A Few Quick Sketches

I've been asked quite a bit recently as to why I got away from painting and drawing birds.  My answer was of course that I wanted to learn to paint and draw other things and that I didn't want to be know as just a guy who paints birds.  But the truth of the matter is that I like birds and painting birds.  So, I've started drawing them again, and sketching a few.  Maybe this will even lead to a few full blown paintings.

Given that this is a quick sketch, I used some old paper.  When I scanned it, it must have had some dirt on it that really showed on the scan.    Its not quite this visible in real life.

Well, working my way back to painting birds and having a good time.

More Sketching

Another lunchtime sketching session today!  We all walked across campus to the market and sat at picnic tables.  I didn't have the best view, so i decided to paint what was right in front of me, literally.

Ed was busily painting the CAMPUS MARKET sign above the doorway while I was painting him.  When we were done and comparing paintings, we all had a good chuckle over my painting of Ed.

Yes, I know that the painting is completely bisected by the umbrella pole, that is kind of the point.  We are trying to paint exactly what we see.  I could have looked around the pole to paint Ed, but for what we were doing this is much more accurate, fun and funny.

I'm having just a bit of trouble with this paint kit.  I feel like the paint is either too strong or too weak, and I can't quite get it right.  The background in this painting should have been weaker to push it back further, and the cement table should have been a bit darker to bring it forward.  Well, live and learn.  It was still fun.

Return To Sketching

It has taken all summer, but my sketching group is finally getting back together.  We have all returned from places unknown and with luck will all be beginning to trek outside one day a week for some lunchtime sketching.  On campus we have a new building.  It is for the college of Science and Math.

I think i bit off a bit too much with this one.  I should have limited my scope a bit.  The building is just a big brick building with some white and black metal.

I mentioned that this is a new building.  While we were painting, there was construction worker drilling holes for handrials, movers moving furniture in and out of the building and the sprinklers got us all wet.  We may have tried to paint at this location a week early.