Looking back at 2020! All in all, I've had a good year as far as my artwork goes.   I had seven commissions, several plein air pieces and  five paintings I did just for me.  Lots of small pen & inks and  digital drawings.  A Christmas card,  an ornament for the Tennessee residence and I added Mockingbirds to my mini Christmas Ornaments.  Due to Covid, competitions, exhibits and workshops were cancelled.  On a sad note, I lost my painting buddy, Hilda!  I think of her often and I can still hear her laugh.  

These aren't finished, I'll be adding another layer of darks tomorrow.  I have nine that I'm working on and hope to finish with 14 at this time.  I may do a few more later but I would have to visit my cousin again to get the sizes right.  I've really enjoyed drawing these. 

Day one could have gone better but it started much like all my other projects. A dry run.   I was too excited and worked to fast.  I got too dark too soon.  I had traced around the arrowheads because I want them to be the actual size.  The first and third one I'm ok with but #2 just kept getting bigger and bigger. The forth one, it just got away from me.  Even the two I liked, are too dark for silverpoint.  Silverpoint needs to be layered to get the values the way you want them.  I got too dark right off and I have no where to go. You can't erase that easily in silverpoint.  It was a good practice ran and I enjoyed the day.  

I've seen a lot of arrowhead before but drawing them, you really see the details.  At first I thought I had bitten off more than I could possibly draw, the edges are so confusing.  The cuts into the stone are so precise and so many of them.  Then I starting noticing the patterns the artisan used.  I would have just sharpened a stick, a point is a point, right!  Oh know! they are not just a point. They are remarkable. My cousin tried to teach me Arrowheads 101, but it didn't take.  

This is just one of many (so many) display cases my cousin has.t I picked a lot of the arrowheads I'm drawing from the one pictured above.  I also wear gloves so the oils on my skin do not get onto the paper.  The silver won't stay put and the patina won't be consistent .  

I've been excited about this project for a while now.  Commissions are always nice and welcomed, around the holidays it's hard to find time to work on anything else.  I'm all caught up for now and starting a New Project,  I've been wanting to draw more in silverpoint.  The silver will patina with age, turn color and still glisten in the light. 

It's an ancient medium and I wanted to draw objects  from ancient times.  My cousin collects artifacts. arrowheads mostly from Tennessee.  The area where my grandparents lived.  I've photographed about 20 from his collection but he has thousands.  His collection is so impressive.  

I sketched out a few to get started, they will be the actual size of the arrowhead. I can't wait to get to the studio tomorrow.  It snowed today so I stayed in, I hope it's gone in the morning.    

 This piece spoke to me, I enjoyed working on it..  It reminded me of where I was raised.  My clients parents moved from their home where they raised their kids.  She said the move was bitter sweet.  The home was surrounded by woods and not a neighbor in clear slight.  It was beautiful !  

It was to be a surprise so I went out when they weren't at home and photographed the house.  I like to do that so I get a feel for the HOME and I don't have to use just a snapshot of the house.  

It's painted in acrylic, 24" x 18" !  I know I have 50 + hours in it, but I wanted it to feel right.  When the client saw the finished photo (she is out of the area) she said that it 'brought tears to her eyes and it was incredible'. 

below are the different stages of the painting. 

My favorite tools or building blocks in art are LINE, Texture and Value. That's because I like to draw!  The two drawings above are from my college days.  Which few people have ever seen.  The drawings have examples of both contour and tonal line work in one work.  I added the brown color to them because one of my peers said I should, my professor said 'I ruin the drawings'. 
When I draw, color is the last thing on my mind.  The elements of art are line, shape, form, color, value, texture and space. Color gets the most attention but value is the key to a good drawing.  Value is the darkness and lightness of a hue or neutral.   I think LINE is the most important element, because it can also guide the eye around and through your artwork. 
​Below are some more of my drawings from my college days. 
​Thanks for letting me share. 

 2020 New Year's Resolution- CHECK!
In 2009 I purchased this book.  Of course, I went home and started that night to read a page a day for a year.  I made it about a week, then I would pick it up and start up again just for a day or two.  In  2010,  I try it again and again I failed.  When I retired, I wanted to move back home to Tennessee from GA. We packed up to get the house ready to sale and yes, the little book was put in a box not to be seen again for 10 years.  Last year, I unpacked that box.  I decided I was going to read it 2020!  I did, I did it!  I'm so proud of myself!  I knew some of the information but I learned a whole lot more!  I'm thinking about re-reading it this year but with a pencil and paper close by for taking a few notes.  I want to do a little research on some of the subjects.  
So, that's my 2021 New Year's Resolution - read a page a day - and check it out on the web! 

Time to get busy and be creative.  2020 wasn't a good year due to the virus.  I lost two classmates to the virus and  I've stayed in since March.  On the brighter side of 2020, I've drawn and painted more than ever.  I've enjoyed doing every piece of work.  I added a new tool to the box, my IPad.  I particiapted in one on line workshop and I loved it.  I've worked more with my acrylics and I'm loving them.  So I'm ready for 2021, I pray the Covid Virus will soon not be the threat it is now to our lives and we can all get back to what was "normal" !  

Happy 2021!

I love to draw!  No surprise, I'm an artist.  I've been drawing all my life,   This last two weeks I have been drawing Christmas Commissions in charcoal on toned paper.  I've been doing a lot of paintings this year so to do some drawings was a welcomed treat.  There is something about mark making, the sound and feel of the pencil going across the paper or surface.  If you draw something or someone, you really get to know your subject matter.  You simply take the time to study every inch of it or them, not many people ever take the time to study our world like an artist does. 
 
Now, if I had the money and the space, I'd do etchings, I've had a few classes in intaglio and relief printing and loved every minute. Maybe in another life-time!

I finished the drawings today and I'll start painting a new commission tomorrow.  I so enjoyed doing them and I think they look great!