Anne's Drawing Blog

A bit of drawing and some Photoshop...

2009-06-20T18:33:00.005-05:00

I thought I should pay a visit to this blog as my mom reminded me that I had written months ago that I would be posting more often and I haven't kept that promise. Shame on me. *waves at mom* So, here is a post. Since I am creating a website about elephants, I am still drawing them a lot. Well, I can't say a lot as it has been rare for me to have a pencil in my hand this month. I did, however, manage to draw something last night that I have worked on a bit more today. I have also been messing around with Photoshop lately and I am beginning to feel like I'm finally mastering its intricacies (yeah right). Well, maybe not mastering it, but getting more of a feel for how it works. There is so much a person can do with Photoshop and the creative possibilities are endless. Too bad it's such an expensive program. Anyway, what I did to achieve this effect was rather simple. I just laid down a layer of brush worked stars and then reduced the opacity of my drawing and laid it over the layer of stars. I like how it created an interesting (well, kind of starry, I guess;)) texture and gave the drawing a smidgen of color. Photoshop is way too much fun!

Oh, and here's the original drawing as well.

More elephants

2008-12-14T10:09:00.002-06:00

I am done with school, so now I should have more time to draw and blog. Well, I am almost done with school, anyway. Before I graduate I have to do this computer proficiency thing that is so outdated that the links that I'm supposed to click on don't even exist anymore. It really is ridiculous that someone that has completed a Master's of Library and Information Science degree has to do this very elementary computer test anyway. There's no way someone could have completed the program without knowing how to create and send documents and other ridiculously simple things like that. It's just one more hoop to jump through and I'm annoyed.

Anyway, we were supposed to get a snow storm here today, but it has been downgraded. Right now it is actually raining. Hopefully that rain isn't going to freeze. Since I don't have to go out today, I was hoping for a snow storm. I am not a huge fan of snow, but it kind of fun when you don't have to go anywhere.

Going back to the drawing above, I did this about a month ago, when I needed a break from school work. I loved my class, but reading 5 books per week left little time for drawing. I did, however, manage to sneak in some time for these elephants.

Elephants

2008-09-16T20:35:00.002-05:00

As I mentioned in my last post, I'm back in school. This is actually the last class in my graduate program, which means I will done soon! The class that I am taking is called Library Materials for Young Adults and I'm just loving it so far. It entails reading about 5 books per week, which leaves little time for drawing. However, I wasn't feeling well today and took a sick day. After finishing one of my books this morning, I decided to do some drawing. These elephants are the result. Tomorrow is my day off, so I'm thinking that if I finish another book, I will do some painting. I haven't painted in ages!

5 Little Pigs

2008-09-12T12:16:00.003-05:00

Where have I been all summer? I don't even know where I've been, really. It just all went by so fast it was one big blur. Summers tend to be like that. I didn't do much drawing all summer and I really am starting to miss it. I guess it could be the fact that I'm back in class and that once I have homework to do, I'll do anything to avoid it... But I don't think that's it. I think I just have really been missing it. Anyway, just to get back in the swing of things, I sketched these little piggies. Hopefully I'll do some more sketching in the coming days...

Yes, it's a cow...

2008-05-28T18:01:00.003-05:00

As promised, I'm posting something other than a rhino. It is a cow, in fact. I do love cows. Love their eyes and their always nosy expressions. They always look like they are demanding to get in on the secret--whatever the secret may be.

It has been such a nice day today, but I've spent most of it inside being lazy. I did go out earlier and bought a pot of purple petunias. They're beautiful, but I hope I can keep them alive. I have this tendency to forget to water things. I put them right outside my living room window, so seeing them right in front of me (as I am on the ground level) should remind me to give them a drink now and then.

OK, another rhino...

2008-05-19T10:47:00.003-05:00

OK, here's another rhino in colored pencil. I promise I'll post something different next time.

more rhinos

2008-05-14T17:47:00.004-05:00

Well, what did you expect? I will always draw rhinos. Anyway, more playing around with colored pencil. I am finding colored pencil, once I get started, to be very relaxing. Now that I have a pencil sharpener that is working well and sharpening things wicked sharp, I am happy. The colors that I keep reaching for over and over tend to be black cherry, black grape, indigo blue, dark purple, peacock green, peacock blue, slate grey, and light cerulean blue. I guess these are my rhino colors. One of these days I'm going to try another portrait.

I'm feeling distressed as I'm supposed to be hosting the weekend drawing event this weekend and the wetcanvas site has been down for a couple of days. I did receive an e-mail from them that it should be working sometime soon, but won't be back to normal until somewhere around the end of the month. I was really looking forward to hosting and I have a feeling this will put a damper on my fun:( I did just e-mail one of the moderators and asked her if I should plan on business as usual. We'll see what happens...

