Laurelines

Alaska, part one, sketches and studies, means and materials

Note: You do have to click on the thumbnails here to see the full pieces. They are too wide for this format.

 

Well, Alaska was humbling! And thrilling and unforgettable. I'm so grateful for the time I had there.  I wish it had been longer.  

Humbling for the obvious reasons of the place's grandeur and uniqueness, but on a work level, too,  because constricted packing space and travel exigencies naturally limited the kinds of materials I could take with me. The upside of that is that I made do with what I had... and that is a very Alaskan trait!

Here are samples of studies and sketches I made, direct and immediate responses to what I saw, in no particular order. 

At the last minute, I decided to throw in a pad of heavy craft paper and I'm very glad I did! It is so sturdy and, being toned, it provided instant atmospherics and drama.

 

The paper's brown tones seemed to bring out my hitherto completely unsuspected inner Maynard Dixon, a twentieth-century painter of the American west!

 The craft paper stood up well to the charcoal stubs I harvested from a fire pit, using them as drawing tools:

I brought loose sheets of heavyish watercolor paper and was able to make some studies with paint made from soil.I brought back soil, rocks, and found charcoal to continue these experiments at home.

I collected wild currants and smashed them and used their pulp to add color to this ink sketch of fireweed:

In a sketchbook made for me by a good friend especially for this trip, I turned to more colorful subjects:

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More to come of Alaska and its aftermath!

In September, come draw with me at the Nasher Museum again!

From the source: an inner-directed, process-oriented, fully engaged approach to drawing in museums... and everywhere!

  

This is an open invitation to join my three-session drawing series at Duke University's Nasher Museum this September.  We will meet at the museum on the successive Saturdays of September 10, 17 and 24 from 10:00 to noon. Some drawing materials will be provided, but feel free also to bring your own sketchbooks, paper, pencils and other dry drawing materials. Materials fee for the series will be $40 a person.

Registration is limited, so please email Jessica Ruhle at the museum,  [email protected], to register or email me at [email protected] for information. 

 

Last year's series at Duke University's Nasher Museum was so much fun and so successful that we're doing it again! 

As noted above, we will meet 10am- noon on 3 successive Saturdays: September 10, 17, and 24.  Working over three weeks' time will allow you to expand your drawing vocabulary,  and through experimenting with new and stimulating materials and methods, to take your drawing practice to new levels.

I will provide instruction and inspiration at the beginning of each class and then you will head for the galleries to draw. I will be available throughout for help and guidance. The last 20 to 30 minutes of each session, we will return to the classroom to share your work in a supportive, lively, and fun atmosphere.  

Last year, I was thrilled by the camaraderie that developed in our group and by the dazzling variety of great work that the participants produced.  Below is an example of two fabulous drawings made by Paul Keene of Durham:

  

 

"It's through the gamble, the willingness to take risks, to make mistakes that we keep our work alive and growing." Roger Winters, On Drawing, Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, Inc.