To a "T"

Made a few sketches this weekend, but it wasn't until I was scanning them and naming the files that I realized my propensity to draw objects beginning with the letter "T". The tomato plant happened to be a very good model. That's the least it could do since it keeps teasing me with little green tomatoes.



There's really no good reason for this unusual focus of mine. No tall, dark stranger with a letter "T" prominent in his name has wandered into my life. I did not see a Model T on the highway over the weekend. I DID drink a lot of iced tea—as evidenced by the above picture. As a matter of fact, I believe I was drinking a glass of iced tea while I was drawing the sun tea brewing. Could be a conspiracy. Come to think of it, since the Boston Tea Party, tea has not really enjoyed the same level of divisive fame, and it could be looking for a little of the old spotlight. I'll have to keep an eye on those teabags to see what they're brewing.

Sorry, yes, I had to go there.



Now you could argue that this last one is more about the circus performer than it is about the tent, but then you'd just be lookin' to interfere with my mojo, and why would you want to do a thing like that?!?

For the record, the tent came first. It was a two line doodle that turned into a tent. The circus performer started from the feet, but the torso was illusive, so what's an artist to do? Why draw a Pacman eating the performer of course! Ha, can't believe you didn't see that one coming...sheesh.

Perhaps I've struck gold for drawings with a theme—pick a letter, any letter, and find the objects to fill the book. That really doesn't sound very exciting. Sounds a little more like dictionary manufacture.

I think I'll just revel in this happy coincidence, and move on. Or perhaps I'll submit them to the shrink and see what my psyche is telling me. Yo, Nan, I'm thinking you were hungry, thirsty and bored! That'll be $568.02, please. NEXT!

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Big Things Afoot

Big things like the Democratic National Convention are afoot. Now, I know this isn't a political blog, but I can't help but say, "Wow." There you have it—my one word commentary. There wasn't a dry eye or a slow pulse in the place. Good stuff.

Now let us turn our attention to something a bit more mundane, but still a little exciting. A while ago I'd signed up with a group inside the Everyday Matters group to exchange ATCs (Artist's Trading Cards). These are 2.5 x 3.5" pieces of art that get swapped amongst the group members. I did a swap like this once before, and it turned out to be a one-for-one swap—probably a good thing for my first time out of the gates.

This time I was looking for a bit more of a challenge, and I was also looking to reap the reward of a flood of return ATCs—there are some very talented people in this group. Last week I mailed off my ATCs, and I'm anxiously awaiting the return mix of original, wonderful art. In the meantime, I've decided to let the cat out of the bag, and give everyone a sneak preview.

I made a record of sorts of the creation of my ATCs, so here they are. First came the pencil drawings, and a bit of pen work... In fact, first came some agonized planning, trying to decide what to do. There were nine people in my group (including myself), and I didn't want to do nine of the very same thing. Of course, no two would ever be the same anyway, but you know what I mean.

The planning looked like this...



The purple background made the whole thing fade into a grape lump. I'd mentally pictured something in gradients of color, but the subtlety of my mind is far, far ahead of the subtlety of my hand.

The pencil and stenciling came next...



The project ended up with far more than the requisite nine, but I've already given one to someone outside the group who is an avid postcard collector, and is also interested in ATCs (as of the moment she received her first, or so she said).

Then there were flowers and plants to add...





Next, I mixed up the background color (somewhat consistently).





Finally, I really set to painting, but I'd started a bit late, and not all the cards were finished before the chosen eight had to go out the door.

Most of these I kept...


And these I sent... Well, at the last moment I swapped the other finished maple for a crocus to give a bit more of a selection.










Always remember that...


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Tree in Need of a Story

Give it your best shot! This is a tree in need of a story, and I'm asking—pleading—with you to give it one. Let's hear it!