A sketch

2008-05-09T17:25:00.002-05:00

This is one of my efforts for this week's weekend drawing event. I drew it on my new pad of 6x6 bristol board. These 6x6 pads were a very exciting find. They're perfect for the weekend drawing event where you have to post your work after 2 hours. As I usually work with graphite or colored pencil, I don't get much done if I'm working larger. Anyway, as usual, the scanner didn't cooperate and I lost all the shading in face, but all in all, I'm happy with this sketch.

My first attempt with drafting film

2008-05-05T11:23:00.002-05:00

I kept reading about drafting film and wanted to give it a try. It was very strange working on something that you could see the background of the surface you were working on through the paper. It was hard to see, at first. I did lay down color on both sides, which was also odd. Anyway, I plan on working on this more and we'll see where it goes. All in all, an odd, but somewhat pleasant experience...

Rhinos in love...

2008-04-18T10:43:00.004-05:00

Even though I recently started a new blog, solely for my rhinos, I will still post them here from time to time. This colored pencil drawing was started several months ago and when I was recently looking for my tax forms, I came across it, and started working on it again. That's one of the only good things about spending time looking for things: you often come across other lost things. I did even find the tomatoes that I blogged about a few posts ago. Anyway, these two rhinos are from a Sumatran Rhino sanctuary in Indonesia. It is not a public domain photo, but I just could not resist snatching it and drawing it. There are no public domain photos of Sumatran rhinos (well, very few, anyway), so that's one of the many reasons why I need to take a trip to the Cincinnati zoo--so I can take my own.

I am really enjoying playing around with colored pencils. I am finding that I am drawn to the same colors over and over. I don't know too much about color theory and should probably read a bit more about it, but I'm finding that a lot of it is kind of personal preference and somewhat intuitive. If I was going for total realism, the theory of it all would be more important... The problem I have with finishing a colored pencil drawing is fear that I'm going to ruin it.

Just a sketch...

2008-04-15T10:54:00.003-05:00

Here is my "just a sketch for the day." I am sitting here with my fingers crossed (which makes it awfully difficult to type) that my T-1098 comes in the mail today. I have my taxes all prepared except for that part. This is the form that gives me a bit of a break for being a student and can add up to a few hundred dollars. I'm going to e-file today whether it comes or not, but please let it get here! You may be wondering why I am waiting for it today on deadline day. Why didn't I have it before? Well, I lost it. That's sort of the story of my life. I'm always losing things: my glasses, my keys, papers, etc... I actually spent about 10 hours this weekend looking for one of my w2s (found that one finally) and this particular form. If I could get a dollar for every hour that I spend looking for something, I would be obscenely wealthy. Anyway, I thought I could relax last week after finishing my class, but no, tax day was coming and I still had the big w2 hunt of 2008 to look forward to. But tomorrow it will be over and I will rest on my laurels!

Moo to you...

2008-04-14T09:49:00.002-05:00

Good moo-rning. Sorry, could not resist that. Anyway, here is the start of another colored pencil drawing. And a start that cannot be worked on more, for now... Why may you ask? Well, another electric pencil sharpener seems to have bitten the dust. This is getting ridiculous. What has it been? A month? I think I mentioned that I had bought the extended warranty, but I don't even think I have the receipt, so who knows if that will do any good. What is it with me and electric pencil sharpeners? I think they all have it in for me...*grumble grumble*

Three Dancers (not dancing)

2008-04-11T12:30:00.004-05:00

This is this weeks effort for the weekend drawing event at wetcanvas. I'm pretty slow with colored pencil and this is where it is after 2 hours. I'm hoping to work on it a bit more. If I do, I will post the update.

On another note, we were supposed to get a big winter storm here last night and today. Fortunately, it seems to be sticking to rain. They were predicting 6 to 9 inches, so I'm very glad that it is raining. I'm ready for spring!

Queen Phoebe's Dance Mix

2008-04-07T17:51:00.002-05:00

Yes, I know this is my drawing blog, but I just wanted to share the video that I made of my cat, Phoebe. This is one of her favorite pastimes.

It's raining...

