Day three hundred and forty-nine: In 2004, I was snapping pictures of Tokyo from a tower near the center of the city. I’ve always been particularly fond of one distant view of Tokyo Bay that I photographed near sunset. Tonight’s sketch is based on a detail from that snapshot, and includes a giant Ferris wheel […]
Also tagged landscape, oil, pastel, waterDay three hundred and eleven: Turning the clocks back for Daylight Savings meant biking home along the Schuylkill River path after dark. The nighttime view was fresh and new, and I was mesmerized by the dark shapes of bridges beyond bridges, and lines of lights shimmering in black, still water. In this simplified study, I […]
Also tagged oil, pastel, waterDay three hundred and two: Encouraged by the response I received for yesterday’s sketch, I decided to try the same scene in pastel. Ha! It took seemingly forever. Of course, since much of the complicated architecture is mirrored in the water, I had to make everything twice. And upside down. So in the end I […]
Also tagged landscape, pastelDay two hundred and seventy-five: Keeping it simple on my last night in Minneapolis, I finger painted the Lake Street Bridge. This iPad doodle is the view that I could see from my seat on a giant rock during the Head of the Mississippi regatta today, where I reconnected with many rowing friends, and listened […]
Also tagged landscape, waterDay two hundred and seventy-two: Usually I refer to my drawings as sketches because I don’t consider them finished. This one, however, is VERY sketchy. I chose the French chateau, Chenonceau, as my subject, but then realized I didn’t want to spend the time necessary to make a polished image of the bridge-like palace. I […]
Also tagged oil, pastelDay two hundred and sixty-seven: On my way home from the the Undine Barge Club’s Captain’s dinner, I was walking on the bike path along the river. I noticed the repetitive arches of this stone bridge, and the shadows created by nearby street lamps. I decided then and there that it would be the subject […]
Also tagged landscape, pencilDay two hundred and sixty-one: I joined the Undine Barge Club this week, so I can row regularly. This very rapid sketch is Undine’s boathouse, based on a very old photo I saw hanging in the stairway. The building was designed by notable modern architect, Frank Furness, and was built in 1882. It looks about […]
Also tagged pencil, waterDay two hundred and forty-two: I started and scrapped several sketches before I decided to flip though travel photos for a subject I could paint. Scrolling through a set from Agrigento, Sicily reminded me of the ancient and very worn sandstone columns in the so-called “Valley of the Temples.” Based on descriptions of the area […]
Also tagged ancient, art on art, oilDay two hundred and twenty-six: The neo-classical building of the 30th Street Station is one of the visual highlights (as is the building of the Museum of Art) along the Schuylkill River Trail, which I use when I ride my bike to work. Today’s sketch is a study of the train station from across the […]
Also tagged landscape, oilDay two hundred and twenty: My work to catalog the illustrations in a copy of a 1628 Dutch book about Haarlem continues. While looking closely at one etching, I was taken by the charming houses along the city’s market square. There was, upon taking up the digital pencil, more precision and detail required than I […]
Also tagged pencil