Day 85 - Thumb

Another piece of the self-portrait puzzle.

hand sketch

graphite in cahier pocket sketch book

copyright 2010 Stacy L. Rowan

Days 83 and 84

Since the calendar says it is spring, I am going to continue with the flower theme. Although some may argue that this sketch doesn't quite apply.

sketch of paper flower in glass vase

graphite in cahier pocket sketch book

copyright 2010 Stacy L. Rowan

 The paper flower was a gift from one of my kids. I love how it sits proudly in the glass vase like it belongs there.

Day 84 I did a sketch of the hyacinth budding in my landscape. It might be difficult to see here, but I added a light touch of colored pencil to the ink sketch. Sometimes a little color is needed to clarify the lines.

sketch of hyacinth buds

sepia ink and colored pencil in cahier pocket sketch book

copyright 2010 Stacy L. Rowan

Day 82 - Magnolia Tree

When I woke up on Day 82 the sky outside my window was gray with clouds, but the sun must have been peeking out behind my house, because the new blooms on the magnolia tree across the street where as bright as Christmas lights. There was no question what my sketching subject for this day was going to be.

magnolia tree sketch

watercolor in Cotman sketch book

copyright 2010 Stacy L. Rowan

Day 81

Another day where I was at a loss for what to sketch. I decided to sketch my lips to go along with my earlier eye sketch. Maybe by the end of the year I'll have sketched each part of my face. Then if I print them, cut them out and piece them together it will be like I did a self-portrait. Now there's a (kind of creepy) plan.

sketch of lips

graphite in cahier pocket sketch book

copyright 2010 Stacy L. Rowan

Symbolic Still Life Group Show

Kitchen Reflections

10" x 13" graphite and charcoal

copyright 2005 Stacy L. Rowan

I am pleased and honored to announce that my art is part of the Symbolic Still Life Group Show at the Newberry Gallery in Santa Monica, CA. The show opening was held last night. I couldn't be there so I am anxiously awaiting pictures and an eye witness report from Michael Newberry (artist and gallery owner) and Robin Neudorfer (friend and fellow artist).

The show also features the art of:
Robin Neudorfer
William Wray
Mary Woodul and
Michael Newberry

Symbolic Still Life is a show of still life paintings, drawings, and pastels by contemporary artists expressing their personal iconography through using symbolism. Powerful imagery, dynamic compositions, beauty, and a personal message, either obvious or subtle, are the ideas guiding the selection for this show.

The show runs through June 4, 2010, so if you are in the area please stop by and enjoy the wonderful art and the stories behind the works.

I am also in the process of adding some static pages to this blog. (Thank you Blogger for this new feature!) One of the first pages I have added is a "Now Showing!" page. This page will point you to the galleries and shows were you can see my art in person. The pages can be accessed from the tab links found directly below the title bar.

Days 79, 80 and 90

I'm breaking with convention a little here today by posting one sketch out of order. But I really wanted to keep all the tulip sketches together. These three sketches are of the same tulips as Days 77 and 78.

I really enjoyed sketching these tulips as they progressed from buds...

tulip sketch

graphite in cahier pocket sketchbook

copyright 2010 Stacy L. Rowan

to beautiful flowers...

tulip sketch

graphite in cahier pocket sketchbook

copyright 2010 Stacy L. Rowan

to intersting curling, wilted shapes.

tulip sketch

graphite in cahier pocket sketchbook

copyright 2010 Stacy L. Rowan

And I loved that they gave me five whole days of not searching for a sketching subject!!

Days 77 and 78

Let me just say that I love my husband. And although I love him everyday, I admit that on Day 77 I loved him just a tiny bit more than I thought was even possible. That's because he came home that day with a pot of tulips which he bought me just so I wouldn't have to search that day for a subject to sketch.

Here is my first sketch of the tulips.

tulip bud sketch

sepia ink in cahier pocket sketchbook

copyright 2010 Stacy L. Rowan

And here is my second sketch.

tulips sketch

colored pencil in cahier pocket sketchbook

copyright 2010 Stacy L. Rowan

Day 76 - Crocus

I am a bit behind in posting my sketches as you may have guessed from the fact that I am only on Day 76. This sketch was painted in March when the crocus flowers were just coming up. I was so excited to see color and have flowers to sketch.

Crocus sketch

watercolor in Moleskine watercolor sketchbook

copyright 2010 Stacy L. Rowan

I had recently found Jean Haines blog. Jean is a fabulous watercolor artist. Her paintings are loose and colorful and often painted directly without the benefit of an initial line drawing. I am so impressed with how her subjects seem to appear almost magically under her brush that I decided to skip the drawing step with these sketches and play with paint.

Obviously, although Jean makes this style of painting look easy, it takes some practice. But it was fun none-the-less.

Days 74 and 75

This radio sits on the top of my shelving unit in my studio. When I look at it I often think it looks like it is smiling. And really, is there a better sketching subject than a smiling radio?

radio sketch

graphite in cahier sketch book

copyright 2010 Stacy L. Rowan

I'd like you to meet Parsley Pig. He is a terra cotta pig that I bought from a wonderful nursery that we often visit while on vacation at the shore. He was planted with some parsley, which explains how he got his name.

sketch of pig-shaped planter

graphite in cahier pocket sketch book

copyright 2010 Stacy L. Rowan

When I found him he had been moved to the sale table because the parsley was getting to that "leggy" stage. Now the parsley is long gone, but he still sits on my kitchen window sill and keeps me company. Maybe it's time to plant him with some new parsley.