2008-04-07T11:03:00.003-05:00

Or it was raining yesterday. I haven't looked outside yet, but according to my little weather icon, it is snowing. This is not unusual for April 7th, so I shouldn't be surprised. I'm sure it will all melt right away anyway. I did the above sketch for the weekend drawing event at wetcanvas, however, as I was swamped with homework, I never even got around to posting it. Yesterday we got out of class several hours early (at 11:30 for a class that was technically supposed to go until 5), but I just needed the day to recover--both mentally and physically. So, I didn't do any drawing or anything else for that matter. I took a sick day today as I was feeling very run down and had a bit of an upset stomach, so I'm determined that today is going to be a drawing and painting play day. I'm very excited to get started.

Just a sketch...

2008-04-03T12:59:00.003-05:00

I am just going to pop in and post the sketch I did this morning as I haven't done much more than sketch lately. My class meets for the last time this weekend, so I'm frantically trying to finish all of the assignments that will be due. That's the danger with this classes that meet one weekend per month--I save everything for the last minute. I have been doing everything in my power this morning to avoid homework (the danger of having to use the computer for homework is that the Internet is there with all of its glorious distractions). Anyway, time for me to buckle down. I did take the day off from work, so I could work on this homework, so that's what I need to be doing. Another thing that is making it all difficult is the fact that spring has actually arrived. It is 49 degrees and sunny outside and after a long, cold, snowy winter, one just wants to go outside and do a little spring dance, but in my case, one must stay inside and type type type...

Anyway, as mentioned, I have been doing a lot of these quick pen sketches lately. When you don't have a lot of time, its a good way to get a little drawing in. It is also quite liberating to not be able to use the good ol' eraser as you just go for it and maybe observe things a little more closely and carefully since you don't have your eraser friend to fall back on. I should also mention that I would love to do what this boy is doing (well, perhaps I would sit rather than stand). It is a dream of mine to ride through the jungle on an elephant's back.

In Search of Lost Drawings...

2008-03-12T08:49:00.006-05:00

Like Marcel Proust, I am in search of something lost. While Proust may have been looking for lost time, I am looking for a lost drawing. And as Marcel's volumes are known for their extended length, my search is also known for its lengthiness. In my search, I have uncovered many other drawings that were lost, but not this particular lost drawing. The drawing I am searching for is the above drawing of tomatoes. I would like to finish it and give it to my mom for her birthday, but I can't do that if I can't find it. I'm sure Marcel Proust (well, maybe not now as he is no longer with us) could come up with a lengthy prose passage on these tomatoes, but I don't know if I have it in me to embark in another lengthy search for them. Anyway, on a positive note, I did find the elephant drawing that I had been looking for (these guys here).

In the continuing saga of electric pencil sharpeners, I took a trip to Office Max last night and I bought a new one. And going against my "never buy the extended warranty for anything rule," when the guy asked me if I would like to pay an extra $2.99 for an extended warranty, I jumped on it. This will guarantee it for 2 years. Considering the fact that all of mine have died on me in about 6 months time, this is a good deal.

Another Portrait...

2008-03-01T12:18:00.005-06:00

One of my creative goals for the year is to complete a colored pencil portrait. I had started a colored pencil portrait before, but got frustrated and quit. I have done some tiny ATC sized colored pencil portraits, but those are so small I can't count them as a full portrait. The reference photo I used is one of the many wonderful selections from this weeks weekend drawing event. The picture was just begging to be done in color. I would like to work on it more today, but my electric pencil sharpener isn't working and I have had to use a hand held sharpener. One of the colors that I need to use just doesn't want to be sharpened. It breaks off whenever it approaches sharpness. Frustrating! I feel like throwing the sharpener and pencil across the room! But what good would that do? I guess I will paint this afternoon instead. I haven't hauled out my paints in awhile. And then there's the matter of homework... The class I am taking this semester only meets one weekend a month, so it's easy to get lazy. The last weekend is March 5&6 and all my assignments are due that weekend. It could get pretty miserable towards the end if I don't get things started soon!

Another sketch...

2008-02-27T01:49:00.004-06:00

Here is another sketch, this time, straight off the press. The ink is practically still wet. Who am I posting this for? Who knows? I just know I like blogging and I want to continue to blog on a public forum. I love to draw portraits. In fact, most of the time, when I do a drawing for the weekend drawing event, I choose a portrait. I think because I draw portraits and because I have spent a lot of time studying faces, I have a different idea of what constitutes beauty than the average person. For instance, I don't usually like to draw people that are considered to be traditionally beautiful as I find their faces boring. Flaws create interest in my book. Yes, the above portrait is of a beautiful woman, but I do find something very interesting about her face. Go figure... I guess I should just accept the fact that I like interesting faces and whether they are beautiful or not, I guess that's not the question.

