“Rest and be thankful.” 
― William Wordsworth

I have been reflecting a lot lately as the summer comes to an end. I had huge plans for this summer.  I had hoped to complete 5 art projects.  In addition to that, I was going to plant a huge vegetable garden, regrout my shower, clean out my attic and basement, organize the thousands of photos on my computer, paint a bedroom and bathroom, take a family vacation, plan the rehearsal dinner for my son’s wedding, lose 10 pounds before that wedding, and maybe even lower my golf handicap by a few strokes.  

But then, at the beginning of the summer, I broke my leg. So, the vegetable garden didn’t happen. The house projects are still waiting for me as are these extra pounds. Obviously, I didn’t achieve all of my goals for the summer. Looking at the list, I probably wouldn’t have achieved all of this even if I didn’t break my leg, but the things that mattered the most still happened, and I learned a lot over these past couple of months. The most important thing I learned is to be thankful.  

I am thankful that my injury wasn’t worse than it was, and I am very thankful to have a wonderful family who helped me during those early days when I could barely walk across the room. I am thankful I was still able to go on vacation with my family. I didn’t get to golf or walk on the beach which I very much enjoy, but I did manage to make the best of it. I spent most of the vacation in a chair with my leg propped up. I did, however, have more time to read – one of my favorite activities. I also had more time to sketch in my sketchbook. Sketching outdoors not only helps my observational skills, but it is also a wonderful way to relax. I would lose track of time as I observed the dappled light over the grass while the leaves in the trees moved gently in the wind. Sitting on the lanai in the shade with my sketchbook, and of course with my Arnold Palmer iced tea, was my favorite afternoon activity.  

When I returned from vacation, I found time to work on one art project.  I’ve been wanting to draw one of my students, so I worked on my picture of him titled “Monday Afternoon”.  I used mostly black and cool grey colored pencils. I focused on contrast to add drama showing his white hair against the black background and his black shirt. I also used subtle changes in value as I tried to capture his unique expression. I was able to finish this piece before our faculty art show.   

The highlight of my summer was my son’s wedding. The rehearsal dinner was lovely and the wedding was beautiful. The bride and groom looked stunning and no one could tell I had a full leg brace on under my long, formal gown. 

Looking back over the summer, I am reminded of the quote that obstacles are temporary but the lessons we learn from them are lifelong. My broken leg was a big obstacle to my plans, but it taught me to slow down and most importantly to be thankful. 

Below is my colored pencil drawing “Monday Afternoon.” 

I think it was Henry Ford who said, “Anyone who keeps learning stays young.” This may be especially true of artists. Artist Wayne Thiebauld lived to 101. Architect I. M. Pei lived to 102, and Michelangelo lived to 88… not bad considering Michelangelo was born in 1475. As an art instructor, I sometimes hear a student tell me that they are too old to learn to draw, or too old to try a new technique. I remind them that Grandma Moses didn’t begin painting until her 70’s. Anna Mary Robertson Moses would go on to paint over 1500 works and lived to 101.

I am continuously inspired by my students who have defied aging. I have had the good fortune to know many artists who have created art well into their 90‘s. My oldest student lived to 101 and was creating art until her late 90’s. I have observed that a lifetime of knowledge and experiences is very beneficial to the creative process. Age should never be a reason to stop someone from beginning a creative pursuit, or from continuing it.

I’d like to share some of my “forever young” artist friends on this blog. Today I am sharing a photo of Carol. Carol, who is 90 years young, enjoys ink and colored pencil drawing, but also enjoys creating stained glass designs. She is pictured below with one of her amazing stained glass windows.

How many things have you wanted to do, but you didn’t do because you were afraid you’d fail? How many things have you tried, but quit, because you made too many mistakes? 

Successful artists know that mistakes are part of the artistic process. Actually most successful people in any field have had to overcome mistakes.  Buckminster Fuller once said, “Most of my advances were by mistake.  You uncover what is, when you get rid of what isn’t.”

As a drawing teacher, I remind my students that they will be making mistakes, and that is ok.  Mistakes mean that you are trying  something new and that you are progressing.  So try something new, stumble, fail and then try again. Yes, you will make some mistakes, but you will also have successes, and you will grow as an artist and amaze yourself in the process!

I love this Ted talk by Brent Eviston in which he talks about mistakes and drawing.  It is called:

“How Learning How to Draw Has Taught me to Live.”

Leonardo Da Vinci is credited with saying, “Art is never finished, only abandoned.”  Well, I haven’t yet reached the point where I am ready to abandon this drawing yet, but I thought I’d share the progress thus far.  I continue to play with the colors and values in the face and hands as well as other areas. I hope to finish soon, and since I have really enjoyed working on this paper (Mi Teintes Touch), I will probably begin a new portrait on another sheet soon.

Sometimes when I am having difficulty looking for an idea, I find that taking an old painting or drawing of mine and redoing it in a different style or medium is interesting.

I painted this watercolor of my daughter blowing bubbles twenty years ago. I decided to redo it in colored pencil on blue Canson Mi-Teintes Touch paper. I love the texture of this paper which is like a smooth sand paper. It allows me to put lights over darks. It also erases very nicely.

Below you can see my preliminary sketch as well as the beginning of the face and hair on the MiTeintes paper. I will post the completed drawing soon.

Over the past couple of years, I have become interested in monochromatic colored pencil drawings.  The step-by-step shown below is a drawing that I did of my son playing his guitar.  I call it “A Little Les Time”.  It is from the same reference that I used to create the color version that is shown on my home page.

I used mostly cool grey colored pencils in addition to black, indigo and white.  The surface was a white Stonehenge. 

I began with the background and his jeans, using black and indigo.

Turpenoid was used to remove pencil strokes.

The skin and guitar were drawn with multiple layers of cool greys and blended with a stencil brush.

The final drawing is shown below.  Between other projects, I worked on this for close to a year, but I was happy with the finished piece.

Many feel that the most difficult part of any artistic endeavor is the beginning. One way I overcome this is to place limitations on my ideas. Orson Welles is quoted as saying, “The enemy of art is the absence of limitations.” Research into creativity has shown that limitations or constraints actually enhance the creative process.

Theordore Geisel, better known as Dr. Suess, said, “If you’re someone who writes or paints, don’t be afraid to try constraints.” Geisel was challenged by his editor to write a book using just 50 different words. Not only was Geisel successful, but he wrote one of his most celebrated and successful books. The book he wrote was Green Eggs and Ham.

Before any art project, I begin by giving myself an assignment. Just saying I am going to draw a still life, a portrait or a landscape can cause me to draw nothing but a blank. However, if I say my still life must be seasonal fruit and have an analogous color scheme, (colors close on the color wheel) I immediately think of possible ideas.

For the project below, I began with a trip to the grocery. I noticed that Rainier cherries were in season. I grabbed a bag of them and set up my still life. Using the limited palette (analogous) idea, I decided to place the cherries in a white bowl with a red and white napkin underneath.

I sketched the still life on Stonehenge white paper(Bristol works well too.). With Prismacolor colored pencils, I began by layering colors from light to dark. I started by scumbling (small, overlapping, circular type strokes) with Jasmine yellow. I followed that with multiple layers of Poppy red, Crimson red and finally, Tuscan red for the darkest areas. I added Indigo blue to enhance the darkest areas. Apple green and Sienna were used for the stems. Slate blue was used in the shadow. Below you can see my bowl of cherries drawing in various stages as well as the finished, colored pencil drawing, “Life is just a…”