Days 72 and 73

On Day 72 we traveled to my parents' house to celebrate my dad's birthday. I quickly sketched my piece of cake and ice cream before the ice cream melted.

ice cream and cake sketch

sepia ink in cahier pocket sketch book

copyright 2010 Stacy L. Rowan

The next day I didn't get to my sketch until after we got home in the evening. Between unpacking and preparing for the week ahead, I was looking for something which I could quickly sketch. This memory stick fit the bill.

memory stick sketch

sepia ink in cahier pocket sketch book

copyright 2010 Stacy L. Rowan

Days 70 and 71

On Day 64 I commented on Facebook that I was stuck for what to sketch. Rose was the first to speak up with the suggestion to sketch my eye. So that's what I did.

However, I was smart enough to realize that I might have another day or two of being stuck for a sketching subject. Since I received more than one suggestion, I kept a list of the other ideas to use on another uninspired day. One of those ideas was to sketch my running shoe, so less than a week later I did just that.

sneaker sketch

graphite in cahier sketch book

copyright 2010 Stacy L. Rowan

While working on my last charcoal, I needed clarification with the lighting. My husband had the good idea to use one of my girls' dolls as a model. While the doll was set up I made her multi-task and used her as a subject for my Day 71 sketch as well.

doll sketch

graphite in cahier sketch book

copyright 2010 Stacy L. Rowan

The doll made a good model because she stayed very still and didn't take any breaks, but the sketch makes her look a little creepy. I'm not quite sure why. I also had some difficulty adjusting the image. I think the original sketch looks better than the image here.

Day 69 - Old Stone House

This old stone house is just a couple of blocks from where I live. I drive past it and admire it almost every day. I dream of some day owning a stone building like this. Or perhaps even saving one of these old beauties and restoring it to it's former glory.

But for now I satisfy myself with sketching them.

stone house sketch

graphite in cahier pocket sketch book

copyright 2010 Stacy L. Rowan

Days 67 and 68

My family loves radishes. Our favortie type of radish is the French Breakfast radish. Sliced thin and placed on a cracker with some goat cheese they are delicious. I will have to sketch a bunch of them this summer.

But we think regular old radishes are yummy too. When I saw this good lookin' bunch in the grocery store I knew they could work double duty for me, both as a sketching subject and as some fresh vegetables at dinner.

Since I was pleased with how the colored pencils worked in the Japanese maple sketch, I decided to try it again here...

sketch of radish bunch

sepia ink and colored pencil

copyright 2010 Stacy L. Rowan

and here, on this green Hershey's kiss.

sketch of Hershey's kiss

colored pencil in cahier pocket sketch book

copyright 2010 Stacy L. Rowan

What can I say, as much as we like fresh radishes, we'd never turn down a piece of chocolate!

Day 66 - Metal Sunflowers

These metal sunflowers bloom in my garden year round. They started out a nice shiny, copper color but over time became even more interesting as the rusty texture crawled from petal to petal. I thought they'd be the perfect subject for playing with the granulating property of paints.

sketch of flower sculpture

watercolor in Cotman sketch book

copyright 2010 Stacy L Rowan

The two colors I used for this sketch were ultramarine blue and burnt sienna. If this were a "proper"painting, I would probably paint the shadows with non-granulating colors to emphasize the texture of the flowers. But since I decided to allow myslef to play and experiment within this Sketch365 project, I didn't worry about that.

Day 65 - Crayon Box

Happy Easter!

I hope the Easter Bunny filled your basket with all sorts of goodies this year.

sketch of Crayola crayon box

graphite in cahier pocket sketch book

copyright 2010 Stacy L. Rowan

++++++++++++++++++++++++++
I did this sketch the evening of Day 65 while we were out to dinner. My children shamed me into it by sketching this crayon box first (which explains why there is only one crayon with the box). I couldn't let them show me up so I had to sketch it too.

Days 63 and 64

I could put an eye out with that heel!

Well, not really, but I was trying to find some connection between this sketch of my favorite boot...

sketch of high heeled boot

sepia pen in cahier pocket sketch book

copyright 2010 Stacy L. Rowan

and this one of my eye.

sketch of my eye

pencil in cahier pocket sketch book

copyright 2010 Stacy L. Rowan

Days 60, 61 and 62

An eclectic mix of sketches today from the days when it was still cold and I was searching desparately for subjects.

Some sad looking strawberries, but what do you expect from March in the northern hemisphere?

strawberries sketch

sepia ink and pencil in cahier pocket sketch book

copyright 2010 Stacy L. Rowan

Red chewy guy was a favorite of my kids from the teething days. Not sure how he ended up living in my sock drawer, but that's where you can find him.

frog sketch

pencil in cahier pocket sketch book

copyright 2010 Stacy L. Rowan

Cherry tomatoes on the stem. They look so yummy in the store, but can't compare to the tomatoes we get at the farmers' market in August.

cherry tomato sketch

sepia ink in cahier pocket sketch book

copyright 2010 Stacy L. Rowan