Another Weekend Drawing Event Sketch

2008-02-26T12:07:00.003-06:00

To the person who had to pop into my blog anonymously to tell me that they didn't find my blog at all interesting (and I certainly never claimed that this was the most interesting blog in the world), I'm still waiting to get a link to his or her blog, so I can judge the content... And once I do get this link, I will judge it on its merits and will not reply in a cowardly anonymous fashion. And your remark is not enough to stop my blogging. So, if you come back (for whatever reason, since my blog is so boring to you), it's still going to be here to bore you. Anyway, here is another one of my two hour sketches. I have many more of these as I participate in this event just about every weekend. And who cares? I don't know if anybody else does, but I enjoy doing these sketches and as this blog is just something that I also enjoy creating content for, I'm going to carry on...

A Sketch

2008-02-24T14:17:00.003-06:00

I thought I should pop into my poor, neglected blog for a visit. So, here I am. Hello blog! I have accumulated lots o' drawings since the last time I was here. I am going to make a proposition: I will post on this blog at least 3 times a week. If I don't, seek me out and yell at me. Today, after a few days without drawing (I've gone to a lot of movies and watched a lot of movies this week), I finally got back into this drawing thing today. This was done for the weekend drawing event at wetcanvas.com. I spent about 2 hours on it (that is the time limit for weekend drawing event drawings). Anyway, here I am again world and here is my drawing!

The Three Amigos

2007-12-08T13:20:00.000-06:00

I haven't updated here in awhile and I suppose I should now and then, just in case anyone decides to pop in. I call these guys The Three Amigos for obvious reasons. I find the picture interesting as these are black rhinos and they do not usually hang out with each other. They are very much solitary creatures. In fact, only the white rhinos form groups, or crashes. I've probably mentioned that before in one of my written forays into rhino nerddom (yes, I know that's a made up word). Anyway, what do you suppose these guys are up to? I think they're probably out in search of Nachos Navidad (yes, it is that time of the year again), but what do you think?

2007-10-24T12:59:00.000-05:00

So, I broke down and bought a set of oils and just thought I'd have to come here and share my first oil painting. Here he is--Mr. Rhino, of course. Don't tell me you're surprised. All in all, I liked oils, but I like the fact that acrylics dry right away. It took 4 days for this to be dry enough to scan. That type of thing makes Anne very impatient. I'm also including the cow that I painted this morning. Yes, it was done with acrylics, so I could post it right away. I like that.

Gorillas and a spot of blood...

2007-10-21T14:31:00.000-05:00

Well, I made the jump from the wrinkly hided pachyderms to furry primates. I am enjoying doing this drawing so much. I have drawn a gorilla once before, but that was with charcoal on blue paper, so that was quick. This one is taking longer as it is with mechanical pencil, but I am enjoying every minute of it. You know how people say that they put their blood, sweat and tears into something? Well, if you look at the lower right hand side of this drawing, you will see a spot of blood. I suppose I will have to admit though that I didn't work myself to the bone on my drawing, but only didn't wait long enough after cutting myself on a Fancy Feast can while washing dishes. It was more about the hazards of recycling rather than a passion for my work. Hey, I tried anyway. I bet Van Gogh bled on his paintings. Maybe someday...

Not a rhino, but a pachyderm, nonetheless...

2007-10-17T10:38:00.000-05:00

Yes, I seem to have a thing for the large pachyderms. Here I am taking a break from the horned ones and indulging in a trunked one. I used a little 6x6 canvas for this guy and I loved painting on it. The surface was much smoother and all in all, more pleasant than the surface of the little acrylic boards I have been using for the rhinos. Now I'm thinking that I would like to do a series of painted elephants and, in fact, have another one sketched out. I haven't given up on the rhinos though and in fact, painted a new one just this morning. I am waiting for the paint to dry (this does not take long with acrylics) so I can scan it.

I do find it very interesting (and rather pleasing) that these largest of animals in the animal kingdom tend to be vegetarians. Some people have this idea that rhinos are these vicious creatures with a constant trickling of blood on their horns and mouths, when in fact, they usually just use their horns to fake other animals. Sometimes two male rhinos will clash horns, but usually without extreme results. And elephants, as we all know, are these amazing, sensitive creatures.

Red Rhino

2007-09-28T09:59:00.000-05:00

Here is my latest rhino. I have been good about painting one of these every day (I'm up to 9 now), but last night I was just too tired. I will try to fit one in today amongst all of my homework. Yes, I have class tomorrow and have saved all my reading for the day before. I am really sick of school. Anyway, I will post more of these in the next few days. I plan on giving some of these away, but they look good all together as a group! Oh well, at least I will have the scans...

