2012 commitment to draw - paint-sketrch

This weekend I got my garden in - downsized. Mary is going to retire. My daughter got the teaching job she was hoping to get. My two boys are doing great... Nick travels frequently for work. Steve is doing fantastic with his sales position.

I started this primarily to openly commit to more drawing, sketching and painting. I am pretty sure I can double what I did last year and add a series of oils or acrylics.

I am alway impressed with Nathan Fawkes' Landsketch blog. Simply awesome stuff, what an eye he has for light and dark. Compositions and gesture paintings so freely done so creative.

March / April sketches

Drawings from March of this year. So many changes a year brings in our lives. People, events, frustrations, disappointments. Joys, pleasure, successes, happiness, confidence. hoping for a productive year as I start planning for retirement in either a year or two. Or maybe not at all if the environment improves. 

More drawings and paintings to come. UrbanSketcher

Guache painting - new series Mt. Washington

New painting - Shiloh Street near sunset Oct 17

 

 

City View from 10th Street bridge

I'm very happy with this painting, it took longer than I had planned (two hours). After about an hour a policewoan tried to get me to get off my perch near the river,,, but decided not to pursue my extraction. She ended it by seeing that I was painting and said that , "Well you aren't drinking and you don't look like the type of person that would jump in the water or do something stupid., uhh ...be careful" 
I smiled as she rode off on her bicycle. Life is good and I and still inspired, maybe even more so. More inspired because of feeling a sense of my mortality - wanting to accomplish more in my life.

Pittsburgh from the 10th Street bridge

Decided to make the time to sit and paint a view of Pittsburgh I drew almost a year ago. Drove to the South Side of Pittsburgh and parked near the bridge. As I strolled toward the west I came across a set of steps that led to the Monongahela river and there was a place to sit with this view of the city.

Watercolors - I tried to go opaque, but in order to work fast I had to make some compromises. My goal was to complete the painting within 40 minutes.

Flying to Chicago - Pencil Sketch

Flew into Chicago. Drew only two images; I usually do more drawings, but I felt like reading.