STAYING ON TRACK!1/2/2016

1/2/2016   "HARRIET"

So far I am staying on track with most of my goals.  My hope is that I will keep at it long enough for these activities to become ingrained habits that become what is called "automaticity".

This drawing was done in Procreate using the tool HB pencil.  I wanted to see the difference from yesterdays 6B pencil.  The Apple stylus is pressure sensitive, so if you push harder you will make a darker mark and just grazing the surface of the tablet lets you shade more lightly.  It seems the angle you hold the stylus will change the width of the mark.  Just like you would hold a pencil on its side to shade, the Apple Pencil Stylus seems to work the same way.   There is no battery indicator light on the stylus so there came a point where I was pushing and pushing and no marks were showing up.  I thought it was something I was doing wrong and then it occurred to me that the battery may have been used up.  It turns out the charging port on the iPad is very fast and in 15 secs. you can get another 30 minutes of drawing time.  My Google search also revealed where the information on the battery is kept.   I always feel so smug when I find out these little hidden "secrets" on my electronic devices.  I'm sure they are not really secrets but it feels like it to me.

It is always interesting to draw someone you know really well.   The hand on the drawing is too big and the side of her face needs a tiny adjustment but I am going to leave it alone.  Overall it is a good likeness.  This was from a screen shot I took when we were talking on Skype.  The camera in the computer is not overly kind and neither was I.  My sister is also an artist, so I must be prepared for payback!  I think I will pick someone who can't draw for my next victim tomorrow!

NEW YEAR'S GOALS FOR 2016

Digital Drawing with Procreate 

I can't believe 2016 is here already!  I usually have my goals set early in December but I was waiting to hear some new information regarding goal setting from Dr. Susan Peirce Thompson, who has a PhD in brain science and is a tenured college professor.  As always she came through with some fascinating information.  One of the new insights I got was that the purpose of goal setting is not to achieve the goal but to have the goal.  It helps one to focus  and gives us something to strive for.  This is how I feel about creating art, ie. the importance and greatest value is in the doing not the end result.   I set goals for all aspects of my life but for this blog, I only talk about art.  Have you set any art goals for yourself this year?  Please share.  Each of us can be an inspiration for someone else.

One of my art goals is to gain a greater mastery over digital art.  I invested in a new iPad Pro and the digital stylus pencil, mainly as a new drawing tool.  So, my goal is to do a digital piece of art every day.  So far, I am on track!!!  This drawing was done in the app Procreate and I decided to use the pencil tool, 6B.  I was very surprised at the variation of line I got by just altering the angle I was holding the stylus.    Already learning something new!!!!  This is exciting.

One of my other goals is to start teaching in my new studio space.  I only have room for 4 students, so if you are somewhere in the San Mateo, California area and are interested, please contact me for more details.  Right now I am planning it to be a 3 hour session every other week.  I will be posting on Facebook and emailing my personal lists but this is the first place I have shared this news.

I hope everyone had a wonderful holiday season and and my best wishes for a creative New Year, full of the joy that art brings to us.

HAPPY HOLIDAYS TO ME!

Jerry with camera

I have been wanting the new iPad Pro since they came out.  Since there was no enthusiasm from my family to present me with this as a gift,  I treated myself.  It turns out that the Apple Pencil (a special stylus designed exclusively for the iPad Pro) was a very scarce item, I decided to track one down because drawing was my main interest in this new pad.  No sense in getting the tablet if I wasn't going to be able to get the stylus at the same time.  The backorder from the website was 4 to 5 weeks! I called the closest Apple Store and was told that they were out but to call the next day at about ll AM to see if any came in that day.  Each store gets a shipment of products every day.  This morning when I called the helpful operator told me the closest store that had one.  I was able to pay for it over the phone, bought the tablet as well, along with a simple cover and picked everything up in less than two hours!  So that is the trick to getting scarce products. 

Getting things up and running was not quite as simple.  I was hoping to transfer everything from my iPad Mini to the new iPad Pro but for some reason that wasn't an option, so I manually downloaded the apps.  This was actually a better idea since I didn't need everything on this device and it saves space. I opted for the for the smaller capacity so I will be more selective in what I store on it.  I was able to easily get the Apple Pencil synced with the tablet and I started checking out the art apps I have.  This is a drawing I did tonight with the app VELLUM .  The stylus is so fabulous.   You can hold it like you would a pencil when  drawing rather than writing.  For greater control you can rest your palm on the screen and it doesn't accidentally make a mark.   The larger surface to work on is fabulous and zooming in to to see or work on details makes things HUGE!  

Does anyone else have a the new iPad Pro?  Any tips or apps ideas to share?  I look forward to hearing from you.

SLIGHT VARIATION IN THE SURFACE

Every Line Tells a Story

I was anxious to finish this painting before our Thanksgiving trip which starts Sunday!   Now that I am looking at it as if from afar I see an area I want to change.  I guess that will have to wait until next weekend.  I put a glaze of very thinned down gesso over the reconstructed Tyvek surface and let it dry before starting this painting.  It is a subtle change but I really like how the paint reacts to this surface in a different way.  You can enlarge the image by clicking on it to see what I am talking about.  A more granulating effect is achieved.

I plan to take a small watercolor travel set with me and a sketch book.   I hope to have something to share with everyone when I return.  

This year I am giving thanks for a wonderful family, good health and the opportunity to create and share art.  I hope all of you have similar blessings in  your life.

ON A ROLL!

I just finished this painting today.  It is another watercolor on a reconstructed Tyvek surface.  I love how the paper impacted the final image.  This is a portrait of a lovely gentleman I met at the opening of the National Watercolor Society reception for the annual International show.  I asked to take his photo but failed to get his name.  If anyone recognizes him, please sent me more information.  

ANOTHER PROFILE!

I found another interesting profile to paint.  This one is on a torn and reconstructed Tyvek surface glued down with YES Glue so it would accept watercolor.  I love how the surface exaggerates the craggy features.   I am going to my studio today and prepare another sheet with the torn Tyvek.  I am inspired to start another portrait on this fascinating surface.  

If any of you have tried painting on torn and reconstructed Tyvek, please share your results with me!

PROFILES IN COURAGE!

It takes a lot of courage to paint portraits in watercolor because it is difficult to make corrections.  That is why I show students how to paint on a gessoed surface.  Here is the demo I did for the portrait class I am teaching right now.  The lesson was on profiles so why not go for an extreme example!  By putting down a coat of gesso on the paper first, I was able to make lots of changes in my painting, with ease.  

I think gesso may be my favorites painting product.  You can make poor quality watercolor paper usable, cover over a disaster of a painting and start again, texture the paper surface, stamp with it, stamp into it, sand it smooth and so much more!  Be sure and purchase the extra heavy body type.   You can always thin it down but you can't make it thicker.  Be sure and save your expensive sable brushes for a different surface as gesso is too abrasive.