Orange Rhinosicle with Spots

2007-09-25T09:35:00.001-05:00

Here is another of my daily rhinos. I decided to go with some polka dots. Indian rhinos have these bumps on their hide, so it is not so far fetched. Unfortunately, I splattered on the dots kind of messily. Rather than a monochromatic painting, I decided to use some of the complementary color, so I went with a blue background and blue dots. I kind of like him, but not as much as Mr. Blue. I gave one of my rhinos away yesterday. It was hard, but what else am I going to do with all the paintings? If I don't start giving some away, I will soon be drowning in canvas boards--or, at least, tripping over them.

Mr. Blue

2007-09-22T08:11:00.000-05:00

I have to be to work in 25 minutes and have yet to start getting ready. So, what am I doing sitting on my butt blogging you may ask. Well, that's a good question... Anyway, I have been doing these little 6x8 acrylics paintings of rhinos. I have been calling the project "a rhino a day." This is the one I did last night and I am quit happy with him. I had never tried a monochromatic acrylics painting and now I am thinking that I may want to do a few more. It was fun! This is Mr. Blue, an Indian rhinoceros, otheriwise known as the greater one horned rhino or scientifically, rhinocerous unicornus.

Time for a crash...

2007-09-09T13:06:00.000-05:00

Yes, I am back at it with my favorite cutie-pie beasts. This time I wanted to draw a group of rhinos or more specifically, a crash. I still have to do more on this, but thought I'd post what I have now as I haven't posted in a few days. I've been working on acrylics and have been doing the exercises in a book--mostly veggies. That might be a bit too boring to post here, or maybe not... This is a crash of white rhinos, of course. If it were another species of rhinos, they would not form a crash as the other 4 species are solitary animals. You can also tell they are white rhinos by their wide mouths. In fact, they got their name from the dutch word for wide, which is "widje." Bet you didn't know that...

Portrait update

2007-08-31T15:05:00.000-05:00

Yes, I have continued to work on this, despite the lovely coffee stain. No matter how hard I try to tell myself that the stain can just be a character mark, it is just not working for me. You can't justify brown splotches on a graphite portrait. Anyway, it's just a practice run, so it's really all o.k.. I can't imagine something like that happening to a commission. That would make me rip my hair out and run down the streets naked yelling "shoot me"! It is fortunate that I don't have to do that. I know nobody is reading this blog now, but I hope to get some visters again soon. I've mentioned before that I have another blog and that one is active with comments, so don't feel sad for me if you see all of the "0 comment" entries. I'm just trying to update this one more and then maybe the readers will come. Or maybe not... There are a lot of unread blogs in cyberspace, so I'm in good company.

Double the Rhinos...

2007-08-30T12:18:00.000-05:00

I was just up north visiting my family for a few days and this is all the drawing I managed to squeeze in. Yes, it is the rhino duo again. Double the drawings of the double rhinos... I start class again next week, but this one shouldn't dig into my drawing time as much as the last one did. Those summer classes require all of your time and energy, the regular school year ones do not. I need to finish my ATCs for the trade and then get going on the animal alphabet project I signed up for. I'm afraid I've been neglecting all of my on-line projects. I also need to get going on perspective studies that I promised myself I would work on and I may play around with that today. But now I'm off to Target to purchase a new VCR. Yes, this is the second one that has died this year. Oh, and my laptop is dead too. This has not been a good month for electronic equipment.

2007-08-21T11:31:00.000-05:00

This is just a quick drop-in to post a portrait that I am working on. Unfortunately, as you can see, it has a "character" mark. I could pretend it is a smattering of sepia added to create interest, but we all know it is the mark of coffee. Oh, the dangers of coffee... Anyway, it is just a portrait for practice, so it's not a tragedy, but it's still annoying. And to top things off, it now also has a cat paw wrinkle. As much as I love cats and coffee, they are not always good for one's art...

A Pomegranate and some stew...

2007-08-18T22:49:00.000-05:00

Tonight, after a long and rainy day that I had hoped to spend drawing to my heart's content, I finally did a quick little painting. I have these fairly new Inktense pencils (they're like watercolor pencils, but they're more vibrant and inky) that are so much fun to play with and that's what I used for the pomegranate. I also cooked today for the first time in ages. I made sweet potato and black bean stew and it was delicious. Too bad I didn't have a pomegranate for dessert. After a long, dry, hot summer, we finally had a cool and rainy day. When I went out earlier there were all of these prissy types with their umbrellas and I just had a great time splashing in the puddles and getting soaked. I'm not much of a fan of the sun to begin with and we have seen more of it than usual this summer, so today was a fantastic treat. And we're supposed to get more rain tomorrow! Yay! Unfortunately, tomorrow I will be at work, but still...the rain makes me happy.

