nanke's stuff

It was suggested that I do a drawing with my left hand (dominant) to compare it with the one done with my right hand (non-dom),  so today I took a bit of time to do just that.  My brush marker is almost out of ink, so I did minimal work on her hair.  As a result it looks like she has a new hair style.  Actually what happened is that the humidity got so high (90% here), that her hair fell.   I can relate, and she has my full sympathy.  I may do a few more pairs of drawings, just for the fun of it.    There are different things I think work with each of them.  I thought about using pencil, but to make a better comparison, using ink again seemed like the way to go.

I do love using pencil, as you know, so maybe with the next set I'll do that.  Although, that could very well make me  crazy  crazier what with all the erasing, shading, changing, fretting and fussing.

OK, so all of the non-dominant  hand drawings have been pretty small so far.  In the world of large drawings, this one is also small, but it is quite a bit larger than the other ones I've done.   Even tho it doesn't look like the model I used, I'm pleased with the way it turned out.  The proportions are pretty accurate and it just works better than the other ones.  I anticipated that doing a drawing larger would be more difficult, but actually it wasn't any harder than the other ones were.

I did find that I had to turn the paper upside down to work on the right side of the drawing.  Also, I found it interesting to find that sometimes my hand was in the "left-handed" position while I drew ... that is sort of curved over the top of what I was doing, with my hand above where I was drawing.  Oddly, I don't do that with my left hand when drawing or writing, unlike many lefties.  (My sister, Maryanne  almost always wrote that way,  unless she had her hand in some sort of crab-like position under the line of writing and wrote backhand).   So, here is my "large" drawing ... 5.5" x 8.5", done with Micron pens and a Micron brush pen.

Today was beastly hot and humid ... finally it rained, which helped.  I was home in the morning, then off with a friend in the afternoon - thankfully everywhere I was had air conditioning (wimp that I am).  After dinner (homemade pizza which we have almost every Friday, being somewhat boring bears), I did 2 very quick sketches with my right hand.  Considering how long I spent on the 2 of them (maybe 6 or 7 minutes), I think they're not too bad.  But here's the thing.  Spending such a short time on them gives me the illusion of having an excuse for their not being being very good - pretty sly!  Except it's not working since I can see right through me.

One of these days soon I'll spend more time on doing just one to see what happens.  Until then, here's what I've got.

So I've been messing around with using my right hand (my non-dominant hand),  to do crossword puzzles for awhile now.  Some days are better than others in terms of the legibility of my printing, but I've been doing it long enough now that every once in awhile, I actually reach for a pen with my right hand instead of my left when I'm doing something other than a puzzle.  So today, after having been gone all day and not having much time for drawing, I decided to try drawing with my right hand.  I only had time for 2 drawings (about 25 minutes in all, including finding faces in a magazine to copy).  Also, I used my smaller sketch book (5.5" x 8.5") rather than one of my larger ones.   I used Micron pens, my favorite ink tools.   I've noticed that when I'm trying something I think will be hard, I tend to gravitate towards working small.  I have no idea why, but I sense it's an odd form of protectionism, if that makes any sense at all...... don't worry if it doesn't.

Anyhow, here they are.  The first on was really a bust - distorted, out of proportion, crooked ..... name a drawing flaw and you'll find it there.  Even the printing is really terrible.  The second one is much better, I think.  Not good mind you, but better.  And, even the printing is better.  I think I'll mess around with this a bit more.  It was kind of fun, and since it was my non-dom hand, I didn't feel pressured to do something really good.  It would just be what it would be!

Today my friend Vicki and I went out drawing sketching together.  It's very hot here (in the 90s today), so we sanely decided to do our sketching indoors.  First we went to a mall and sat on a sofa near a coffee kiosk.  In spite of my love of the pencil, I used a Micron pen to do my sketching as I almost always do for this kind of playing.  Here's why (just in case anyone is wondering).  When I use a pencil, I tend to want to keep refining and refining my drawing.  This is all well and good when the subject is staying in one place,  but when everyone is moving, it doesn't work very well.  So I've learned that for me, using a pen is better.  There's no real going back to correct things - it just is what it is.  It forces me to move faster, and even though the drawings aren't very good, oddly it seems to put a sock in the mouth of my inner critic.  I think it's because my expectations are lower - I already know the sketches will be rough and may not look anything like the person I'm trying to secretly capture.  So, here are the sketches done at the Cool Beans Coffee Kiosk.

Across from the sofa where we were sitting was a jewelry counter.  There was a young man looking at the jewelry - I imagined he was looking for a special ring .... maybe so, but he was only there for a couple of minutes before moving on.



After lunch we left that mall and went to another one.  There was a Secretary of State office there with lots of people patiently waiting their turn.  Happily, the front of the office was all glass, so we were able to sit outside of it and do our sketching.   I sat on top of a counter that probably used to be a business of some sort, but now is empty.  That way I could see their faces. 





I had a really good time (as I always do with Vicki), and I hope we can do it again.  Even if I go by myself, the practice is good for me and I always feel so much better after having done something like this!  Have a great weekend, my friends!! 

My first love in making art is  the pencil.  I just love it.  I love the texture, the feel of it in your hand, the forgiveness it has, and its warmth.  There's something immediate about it - it's humble and very basic.  It has no airs of importance and it's almost universally available.  It hangs in there when other media run out, dry up, or spill.  It fits in your pocket or purse and will make marks on almost anything, including your cuff, in a pinch.  It doesn't stain your clothes, even when you write on them, and it won't leak in your pocket.  You can borrow one from someone, and they don't worry about what you might do to its point.  Most of the time, they won't even mind if you walk away with it!  Also, they're cheap, come in several degrees of hardness (which greatly expands their flexibility), and they can be blended and smeared.  You can make a myriad of different kinds of  marks with them, and you can use  them on the tiniest piece of paper.  You can use an eraser to change a mark, or in a pinch you can use a rubber band or even your finger.   But best of all, I find a pencil completely non-threatening. Put a paintbrush or a pastel in my hand, and I have a clutch of fear (especially with the brush).   Now I ask you, what's not to love about a pencil?

So, in honor of the pencil, here are a few drawings of my hands.  They are gnarly and old, bony with stubby fingers.  But here's the thing about them.  They are always with me, so they are like a captive model!  I find hands very difficult to draw, and I intend to draw more of them, starting with my own.

So,  I really struggled with this one, and it shows.  In the interest of honesty, I'm posting it, though I'm not happy with it.  But, it's OK ..... I jumped in and did it.  My rational self knows quite well that not every painting is going to be successful, but still, that doesn't quell the desire.   I was going to stop midway through (actually, truth be told, I was going to stop before I started), but fortunately common sense prevailed and I just kept going.  There's no need to point out all the problems this painting has ... they're self evident.  Since I had already started it before the great suggestions about using smaller paper were made, I painted it on a 9 x 12 watercolor block.  Maybe my next one will be a tad smaller, looser, and a more relaxed process than this one was.  Thanks again to all of you - I really appreciate all your support and helpful ideas!