A friend brought me these fascinating heads of ornamental cabbage or kale .. more like roses than vegetables. I must remember to try and find seeds to plant. I think they are beautiful.
They've provided great doodle material for the ads between Olympic events. For once we are on the right time - line, and I am struggling with the guilty feelings I attach to watching any day time television! Great high points for Aussies, and ex Zimbabweans ! And watching Michael Phelps is watching history being made.
I've used the time to try different techniques .. ink lines, wash, wet-in-wet; just trying to learn to predict the intensity of the dry colour from the wet ... greens more so than soft pinks and mauves, for a start!
My tones are too similar in the end, so there is not a lot of impact in the end.
The doodly black and white drawing is using a new product I bought the other day.. a "pencil paint", made by Dervan, it is powdered graphite mixed with some sort of gel. There are a few subtle colours .. this just a dark grey. Applied with a brush (or whatever), it can be diluted with water to the palest tone, pushed about, washed out, rubbed out, sketched over or under. I kept on changing this experimental drawing until I just decided to stop, rather than because I think it has much merit.
There is a variety that dries to a permanent finish. This one can probably be changed forever.
9 comments:
Wowee - these are beautiful - the kale and the sketches! I think you have really good variations of tone, with great impact... and lovely soft - pretty, in a good way! - colours.
The pencil paint looks fascinating - another new product to drool over - haven't spotted that here yet.
I haven't caught many Olympic events, and SA is doing rather dismally so far - still have one rower who might feature (he coaches a friend's daughter!), but Michael Phelps is a phenomenon, isn't he? I don't think his feats are going to be matched for a very long time.
I'm wondering if these are the same cabbage type plants they always used to plant in downtown Portland around October when it started cooling down. They seemed to be able to handle the drop in temperature and added great colour and interest to the city flower beds and pots. I love the purple and green contrasts. These are beautiful, as always, Viv. Good idea to get the paints and pencils out during telly time! I'm usually stretched out on the floor straightening out me achin' back!
Thank you dearest sisiters.
I think these are very standard sort of plants, probably, as you say,for cooler months.
I'm concerned about your back, Gillian and how debilitating it must be. Time to see a specialist?
Wow! The fact that you think it's beautiful is very apparent--you have really communicated that love in your painting! Congratulations--I think that's a really hard thing to do, and maybe the most important thing too! The drawing is so careful and lacey and free at the same time; and the colors ...!!! Astounding. You should find a kale-growers assoc. and sell them the rights to this painting: kale never looked so good!
Thank you kindly, Laura.Some years ago a group of friends fabric-painted calico waistcoat-fronts for a school fund-raiser, and one I did had Kafe Fassett style kale all over.(He was the In-Thing then).
Other girls sewed them up, and
all the waistcoats sold instantly. I wonder now whether they have all gone off to the Salvation Army Recycling bins.
Anyway, that was why my friend said it reminded her of me! Perhaps I will paint a card for her, after such encouragement!
Oh we did cushion covers too! Perhaps some of them survive. One girl said they helped to sell her house!!
Vivienne--Check out this month's Virtual Sketch Date (www.virtualsketchdate.blogspot.com); as soon as I saw this month's reference photo, I thought of you!
Isn't that funny. Thanks Laura. I've signed up for it. It will be interesting to see how others approach it too.
It is simply WOW!
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