Rhino Update 8/07/2007: Bath and Weigh-in for Zuri

2007-08-18T02:01:00.001-05:00

More Rhinos

2007-08-18T01:45:00.000-05:00

Yes, I have drawn more rhinos. I drew a cow today that ended up looking slightly deformed, so I wanted to draw some figures that I was more familiar with. So, I drew my favorite stocky, less than graceful looking beasts. I like them in all their awkward beauty. Yes, cows are maybe more poetic looking, but I like the reality of the rhino. I was really happy to find this reference photo on wetcanvas a couple of months ago as I had just about exhausted all of the public domain rhino photos. So, thank you lisilk for your fabulous photo.

Speaking of rhinos, I have been meaning to post this video (see above) of baby Zuri from the Cleveland zoo. She is a black rhino that was born on July 11th and the zoo had been posting regular video updates. She is the cutest little (well, maybe not little as she is already over 200 pounds) creature.

ATC trade

2007-08-15T14:20:00.000-05:00

I don't think I've discussed here the ATC (artist trading card) project that I'm participating in. I am taking part in a trade with (I think) 30 other people from all over the world. ATCs are little cards (2.5x3.5) that can be done in any medium. This trade is actually not limited to ATCs (some people have done postcard sized works), but I'm sticking with the minis. It has been a lot of fun, but unfortunately, my class kept me away from it the past few weeks. Now I'm ready to get back in the groove! I have about 12 that are ready to be mailed and have, I think, 10 left to do. I thought I would post some that I have already sent out. This little puppy travelled all the way to Australia. Sometimes the cards are hard to part with. This one I almost didn't send out... *sniff* At least I still have the scan.

Rhino Collage

2007-08-09T20:46:00.000-05:00

I made a little photoshop collage of some of my rhinos the other day, just because... Right now I'm avoiding homework (I have a 12 page paper and a presentation due on Saturday). Blogging is a great distraction. Some of these rhinos you have seen before, some you haven't. Oh, why can't the homework fairy just come along and finish my paper for me?! I really don't have much to say now as this class has sucked all the writing out of me, so I guess I'll just leave this entry in its brief state.

Singing the Blues

2007-06-29T20:25:00.000-05:00

Oh, you poor neglected blog. What am I going to do with you? I am on post 506 on the other blog and this one has been lying here neglected. I guess what I will have to do is post a picture and make this place a little less lonely. This is a picture that I drew today for the weekend drawing event at wetcanvas.com. I really liked drawing this and even though I see a few things that need tweaking after scanning the sketch, I do like how it turned out.

I had the worst time trying to sign onto this blog as I forgot that it was all associated with my gmail account now and kept typing in my old username and password and when I tried to reset my password, it kept wanting me to reset my g-mail password and I absolutely did not want to change that one. That was when I finally realized that all I needed was my g-mail user name and password and not the old blogger password. Too many passwords and way too much stuff to remember...

Elephant of a Post...

2007-03-24T22:44:00.000-05:00

No, not really--it's just a post of two elephants. Otherwise there is nothing elephantine about this post. It's not going to be large or weighty, it's just a post and a drawing, as usual. This could be a challenge for me to create a post that matters, but I have my other blog for wordiness and right now I'm feeling all worded out, so I will just quietly post my elephants and leave and let them speak (or trumpet) for themselves. Have I mentioned how much I love elephants? Magnificent creatures...

I Otter Draw Some Otters

2007-03-11T21:41:00.000-05:00

This otter drawing is for my nephew--that is, if I finish it. I used the smooth side of Mi Teintes paper for this. I really enjoyed using colored pencils with this paper. I know some people have lamented over how much they hate this paper, but I really like it. I have used both sides of it and have for the most part, had a good experience with it. Anyway, I like otters. Recently I saw a a PBS special about a woman who was raising some baby otters and it was the most adorable thing you can imagine. They were swimming in her bathtub and she was rubbing their little tummies. She left them alone in the bathroom and they made a mess--toilet paper was everywhere. When she came back to reprimand them, it was like they knew they had done something wrong. It was one of the cutest things I have ever seen.

Another Rhino--Oh My!

2007-02-26T10:54:00.000-06:00

Yes, another rhino. I still am not sick of drawing the beasts. I find that when I really want to relax, I am drawn to drawing rhinos. Yes, they have become fairly easy for me. I know all of their little (or more like big) body idiosyncrasies, such as the humps (sometimes they look almost camel-like) on their back and silly little lips. I just love the creatures to death. I would really like to do a bunch of rhino aceos, but I seem to have a difficult time drawing them that small (2.5x3.5). I included in this sketch some oxpeckers on the rhino's back. That is a first for me, even though they are constant companions and relieve the rhino of pesky, blood-sucking insects. The rhinos are lucky to have such friends. This isn't finished, but what's new...

