Washing dishes by hand is a meditation that unfolds beyond my kitchen window, where I peer out at the grand showcase of nature and wildlife. The window inspiration was captured with a pencil drawing, inviting the viewer into my world along the east coast of Nova Scotia.
Several windows at the Seaforth beach house offer streaming views of enormous skies that perfectly complement the moody Atlantic Ocean. Gaetz Lake, at the end of the driveway, is a hub of wildlife activity, with animals and fish coming to drink and feast. The constant movement and life outside my windows is one of the reasons why I've chosen not to have drapes. I'm deeply connected to the nature that surrounds me, and it's a constant source of inspiration for my art.
I redo this sketchbook version and copy it onto cream drawing paper with a slight texture that captures the various pencil weights.
- The drawing from the sketchbook is copied with transfer paper to the cream drawing paper.
- start with light values of H (hard) weight pencils.
- drawing from the top down to avoid smudges.
- keep in check that the lighter values stay put for the background.
- Use the darker B weights for the foreground, pushing forward in the picture plane.
- I want the viewer to feel the space from the window to the far hills and sense the landscape with textured strokes of a pencil.
- There are 4 bird species indicated through the drawing, like little gems to be discovered, moving around the drawing.
- The geranium was the focus with its rough, scratchy stems and blooms ready to burst into flowers.
After I develop the top area, background, and mid-ground area, it is time to get out the darker B pencils for the details of the geranium plant sitting in an old glass salt-shaker hovering over the wildlife scene out my kitchen window.
Often, I take broken branches and stick them into glass vases, both large and small, because I LOVE watching the roots expand and grow in the glow of the window light while the glass container gets all green slime with nutrients that feed the roots.
Coming close to finishing, I am going around the drawing with both H & B weights of pencil, attempting a balancing act with values. I like to add 'eye-candy tidbits', small details that invite the viewer to take a trip around my paper real estate, enhancing the overall viewing experience.
I decided to erase the white bird image in the mid-ground area and on the right side. This white bird is used to assist in perspective views, and it also serves as a shape to prevent the eye from leaving the drawing on the right side. The white bird brings the eye back into the composition without the focus shifting from the geranium plant. I had also used a white charcoal pencil to add a cooler white to make the flying bird POP ever so slightly on the cream-colored paper.
The photos do no justice to the drawing, but in real view, the subtleties are more defined in values.
Kaarina and I keep in touch with each other through the internet. She lives in 3 countries and it is impossible to connect conveniently over tea and muffins. I recently sent her an email with images of the latest sketches, and she expressed her joy of this drawing, 'Growing Roots in Seaforth', and wanted to purchase it. She has been a long-time supporter of my personal and creative life, so this was an opportunity to share an art gift of my kitchen window, knowing she will be transported ethereally beside me.
Go ahead, pick up that simple pencil and DRAW! And when you're done, share your work and thoughts with me. I'd love to hear how my art has inspired you.
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