Laraine Armenti

student of painting

2016 Review

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I was concerned when assembling this review that I might confuse my readers with disparate series of works from this year. To be a generalist also conflicts with good advice. Mark Twain observed, "Astonishing things can be done with the human memory if you will devote it faithfully to one particular line of business." My amateur values — instincts, sensibilities, proclivities, predisposition, or … [Read more...]

Reporter’s Notebook

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I am among countless fans of Gwen Ifill who were shocked and saddened by her premature death on November 14, 2016. Her wit, warmth, incisive intelligence, and "megawatt" smile are deeply missed. She provided invaluable insights into contemporary politics that I appreciated as a frequent viewer of Washington Week and the PBS NewsHour. Many of the journalists seen on the two shows became subjects of … [Read more...]

Figure in Four Directions

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Once again this year, I had the good fortune to make art in an intensive workshop taught by Ken Kewley. Titled "Abstraction for Realists — Working from the Model: Drawing, Painting, Printmaking, Collage, and Sculpture", the workshop was held at Truro Center for the Arts, Truro, Massachusetts, in September 2016. Select tabs above labelled PROJECTS > WORKSHOPS ATTENDED to see more … [Read more...]

Vermont Gouache

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In July I took a road trip to paint outside in southern Vermont. Choosing to use watercolor and gouache on paper solved numerous itinerant-painting related issues. Watercolor and gouache dry fast, have quick set-up and clean-up, and need very little storage space. The paint doesn't melt in the heat or threaten to ignite within a baking car. There are no combustible rags to dispose. These … [Read more...]

Handmade Sketchbook

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Seeing a friend's field drawing done in a handmade sketchbook inspired me to reacquaint myself with bookbinding. Past project materials were on hand to assemble a simple casebound book: a few full sheets of drawing paper for a single signature, decorative end pages, bookboard, cover fabric, and glue. Relearning the steps was slow but satisfying to complete. Now if I can find a dead rabbit to draw. … [Read more...]

Drawing Bruegel

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Drawings from Pieter Bruegel using recently acquired Namiki Pilot Falcon fountain pen with carbon ink in a Moleskine sketchbook, 8x5 inch. Above: Peasants Dancing (1568). Pieter Bruegel, The Dark Day (1565) and other paintings Pieter Bruegel, The Land of Cockaigne (1567) and The Battle Between Carnival and Lent (1559) Pieter Bruegel, The Battle Between Carnival and Lent … [Read more...]

Edwardian Schema

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To celebrate the arrival of a new drawing pen, I used my Moleskine sketchbook to copy lessons from Drawing Made Easy by E.G. Lutz, originally published in 1916. His method is simple. He starts with geometric guidelines of outside shapes, then divides big shapes into smaller ones. Instruction in this type of schematic drawing was largely abandoned in the 1950s and 1960s in favor of supposedly more … [Read more...]