Friday, December 30, 2011

Illustration Friday "Highlight"

The highlight of her birding excursion was the sighting of a scarlet tanager!

I've been trying to organize my studio space over the past two days, so I can begin the new year with a clean desk and some semblance of order. This how it looks tonight! Happy New Year to all!




Saturday, December 17, 2011

Illustration Friday "sink"

I thought this spread that I had sketched out for my Sketchbook Project story would make an appropriate image for the IF theme "sink". Today I added watercolor and colored pencil to get it to a more finished state. The paper in the sketchbook is pretty flimsy and not the best for wet media, so the book's pages are a bit wrinkled. I'm hoping they'll flatten out if I put a weight on the book when I'm all done.











Wednesday, December 14, 2011

Mt. View Print



I always have good intentions for sending out Christmas cards, and I even started early on a wintery-themed print this year. I have finished printing it, but that's about it so far. I think it's easier to just post it for now, and to send out a wish for a white Christmas!



Saturday, December 10, 2011

Illustration Friday "separated"



I've been working on the final pages of my Sketchbook Project sketchbook. If you haven't heard of it, check out http://www.arthousecoop.com/projects/sketchbookproject2012 .

The theme I chose was "uncharted waters" and I've been drawing the tale of a mouse who receives a message that starts him out on a watery journey. I thought this illustration would be appropriate for this week's IF theme, "separated" as it depicts the the reunion of two who've been separated.










Sunday, December 4, 2011

Illustration Friday "brigade"

The finished version with watercolor and Prismacolor pencils.

"Elf Brigade" in Black and White

This is Illustration Friday 's word of the week, "Brigade" in its black and white stage---I will try to get the colored version posted this evening. Ideally there should probably be more elves in the gift brigade, but maybe these are just the stragglers.



Friday, November 25, 2011

Sunday, November 20, 2011

Sketch for IF "vanity"

Working on a sketch for the Illustration Friday theme of "vanity"---a vain cat on a vanity.

Sunday, November 6, 2011

Illustration Friday "Stripes"

Finishing up a busy weekend by posting this week's Illustration Friday image. I used black prismacolor pencil, vine charcoal, and Lunar Black watercolor on a smooth heavyweight paper.

Monday, October 31, 2011

Happy Halloween!

Glad to be finally posting my Illustration Friday drawing for this week's theme of "scary". It was pretty scary around my house for the last few days as we didn't have power or heat for over 24 hours, due to a record-breaking October snow storm. We had about 20" of wet heavy snow in my area. Fortunately our power came on late last night, although many people are still without electricity all up the East Coast. It's so odd to see fall foliage and this much snow on the ground at the same time! But we're expecting temperatures warming into the 50's this week, so much of it will be gone. In the meantime, I'll enjoy my unexpected day off from school!

Monday, October 17, 2011

"Scattered" with watercolor

Added a little color to yesterday's black and white version of this week's Illustration Friday theme.

Sunday, October 16, 2011

Illustration Friday "Scattered"

After a very busy weekend, I only had time to complete the black and white image of my idea for IF "scatter". I'm planning on adding watercolor this week, and will post the colored version when it's done.

I had an enjoyable day on Saturday at the NH Art Educator's Fall Conference held at the NH Institute of Art. The keynote speaker spoke about art and how our brains are fully engaged during the creative process. I also had the chance to work on a dry point etching through out the day in one of the studios. Today entailed some volunteer time at my town's Pumpkin Festival. It felt like a true Fall day with temperatures in the high 50's/low 60's and a brisk wind. The leaves are close to peak color right now and very pretty!


Monday, October 10, 2011

Illustration Friday "Contraption"

Can a simple contraption work to recapture her pet rabbit?

It has been a beautiful Columbus Day weekend here in New England! The temperatures have been summer-like, the sky blue, and the foliage lovely. I think it's our payback for enduring a rainy September. I'm happily off work today for the holiday, so got up early to finish my Illustration Friday piece, drink tea, and to watch PBS documentaries on my computer while drawing. I don't want to break my self-imposed 2 year streak of weekly Illustration Friday posts, so it's nice to have a long weekend to get things done.

