Drawn-In, Art Party

I enjoy working on artwork with other artists.

I find it inspires me and challenges me to be the best I can. When alone, I have the tendency to slide, lose focus and get lost in my work.

Having others in to work with me, or just knowing I will need to show my artwork helps keep me focused.

So about once a month I invite some of my former students and other local artists to come over and sit in my sunroom and have a draw-in.

An  art making party.

My enclosed, back porch is the location. With windows on 3 sides it is a bright, airy room even on our frequent, cloudy days.

With a gas fireplace, even winter afternoons are comfortable.

Those that meet vary in age and experience. I have high school students and seniors, beginners and teachers. We all bring something to share (we need to keep our strength up!)

And we spend several hours either drawing or painting.

This month 4 of us met.



Barb's Calla Lily
Start of the day

Barb's Calla Lily
at the end of the day.

Barb, one of my former students, is my age, but lack confidence in herself. She is a gifted artist with a strong desire to draw, but wages a war with life to find even an afternoon to get out her pencils.

Paulette Tries Charcoal

Paulette's First Charcoal

Paulette is a friend who simply loves art. Until recently she never even tried to create art, believing that artistic ability to be some rare and elusive animal. This month we introduced Paulette to charcoal. I think we have a love affair starting.

Brenda will use this in her classes

Brenda is a art major. A local celebrity in the art world and an experienced watercolorist. She teaches classes each year, introducing others to the satisfaction of expression through watercolor.









And then there is me.

A retire semi-literate artist who simply loves to draw and paint.

Made some progress on my Pelican in Flight
Background takes a long time!
 

Pelican in Flight

Starting, outline and beginning the background

Birds have always fascinated me. They are so different. Rendering feathers is totally different from hair and fur. And their body structures. To totally different depending on life styles, flight patterns, etc. So often when you really look at them you see such primitive body structures that have endured for thousands of years.


Having done a pelican roosting on a pier, the next one will be a pelican in flight. Here, you will be able to see the structure and breath of the flight feathers, wing span and attitude while it hovers in the wind.


While these are known as common brown pelicans, I find the range of colors and values on them fascinating. They are not a solid brown, but almost spotted and speckled going from almost a cream white to a brown so dark as to be almost black. the flight feathers are dark on the top, but a beautiful, silvery gray on the underside.



Starting to define Pelican

I had intended to draw it to matt to 11 x 14, a standard mat size, but I rather like the look of it coming out of the background, so will most likely have a custom matt cut, that allows it to come out of the "frame".

What do you think of a drawn border, bands of dark blue and gold?