Meleagris gallopavo — North American Wild Turkeys The hardest thing to see is what is in front of your eyes. — Friedrich von Schiller (1759 – 1805) . . . . . . . . . . Wild turkeys appear in our suburban backyard at unpredictable times. Groups of three or five amble—or race single file—between maples and pines into the half-acre lot at the top of a New England hill. Their girth and scale … [Read more...]
Evolution
When I was in high school I elected to take a class in isometric drafting, becoming the teacher's first female student in 1975. Learning technical drawing could have led to a summer internship in an engineering department at Digital Equipment Corporation (DEC). Instead, despite parental protest, the summer assignment was awarded to a boy in my class because, the teacher said, "Boys will marry and … [Read more...]
Vermont Gouache
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
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...]
Edwardian Schema
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...]
Limbo
The Journal of Eugene Delacroix 20 February 1847 We both exclaimed in admiration of Géricault's great talent. What power a great nature can draw from itself! This is a fresh argument against the foolishness of resisting one's instinct and modelling oneself upon other people. 2 May 1847 Martin, my old pupil, and a perfect fool of a man, has come back from Italy quite swollen with all that … [Read more...]
Poetry Book Project
Poetry Book Project The Boston University poetry book project is an annual event for first year, second semester masters candidates. Each artist is randomly paired with a current or former poet in the writing program. The poets read their poems while the artists showed their books in a presentation on May 2, 2012. I was paired with Jacob Strautmann and we chose his poem 'Request, Upper Big … [Read more...]
Paint, Paper, Poem
Studio with two oil paintings, 50x50 oil on canvas. Acrylic paper collage. Acrylic paper collage, charcoal drawing, oil on wood panel. Color free studies and modified boxes, color-aid paper. Madrid sketchbook, Goya, 2nd of May. Madrid sketchbook, Goya, 2nd of May. Madrid sketchbook, Ribera, Magdalen. Madrid sketchbook, El Greco, portraits and the … [Read more...]