Rhinoceros in Red Galoshes

2007-02-20T09:26:00.000-06:00

I haven't updated here in awhile. This is the result of me playing around with an idea that I have for a children's book. Yes, I know everyone always says you should not even attempt to do your own illustrations unless you are a professional illustrator, but that doesn't mean that I can't play around with ideas. And of course my idea is going to include a rhino of some sort. So, here she is. I think she's pretty cute. She was done with watercolor with some ink outlines. I have also done some in graphite with a touch of color for the galoshes. I saw a book last night at work (you encounter lots of books at work when you work at the library) called Bad Cat. It was fantastic--very creative with lots of fun illustrations and ideas. That is the kind of book I want to write.

Do you Recognize This?

2007-01-13T07:47:00.000-06:00

Time for a new post. I've been playing around with copying master paintings in graphite. Who better to learn from, right? This is my "copy" of a Vermeer painting. I think it's called Woman with a Pitcher or something like that. Why wouldn't it be? I'm too lazy to look for the title at the moment also I have to get ready for work. I'm so comfortable and warm, sitting on my couch right now. The idea of going out in the cold does not appeal to me in any way, so I'm stalling. What better way to stall than by composing a new blog entry?

Girl and Dog

2007-01-10T13:27:00.000-06:00

I'm here to update again. This is a drawing that I started quite awhile ago and haven't finished. It was one of those drawings that was just really easy and I'm very happy with it. One of these days I will have to work on it more. Here I have my two favorite subjects together--people and animals. I have decided that I am going to finally try to tackle perspective--that means drawing a lot of things I don't like to draw--buildings and landscapes and geometrical objects, oh my! So, even though nobody has been visiting this blog, if for some reason you are here and you see no perspective drawings, you need to yell at me. Drop me an angry e-mail or flame my account with negative comments. I will let the people at my other blog on in this too. That blog is much more active, so there should be some people to yell at me there.

Piggy Suey

2006-12-29T02:40:00.000-06:00

I'm not sure if when you hear people calling pigs it's sooey or suey. Trains or a name? Or is it like suet like that which is the fat that is found in the kidneys and loins of a sheep or cattle? I just don't know. I've never been to a pig calling contest, but I have drawn a pig or two and here is a recent one. I saw a trailer for Charlotte's Web and the pig (which I'm sure was one of many) was the cutest thing you can imagine. Nothing is cuter than a pig getting milk from a baby's bottle. I'm going to have to see the movie when it comes out on video, just to see the cute little pigs. You know, my earliest movie memory is viewing Charlotte's web at a drive-in theater. Times have changed--now they use real pigs, rather than cartoon pigs. Anyway, this pig drawing was to be a part of my 2007 calendar which didn't happen. So much for traditions.

Two Cats in the Snow

2006-12-27T11:58:00.000-06:00

I am wondering if this blog will publish animated GIF photos. My other blog will not. Anyway, I have been experimenting with colored pencil on black paper and this is a couple of cats that I drew. I then went into my Photo Impact program and added some snow animation. I hope this works here. If the animation doesn't work, you will just see a picture with snow. If it does work, the snow will be falling softly on the cats. Here goes--my fingers are crossed.

Edited to add, as you can see the snow isn't animated:(

Roses in the Garden

2006-12-27T11:34:00.000-06:00

"There are no roses in this garden" you may say. I say you are wrong-there are rhinoceroses. This was one of the drawings I did for a Secret Santa thing I participated in. My recipient wanted a tangled magical garden and that is what this is. She, of course, didn't ask for rhinoceroses. I kind of like how it turned out, even though it is really far from finished. I need to get some darker darks in there. I realized I hadn't posted in this blog for ages, so it was time for a new entry...

Thirsty Kitty

2006-06-23T18:42:00.000-05:00

So, this afternoon I decided to try colored pencil on black paper. I have to say I'm really loving the effect and the time-saving aspect. I did what I have here in about an hour or so. On white paper, I would still have layer upon layer left to go. The black paper saves you all that time. I still haven't decided if I'm going to turn this into an actual drawing or just keep it as a sketch. I kind of like how it looks, just as it is. Anway, now I'm going out, so I'm not going to worry about this until later.

You're getting very sleepy...