Sunday, September 25, 2011

Ferocious

I spent the day at the Portsmouth Open Market at Strawberry Banke, manning the booth/tent with Vita. This was our final Sunday of the season, and the nicest one for weather. It felt more like a summer afternoon than the first weekend of Fall. It was definitely better than our first Sunday in June when it rained most of the day, and the wind kept knocking over the art work. While hanging out at the booth today, I worked on this sketch for the Illustration Friday theme of "ferocious".

Monday, September 5, 2011

Illustration Friday "Mysterious"


"mysterious night noises"

Just a quick charcoal sketch for this week's IF theme. I'm back at work for the new school year, and as always it's a busy time. It has been a hot and humid Labor Day weekend here in New England, which is much better than dealing with last weekend's brush with Hurricane Irene. Looking forward to some cooler Fall days, but not the loss of the long daylight hours. It is always bittersweet to say good-bye to summer vacation!


Sunday, September 4, 2011

Otter Point print

I took a lot of pictures of the rocky coast on Mount Desert Island. when we visited Acadia National Park in August. I thought the colors of the rocks and ocean would make interesting block print images. This is a four-color print of a view at the end of the Otter Point trail. The trail begins at Sand Beach and takes you by Thunder Hole, and along the coast for several miles of easy hiking with spectacular views.


Saturday, August 27, 2011

Illustration Friday "disguise"

Our summer vacation's over,
we're sad the way it flies!
But don't we look too old for school,
while wearing this disguise?


Saturday, August 13, 2011

Portsmouth Open Market on Sunday

Vita and I will be selling our art at the Portsmouth Open Market tomorrow, Aug 14th from 10am--4pm. Hoping for good weather and big crowds! See you there!

http://www.portsmouthopenmarket.com/



Saturday, August 6, 2011

Sunday, July 31, 2011

Tuesday, July 26, 2011

Monday, July 25, 2011

Saturday, July 23, 2011

Beach Rose watercolor version

In my last post I showed the reduction print version of "Beach Roses". This one is made using the black final layer of the block, with the addition of watercolor. The colors are a bit brighter, which I like, but it loses some the details and depth of the original.

Thursday, July 21, 2011

Beach Roses

This is a new print I made recently to sell at the Portsmouth Open Market at Strawberry Banke. I ended up printing 6 layers---yellow, light green, pale pink, deep pink, dark green, and black. I am also doing another version of this print where I only print the black layer and paint the colors in with watercolor.

I hope some of you will be able to visit Vita and I at our booth this Sunday, July 24th. We'll be there from 10-4pm.

Monday, July 18, 2011

"Gesture drawing"

This week's topic for Illustration Friday is "gesture", so I thought I'd go with the idea of a drawing class where students are warming up with gesture drawings of their model.

Sunday, July 10, 2011

Illustration Friday "Stay"

"Can't we stay longer!"
We headed off to the beach on an absolutely gorgeous day this past week. The water was about 60 degrees, so it was bearable for the occasional dip. I usually don't find myself full-out swimming until August when the ocean gets a little warmer. We stayed all day, and in spite of a few missed sunscreen spots, and an empty cooler, we weren't in any hurry to leave.


Sunday, June 26, 2011

Illustration Friday "midsummer night"

This week's prompt for Illustration Friday made me think about one of my favorite childhood memories of summer. My family did alot of camping, and we always roasted marshmallows around the fire at night. When my own girls were younger, we traveled with our pop-up camper and continued the tradition.

Here's a picture of my dad, sister, and me sitting around our campfire at Rangely State Park in Maine in 1968.


Saturday, June 11, 2011

Open Market in Portsmouth on Sunday

I'll be at the Portsmouth Open Market tomorrow at Strawberry Banke. Vita Mechachonis and I are sharing a booth from 10--4pm, rain or shine (we're hoping for more shine than rain). If you're in the Portsmouth area, stop by!



Monday, June 6, 2011

Illustration Friday "Shadows"







Just a quick illustration for this week's prompt---shadows. The weather is warming up, and I imagine everyone would like to sit in the shade with a cold drink.



I've been very busy trying to get ready for my first Open Market day in Portsmouth that's coming up on Sunday the 12th. My friend Vita and I are sharing a booth and selling our wares at Strawberry Banke from 10--4. Hoping for great weather and lots of visitors!