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4/29/20 MS. W: TODAY
Aloha all! Welcome back from break. BREAK? I know. It must have been a weird one. I know it felt strange for me. Same place. More offline. But things felt the same, much of the time. I tried to make it feel different- but it was harder than I thought it would be.
I took the free-days to get out of my house a couple of times, taking long drives to see my family and long drives to see nothing at all. My sister's family is staying about an hour away (closer than usual; they normally live in Brooklyn, NY). But even though they are close, they still seem so far away because we've both been quarantining pretty seriously since the beginning... and even seeing *each other* hasn't really been in the cards.
But I was feeling a real longing to see them, particularly my niece, Lucy. She's 4 and old enough to know that what's going on right now isn't normal. And not seeing me hasn't been normal. So we decided I could come over, and we would wear masks, and keep socially distant (10+ feet) and sit outside on their lawn and chat and maybe go for a walk or a bike ride.
It went ok. But while I was there, she asked if she could hug me, sit on my lap, snuggle. SOME people think I'm very cuddly. :). She usually isn't much of a hugger (she hardly stops moving long enough), so it really broke me that we couldn't hug or hold upon her rare request.
I went home feeling unsatisfied. Kids need to feel loved, and I couldn't hug her to show her that- and I felt HORRIBLE.
Later, I remembered that before quarantine, whenever we would leave each other, I would often say "Lucy, I'll miss you so much- I'll think of you," and she would say "that's OK, I'll keep you in my heart." WHAAAAAAAAAAATTTTT!?!??! How cute is that? I think my sister taught that phrase to her for when my sister goes to work- like "Ok I gotta go, we won't be together, but I'll keep you in my heart." So Lucy started understanding and saying it, too.
Anyway. I thought about her saying that to me (the perfect thing to say back to her)... so, back at home I made her an illustration: something that she can look at during quarantine and after... whenever we're not together.
~I hope it RADIATES love~
~I hope it RADIATES love~
*ALMOST* final illustration.
(The purple arm looks a little "amputated," so I may try to add a hand, or fix that issue in another way).
Supplies: watercolor (brushes, water, blotting napkin), colored pencil
Step 1: Sketch lightly in pencil. Step 2: Use colored pencil to begin blocking in the figures, faces, and general color scheme. Step 3: Use watercolor to fill areas of color. Step 4: When watercolor fill-areas are dry, use intuition to determine whether layering in watercolor or colored pencil makes sense for building up color and detail throughout the composition.
Tip: Colored pencil can be used either under or on top of watercolor. However, if your pencils are very WAXY, they will act as a "resist" and repel the watercolor rather than blend with it. In this case, it may be easiest to use the colored pencil ON TOP of the watercolor, because once the waxy colored pencil is applied, it will be difficult to layer more color on top.
"What if the great adventure was rest?"
"What if the great adventure was rest?"
During ISO, I've thought some about travel. Or the lack of it, now. Adventure. And missing adventure. I'm a 50/50 split: a homebody with wanderlust.
Some people are thinking about what trips got cancelled, and some are planning their first trip back after all is clear.
I will never speak badly about traveling- EVER. But what do we miss when only explore our external? What can you learn from your quiet moments... alone with yourself? Inside with your family? Detached from some of your attachments? Resting rather than racing.
Is this ISO an opportunity? Can this be an adventure? Can "exploring" ourselves be just as fulfilling as any trip? Wonder if we explored, even just casually, as if we *were* places? If, during this sedentary time, we got to explore the richness of our landmasses, our dusks and dawns, our histories, "wars," cultures, and current states. Like, I know the WORLD is our obvious adventure to explore, but wonder if it's really the INTERNAL that's the greatest of them all? If "rest" exposed our realness, if stillness exposed our truth, if aloneness brought out our unknown to finally know. Our uniqueness out from darkness, our resilience from within.
This quote is really speaking to me LOUDLY at this moment. What do you think?
4/8/20 MS. W: TODAY
I'm not much for (commercialized) "text art."
For example: the word "DREAM," laser-cut out of wood, painted in sparkles, found at Home Goods, next to 6 others, in different shades of basic (no offense).
Of course, the idea of "dreaming," is in fact, an important part of being human. But the WORD doesn't need to be sitting on my shelf next to a mini-aloe plant for me to remember that, ya know???
THAT BEING SAID...
I've found some quotes to be <<<surprisingly>>> helpful these days in isolation. Some. Not all.
So, I've been playing around with a little "quote art." Trying to integrate some visuals into the composition to pair well with the quote.
Do you have a quote or two that are really knocking on the insides of your skull? Maybe one's become your mantra- really helping you through? Make them tangible, visible. Make them into art.
4/6/20 MS. W: TODAY
I have some things in the works...
I have some things in the works...
Quarantine Art Club will have a LIVE session component.
So stay tuned for details about assignments, ZOOM sessions,
& GoogleClassroom submissions!
Quarantine Art Club will have a LIVE session component.
So stay tuned for details about assignments, ZOOM sessions,
& GoogleClassroom submissions!
3/29/20 MS. W: TODAY
Playing around with this portable mini-palette of watercolors. Not at my studio table, nothing pre-planned. Just listening to music, sitting in the recliner I've spent most of my days. Sometimes I feel like a 93 year old person. I made some little experiments with NO technique in mind other than to explore color combinations. Just went with my intuition and came out with an informal "color-swatch" sampling.
3/23/20 MS. W: TODAY
DUAL-TASKING:
DUAL-TASKING:
Doodling WHILE Doing Everything Else (see what comes out!)
Doodling WHILE Doing Everything Else (see what comes out!)
As I was making notes, and ZOOMing with colleagues, and HangingOut with friends, I was also playing around with 7 colored pencils. Because I CAN DO MORE THAN ONE THING AT A TIME if THAT 2nd THING IS EASY AND CALMING ENOUGH...
I count having tried THIRTEEN (13) DIFFERENT things. Squiggles, combinations, mosaics, layering, different pressure...
Finally, I liked the combination of 7 lines the best in the grouping on the 2nd row, where the NEON ORANGE is 2nd. And I realized I liked them all together best in the fuzzy mush under my note to myself: 'Jog every other day maybe' (very solid list item, Wallach).
See! We don't have to be drawing in a sketchbook to do something creative...
WHAT CAN WE DO THAT IS CREATIVE and INVOLVES SKILL and dexterity???????
WHAT CAN WE DO THAT IS CREATIVE and INVOLVES SKILL and dexterity???????
- Cutting and styling hair
- Customizing clothes and assembling outfits
- Doing dramatic makeup tutorials
- Cooking or baking and really making people EAT with their EYES!
- Styling and assembling a ROOM INTERIOR in a different way
- Flower arranging
- Taking photos of every day objects from really CLOSE UP... instant abstract art!
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