2006-06-21T23:03:00.000-05:00

So, I painted another rooster. This one is actually a commissioned piece (yay!), so I'll get a little money out of the deal. Although I did tell her that she could decide if she wants it when she sees it. She has seen the scan and likes that, so I think she'll probably like it in person as it does look better in person. The colors are a bit more vibrant. As you can see, this rooster is much better than my first rooster painting (see below). I'm a bit freer with the colors now. I was kind of uptight with the first one. I have no idea what to charge... I won't charge too much since I am new to painting.

You may have noticed that he has kind of an evil eye. He kept trying to hypnotize me, but I resisted. Roosters are evil that way.

Lil' Hotdog

2006-06-18T21:19:00.000-05:00

This is Oscar, one of my co-worker's dogs. I pet sat for him a few weeks ago and took a bunch of pictures. I really liked the photo this is based on, so I decided to paint it. I'm happy with how it turned out, despite its flaws. I feel like I'm on my way to achieving the effect that I want to achieve with acrylics. Although, I know I definitely have much room for improvement. I think I've already mentioned that I'm really not interested in realism in the painting arena. It's really pretty liberating not having to worry about that. My drawing background definitely helps, but I don't want to achieve the same thing with these very different mediums. I think it probably shows how fond I am of this dog. He's quite the little character.

Rhinos Rhinos on the Wall...

2006-06-16T11:24:00.000-05:00

Yes, these rhinos are hanging on my wall at the moment. They are in my bathroom and it makes me smile to have rhinos on my bathroom wall. Doesn't everyone need rhinos hanging in their bathroom? Anyway, they are far from finished, but I kind of like them so far. I know nothing about painting and I was always afraid to try, but I just kind of decided I would throw myself into it one day and I have been enjoying it so much! At this point, I have no desire to create realistic looking images (I have drawing for that). I just want to create colorful, fun paintings that I like to look at and hopefully others do, as well. Some people would probably say "oh, you need to learn technique," but I say throw technique to the wind. Let me learn my own technique. Anyway, these were a late night whim. I was getting ready for bed at 2:30 Tuesday night, but then decided that I felt like paining. I worked on them for two hours. They're on a 16x20 canvas, so it's much larger than what I'm used to. As I said, I still want to work on them more, but I'm just letting them sit (or I guess I should say hang) for a few days. Oh, I should mention that I painted a rhino on a co-worker's side garage door last weekend. I kept telling her "I'll do this at your own risk. I'm new to painting and I know nothing about it, really." She likes the outcome, so I guess that's what counts. Even though I'm kind of horrified that my amateurish painting is out there for everyone to see.

Double the Elephants, Double the Fun

2006-06-16T10:59:00.000-05:00

I haven't posted to this blog in ages. I think I'm going to start using it more. I also had to create one of these blogs for class, so I'm just all over cyberspace. I've started painting recently, so drawing has kind of taken a back seat. But that doesn't mean I haven't been doing it at all. It's just not my main focus lately. As I mentioned in my last post, I love to draw rhinos. These are obviously not rhinos, but they definitely have similar traits. They both are huge creatures with rough, wrinkly, gray hide. I've just been working on these guys very slowly. I take them out when I want to relax. Painting is a lot of fun and it is the shiny new car to drawing's old reliable car, but drawing will always be my first love. When I finish this drawing, I think I'm going to give it to a friend of mine who loves elephants. I have to start giving some of my things away. I am accumulating so much paper(and now canvases) and I don't have room for it all. Yes, I do get attached to things, but I always have a copy in my computer.

Rhino out For a Stroll

2006-04-19T16:55:00.000-05:00

Since this is new, and I have so many drawings, I can do two posts today. Rhinos are another thing I like to draw. I like their almost prehistoric quality and the character in their faces. Have you ever seen a baby rhino? There is nothing cuter. Well, maybe a baby hippo. Anyway, here is my latest rhino that I drew just last week. Isn't he cute?

"I've Got My Eye on You"

2006-04-19T12:57:00.000-05:00

I do love to draw the roosters. I think this is the fifth that I've done. It's my first rooster painting, although some people call colored pencil works paintings. I would call them drawings, since they are done with pencils. Anyway, I've been playing around with acrylics and they are so much fun. This painting only took about a half an hour. The same drawing in colored pencil would have taken days. This rooster looks rather angry. Perhaps someone has locked him out of the hen house and he wants to have bacon and eggs for breakfast. I do think roosters are known for being ornery, selfish beasts. They don't care if they wake everyone in the neighborhood up with their "cockadoodledoos." They think since they are up, everyone else should be. I'm glad that I don't have any roosters in my neighborhood, but there are some people like that too.