly she reached over and took his hand - and they walked all the way back to 5th Ave holding hands.

This is a link to a similar journal page that I did of them in Hyde Park London more than 2 years ago.

http://www.paperandthreads.com/2007/01/edm_challenge_draw_a_landscape.php

Posted by Shirley at 9:09 PM | Permalink | Comments (8)

I am still inspired by the India photos from my friend Bunny's recent trip to India.  This is a photo from the bus of 3 men sitting on a bench in Jaipur, in front of an open side building.

Today I had 5 minutes to sketch between my haircut and picking up our grandson at Nursery School.  I sat on the base of a wall, in the sun, and sketched a turret on the Southwestern corner of the Natural History Museum - using pen with a watercolor wash.  It is really fast and really, really loose.

Posted by Shirley at 9:49 PM | Permalink | Comments (2)

Raphael to Renoir: Drawings from the Collection of Jean Bonna
January 21, 2009–April 26, 2009
Galleries for Drawings, Prints, and Photographs, 2nd floor

This is a wonderful new exhibit (120 drawings - spanning 500 hundred years) and a wonderful opportunity to study masterpiece drawings.  I thoroughly enjoy trying to copy the lines in these beautiful works, and will probably return to draw and learn from a few more. 

Here are the two drawings that I did last weekend.

Giovanni Francesco Barbieri  (1591-1666) was called Il Guercino - the squinter - because of his crossed-eyes.  I first saw his drawings at the Courtauld Gallery in London and was mesmerized by his beautiful figures.  The original was done with pen and brown ink, I used brown colored pencil.

Jean-Baptiste Greuze (1725-1805)  At the entrance to the exhibit are three drawings of girls heads by Greuze- one more wonderful than the next.  The original was done with conte - I used colored pencil.

Posted by Shirley at 4:28 PM | Permalink | Comments (3)

We picked up two of our grandchildren from nursery school and walked them back to our apartment through Central Park.  There was a recent snowfall and Robbie (age 3 1/2) and his cousin Sydney (age 4) were having a fabulous time making and throwing snowballs and our progress was really slow.  On a bench, on one of the paths in the middle of the Park, we saw a beautiful pair of brown leather cowboy boots, a new red and black backpack, and an open bird watcher's book.  

We regularly watch Law and Order, so my husband and I looked at each other suspiciously and for an instant wondered whether we would next find a body.  There were no people anywhere in sight - in any direction.  I took a photo so I could show a Park staff member when we passed one of the them on the second half of our journey.  We never heard more about the event and hopefully the tourist who left them there was able to retrieve their stuff when they returned.  

Posted by Shirley at 11:38 AM | Permalink | Comments (5)