I was only able to dip my toe into the great sea that is lithography during my two-day workshop in Austin, Texas. I would like to find a way to continue working in this medium. I really like it.
Here are two very different first steps in lithography. One is a face roughly derived from my sketch of the adoring angel below. It sort of just appeared on the plate as I drew.
The second image comes from a recent sketch done in my studio here and is a way of seeing how my normal gestures and lines behave under lithograph conditions. The plates were small, 7"x9", so it was hard to get real momentum going.
Here is the mixed media sketch of the protea mentioned above:
And finally, a little loosening-up sketch from this morning: 
This loosening up is necessary because I'm going to Rome next Tuesday to see my daughter Cecelia (she who never stands still) and hope to get some sketches of Rome (think fountains) done while I'm there. She, as you may remember, is an avid sketcher now, so we can enjoy this together. I'm also meeting up with Concetta Flore, lovely artist and very nice person. She lives in Rome and wants to sketch with me...I'm really looking forward to it. I'm going to prepare some loose sheets for sketching by applying acrylic washes like the one I used for the Greek/Roman head below. Then I'll use ink and crayon on site. Playing with mixed media outside of the painting studio keeps me open to new ways of doing things inside it. I'm taking a travel sketchbook, too. Ciao, Roma!
Both works are really lovely. I'm enjoying your blog. Keep bringing us more!
Posted by: Thumbprint Gallery | February 19, 2012 at 04:02 PM
Oh Laura these are fabulous.So fluid, living, elegant. And thank you for linking me- I too am axious to see what you managed to do in such harsh conditions in the days following our snowy date!
Posted by: concetta flore | February 05, 2012 at 05:20 PM
I spend a little bit of time each day visiting artist websites either to relax, be "moved", or gain new inspiration. I was particularly taken by the 3rd and 4th in this series. While I type this, you hopefully are still enjoying sketching Rome. We lived in Vienna for 15 months and never seemed to make it to Italy, though we had train tickets at one point... The web site I have provided will introduce you to our architecture / product design company's central project and you will see it is open to your participation if you like. I am subscribing to your site to see what you come back from Rome with!
Posted by: Mark Reeves | February 05, 2012 at 12:03 AM
Very creative and imaginative. I like your work of art. Thanks for sharing. Keep it up!
Posted by: Thomp Bill | February 01, 2012 at 04:36 AM
Lovely mark making. You have the gift!
Posted by: Clive Hicks-Jenkins | January 29, 2012 at 05:26 PM
Oh, excellent, Laura! You'll like Rome. It's wonderful--all the fountains, but also the Spanish Steps, the Colosseum, piazzas, the Forum, all the wonderful walkways, the Vatican, Victor Emmanuel, Castel del Angelo, etc, etc... LOTS of fabulous subjects for your hand. Can't wait to see what you come up with. Have a fabulous trip!
Posted by: sue | January 29, 2012 at 03:08 PM