Obligations

Last fall, the Urban Sketchers met at the Roundhouse where one of the many Diwali events around town was taking place. I found a table and did some quick sketches – here’s two of the ones I liked: 
Two sketches from Diwali Fest 2023, The Roundhouse

One of the photographers came by and took a look, and wondered if I could draw him. I was game, but when I eventually started looking for him, realized the crowd was too dense and it would be almost impossible. As I left I saw where he was and managed to finagle a few photos from a distance. I felt kind of bad leaving without giving him his “portrait” but thought that I’d maybe draw something from the photo anyway and perhaps, one day, serendipity would provide a way for me to get it to him. So, here he is, hard at work, along with a few spectators:

The Photographer Diwali Festival Vancouver Roundhouse

Painting:

I painted a landscape with a blue sky a while back (I had to check to see if I posted it) but it didn’t really do anything for me. So I’ve repainted the sky giving it a bit more drama:

Early Morning in the Valley, Acrylic on canvas, 20 " x 10 "
Early Morning in the Valley, Acrylic on canvas, 20 ” x 10 “

 

Happy New Year

Thought I’d fit in a quick post before the end of 2024 with this year’s silly Christmas card and the most recent painting I’ve managed to finish.

2024 Xmas Card - 4 MiceMice again. There are a few variations on this card depending on the recipients but they all have a goldfish cracker. Get it? It’s a cheese “turkey” leg…..

Painting:

I worked on this for quite a while until, again, I got to a point where I just had to stop. I guess it could be called “Beach somewhere on the west coast” or “Seashore at Dusk”.

Acrylic Painting
“Seashore at Dusk – Somewhere on the West Coast”, acrylic, 10″ x 20″/25 cm x 51.cm

 

Nemesis

Summer is over already and I’ve been very lazy – no paintings yet. Just a holiday drawing or two and more dog studies.

at Pacific Shores
pen and ink, watercolour, pencil crayons

I rediscovered my fountain pens this summer and used them to draw Angus again.

Angus with a leash
pen and ink, pencil crayon

And now to my Nemesis, pastel. I keep trying to master pastels but I have a ways to go. I wasn’t going to post my latest effort because my technique still leaves much to be desired. Admittedly I’m using some old pastels that aren’t the greatest quality but that’s a bit of a lame excuse. I think though, I managed to get this little dog’s personality. I think.

Small Dog

Tiny Drawings

I was scrolling through Instagram addictively, I mean, recently, and came across an artist (whose name I have forgotten, I’m so sorry) who wanders about doing little pen and ink sketches and it seemed like a really good idea for summer. So, two tiny drawings:

A couple of posts ago I included a drawing of Angus, a very large dog belonging to a friend of mine. I have a few more photos of this amazing animal that make me happy every time I look at them. I now have a file called “Angus Studies”. Here’s a recent one:

He’s still more or less a puppy, believe it or not.

It’s been a while….

My last post was in January? Yikes!

In May I went out with the Urban Sketchers to a very wet and rainy Burnaby Blooms Festival. There were a lot of kids.

At the Burnaby Blooms Festival

On a recent visit to the Sunshine Coast I became fascinated once again by all the different rocks on the beaches.  I’m thinking of studying geology a bit more. (We’ll see how that goes.)

Watercolour and pencil, Beach RocksHopefully with a bit of extra time over the summer you’ll see some more paintings, particularly of Nitobe Garden. Here’s what I would call “a watercolour study”.

An almost monthly Art post by Cindy Thom