Everyday Suprises

Every morning (I miss one here and there) I climb up to my loft and push out a drawing. I may spend one minute or two hours with the ink and colored pencils - it just depends on the variables I am faced with on that morning. Though the mood, amount of detail and the subject matter change - the surprise and excitement I feel when I see the completed drawing rarely waivers. The joy comes not from - hey, that's a great drawing, but from the wow of where did that come from? How did nothingness turn into those lines and those shapes? In the beginning I face the empty page with no conscious thought, no stress about how it should look, no concern about judgment from myself or others. In the end I am rewarded with a little expression of myself I didn't know existed. I find this space a special place to be whether drawing, painting, photographing, writing, sculpting - whatever art form you choose. Do you feel it too?

Going, going, going

I took this photo at least a month ago but it just occurred to me right now that I like it. The contradiction between relaxation and going, going, going (by foot and plane) is appealing to me.

MIA

I have been wanting to take a certain photograph for the last two weeks but I haven't been able to find my point and shoot which I think is the ideal camera for this photo. It tends to be a little more subtle than my slr. I can't find my little buddy. It seems to be gone. I consider myself fairly organized. Even when my home gets a little messy I know things like my keys, wallet and my point and shoot are in one of three or four places. I have looked in those places at least 4 times now in hopes I missed it the first, second and third times. I can't find it. It's gone. Am I going to have to take my polaroid with me to get this photo? Hmmm. That might actually be the best way to capture the moment.
We'll see.
All I know is I want my point and shoot to come home now.

Shadows

The title of this post reminds me of the John Prine song called "Lake Marie". He asks in the song "...you know what blood looks like in a black and white video? Shadows. Shadows!"
This photo has nothing to do with blood, thank goodness, but it is all about shadows cast on my hallway wall this morning. The sun was dancing on the leaves of a potted palm which left beautiful shapes and lines swirling along the empty canvas. The wall is red, well more like brick, which I think detracted from the light and dark so I converted the photo to black and white to make more of an impression. Though I think more shadows in the lower right corner of the photo would make the image too busy, I don't like the empty space.
If you have time have a listen to the John Prine song I mentioned above. (the song is large in terms of file size and this is my first time experimenting with posting music on my blog so my apologies if it causes problems.)

Beauty is in the Eye of the Beholder

I firmly believe beauty is in the eye of the beholder (though I failed miserably at proving that in a college paper back in the mid-eighties). I am sure the cliche is true because I know this drawing will not appeal to many of you. I, on the other hand, like it a lot. I prefer the actual drawing over the scan but you get the idea.
I spent a couple of hours on it - shading and doodling. I doodle almost every day, in the morning.

Switching it Up

I decided this morning when I was doing my daily drawing to switch up the visuals on my blog. Since I am in school now, pursuing a major in art, why not post some of my drawings. Eek. Scary. Here is a drawing I finished a short time ago. It is from a photo I took in Provincetown this summer. The drawing is done with Prismacolor pencils.

(The shadow in the upper right corner is due to a poor scan.)

Low Light Effect

My point and shoot camera limits the amount of control I have over exposure. I can make a few adjustments but when I get into a low-light situation such as a Lucinda Williams concert at the Catalyst in Santa Cruz, I just have to hope for the best. That is when I have to try to be a little more open minded and appreciate the effects a long exposure in a dark room. Or not.