Paper and Threads

We just returned from a vacation in Martha's Vineyard, extending our time walking beaches while visiting wonderful friends.  We stay on the western end of the island and the beaches are very rocky.

There are many, many rocks that wash up on the beach and I love to watch the ever-changing rock sculptures. 

There are high cliffs near the Gayhead lighthouse, and visitors to the beach walk to this section. 

It was foggy when we arrived for our last beach walk, and I love this photo.

It was a very relaxing week, but that didn't translate into many sketchbook pages.  I do have photos that I may use to continue my painting over the next few days.

We took a 50 person plane from NYC and I sketched the person sitting in the single seat near the window on a random piece of notebook paper. 

I collected some shells that are slightly different from those I collect in the Hamptons. 

We sat along the beach in really comfortable chairs after one of our walks, in a wonderful breeze, and I painted the ocean.

I also collected rocks shaped like hearts that I give to my grand daughters. 

We were constantly following the horrible terrorist events in Nice, and then because Turkey is my daughter-in-law's area of expertise, we watched the events unfolding in Turkey during the attempted coup.  This painting was inspired by an AP photo in the New York Times.

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Three of my Grandchildren are in Summer Camp for 7 weeks, and even if they never manage to send notes to us, I still write to them weekly.  Last summer, as part of a Sketchbook Skool homework assignment, I sketched an imaginary character that I named Axel.  Several of my grandchildren played a role filling in the back story and deciding on a name.  Last summer I added a drawing of Axel to my letters.  This summer I'm adding drawings on the envelopes.  This was the first drawing added to the envelope.

This is the drawing I made for the second set of letters, and a photo of one of the envelopes.

Envelope

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 Although I don't enjoy painting landscapes, I love drawing and painting individual flowers.  The lilies were painted at Wagner Park, in Battery Park City last week.  I loved the colors!

This is a selection of flowers growing in Central Park, near the Toy Boat Pond Café (Officially called the Conservatory Water).  My husband and I have coffee at the café early on weekend mornings, and I take a few minutes to draw and paint the flowers when we're there.  I recognize variants of cone flowers, but don't know the names of others.

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Yesterday our NYC Urban Sketchers Weekday Group took the Tram over to Roosevelt Island.  We met at the Tram station on 59th Street, and for me it was my first time on the tram.   It is a short ride, but I never get tired of seeing the density of buildings and the Manhattan skyline from all positions and angles.  Here are a few photos taken.  The FDR Memorial Park is the triangular area at the bottom of the Rossevelt Island photo.

Entering the Tram: 

On the tram approaching the East River and Island. 

Our goal was to walk to the south end of the island to visit the FDR Four Freedoms Park, but I was immediately mesmerized by the skyline and chose a point of view from the UN to the Chrysler Building for my sketch. 

Two years ago I sketched the Manhattan skyline from the Brooklyn Promenade using an art technique I love.  I randomly collect tourist maps of NYC - great tourist/map booths are in Grand Central Station and near Pier A in Battery Park. I collaged a portion of the map to watercolor paper, brushed Golden Absorbent Ground (white) over the map and allowed the map to lightly peek through.  When it was dry, I packed it up for our trip to Brooklyn painting the skyline from the Ferry Terminal to the WTC1 Freedom Tower.

http://www.paperandthreads.com/2014/06/lower_manhattan_from_the_brook.php

And here is my painting from Roosevelt Island - from left to Right - The UN, the Empire State Spire, and the Chrysler Building. 

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Figure Al Fresco - The Battery Park City Summer Adult Art Program:  The model was well known to us, and we politely asked him if he could take off his baseball cap and socks!  It was a great improvement.  These are several of my 2 minute sketches, done with an 8B pencil on newsprint.  Everything in this blog post was photographed because of the paper size.

Five Minute Poses:  These longer poses were drawn with a soluble graphite pencil and then "shaded" with a waterbrush with clear water.

Ten-Twenty Minute Poses:  I rarely can sustain my interest for more than 10 minutes, so I filled in the time by drawing another artist behind John in these two poses.  The artist drawn behind John, on the left, has a  hat on with a huge brim keeping the sun out of her eyes.

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