HEART FELT!

After dinner dishes are done, I have been setting up my tabletop easel on the kitchen counter next to a small television and creating a painting while I watch the Olympics.  The house is warmer than the garage studio and the lighting is strong in the kitchen.  

This painting started out as a drawing with my coffee stirrer stick.  I decided to try and draw from a drawing rather than from the original source material.  The drawing looked way too much like a cartoon for me.  I started painting and then decided I needed to redraw the image.  I covered the painting with tissue paper with my heart pattern gessoed on the tissue.  I really like the pattern effect.  I was able to go back into the painting and do a better job of drawing.  This was a lot of fun. 

CONTINUING WITH VARIATIONS!

Photo paper drawn with coffee stirrer using liquid watercolor and collaged paper cocktail napkins.  The surprise was the napkins were double ply and the second layer had like a ghost print.  A little busy but I like the overall combination of elements.

SAME TOOL, DIFFERENT SURFACE

When I find a new tool, I like to try it on as many different surfaces as I can think of.  This is Canon Inkjet Photo Paper Plus Glossy ll 13" x 19".  It is the only larger format photo paper that will successfully take watercolor that I know of.    The paper was acting very much like YUPO, lifting back to white.  Photo paper has a coating that YUPO doesn't, so there are some differences.  Don't ask, you will need to discover it for yourself.

I failed to give a credit for the music on my little demo video.  The musician was Tom Rigney and the piece is called "House of the Rising Sun".  Tom often performs locally and is very entertaining!  You can check out his website for more information.  He has lots of cd's to chose from.

GEORGE JAMES DRAWING VIDEO

I was able to make this video today while sitting at Gallery Concord.  The image is George James, the amazing artist and educator.  I was fortunate to be able to take one of his workshops on painting on YUPO and took lots of photographs of him while he was doing critiques.  This is not the best likeness or drawing but it does show some ideas of how to draw with an unorthodox instrument.  I used the coffee stirrer (which has turned black from all the ink).  Most of the coffee stirrers I have found are like the larger one I am holding with rounded edges.  Even cutting off the ends, it does not seem to be as responsive as the more flexible and thinner one.  

Since the video set up had the camera behind me, I decided not to talk and put music in to entertain everyone.  I hope you can see clearly.  You can click on the video and have it fill the screen for larger viewing.  

BREAKTHROUGH DRAWING TOOL DISCOVERY!

I spent the day at the Gallery Concord drawing with large sheets of newsprint and India Ink. The slide show has the drawings in the order I drew them. The first two drawings I was using a Sharpie pen stuck in my large wooden compass (used in grade school with chalk on the board to draw arcs and circles) with the paper on the floor. The idea is to extend the drawing arm to take away some control and have a more interesting drawing. I was able to put the thin wooden coffee stick stirrer into a pen holder but couldn't affix the pen holder in the the wooden compass so just decided draw with just the pen holder and the stick. I thought about sharpening the square end to a point but I'm glad I didn't. Also, keeping the full length of the stick adds to the character of the line. I am amazed at the versatility of this simple little stick! The variety of line width and texture is fantastic! I am in love! Now, all I have to do is remember where I found this stick. The hunt is on.


I will be sitting at the Gallery Concord again tomorrow. I am going to attempt to make a little video drawing with this stick on newsprint.

SMALL TUTORIAL ON CREATING A VIDEO

In response to some of the comments and questions on my last post of creating a video demo, I thought I would share with you what I have learned so far.  The camera is an amazing!!!! little thing. I placed it under a dollar bill and next to my ipod for size comparison  I think there are a number of brands on the market, but the one I initially saw was the one Costco had.  I had a year end check from Costco - based on my credit card purchases with them - and I wanted to spend it on something other than groceries.  The devise is called a FLIP Video mino HD.  I have posted photos of the equipment.  This little video device takes high definition video and has a built in usb connection (I popped it out for the photo) where you just attach it to your computer for downloading.  The software is also built into the camera.  The camera has 60 minutes of recording on 4 GB of memory.  The battery is rechargable by plugging into the computer.  The whole thing is sealed so I don't know what happens when the batteries finally go dead.  Anyone out there know?  The other benefit is you can isolate a frame from the video and print it out as a single image.  This makes getting an action shot or a stealth shot fairly easy.  I haven't tested this aspect yet.  The cost for this device was $150 with a $30 instant rebate.  Even with California sales tax I got some change back from my check!  So, it feels like I got a free present from Costco.

The other piece of equipment that was very helpful is my Gorilla Pod tripod.  This is a flexible devise that is stable on any surface and can be positioned perfectly at any angle.  When I discovered this fabulous little gizmo, I had a heavier camera than the one I use now, so I bought the medium size Gorillapod.  This little Flip Camcorder can be easily supported on the small size one.  This larger one actually stands taller, so I find it useful for this setup.

I learned that it will be best to do short segments of video that can be stitched together by the software into one smooth seamless movie.  I haven't mastered the editing part yet.  As far as I can figure out, there is very little instruction information, so it is trial and error.

The hardest part is talking while videoing.  It feels kind of embarrassing talking to yourself and then hearing your voice  when you play it back.  That part will feel more comfortable with time and practice.

The software makes it easy to upload the finished movie to you-tube.  From there you can copy the html and drop it into a blog or website.  You can also send the video in an e-mail.

Any tips and tricks using this or a similar devise are more than welcome!

MY DIRECTORIAL DEBUT!

I purchased a wonderful little mini camcorder today and this is my first effort! I am excited about the possibilities. It will take me some time to fully understand how to do everything. Please share any helpful hints and/or suggestions for improving the quality. Also what other demos you might want to see. I am thinking I could video each drawing I do for the Drawn to the Mirror project.