Thursday, January 28, 2016

All Caught up on the Ten Minute Sketches

This post will catch you up on all my ten minute sketches, that's partly because it's been a few days since I've made a new one, I've been a bit obsessed lately over a medium I haven't used in quite some time so I've neglect the TMS', my next post will have details.  As in the last post these are all pen.


art sketch pen ink landscape minimalist nature
This one was a test for a minimalist landscape design.  It came out with kind of a graphical feel, I kind of like it for it's simplicity and boldness.


art sketch pen ink truck ford gas station vintage

This is a vintage gas station scene based on a photo I took in Wallsburg, Utah. I may make a drawing of this.

art sketch pen ink car ford sedan 1932 hot rod

A 1932 Ford tudor hot rod sedan, just for the sake of sharpening my drawing skills.


art sketch pen ink rural farm silo agriculture

This one is based on a photo I took in Lynndyl, Utah.  I move some things around a bit and added the truck.  I think it came out a bit busy so if I do a drawing or painting of it I'll have to cut some clutter.


art sketch pen ink rural barn tree farm

And finally my last TMS, a barn and trees based on a photo I took in Midway, Utah.  This subject will make an appearance in my next post.





Tuesday, January 26, 2016

More Ten Minute Sketches

I've been slacking off on posting my ten minute sketches so I'll catch up in this post.  These are all done in pen.  I think pen is the ideal medium for these exercises, there's no temptation to erase and the lines are automatically dark, you have no choice but to be bold and expressive.

art sketch pen ink truck abandoned ford chicken coop

Another rusty old Ford truck, this one with a wheel misplaced and backed by a chicken coop, I took the reference photo in Lynndyl, Utah.

art sketch pen ink hay shed shelter rural landscape
This one was to test an idea for a painting. Luckily I did this before starting a painting.  The shed is too centered, if I make a painting I'll move the apple tree and shed quite a bit closer to the right edge, I'll also replace the tractor with something that doesn't look so awkward, probably with a more straight on view.

art sketch pen ink barn rural tree shed
Just a simple rural scene based loosely on a photo I took in Morgan County.

art sketch pen ink gas station abandoned rural vintage

A vintage country store with gas pumps based on a photo I took in Boulder City, Utah.

art sketch pen ink gas station vintage car vintage
This scene is semi-fictitious. The building exists in Eureka, Utah, I added the visible gas pump and antique car. I really like the feel of this design.  I think I'll make a pen drawing based on this sketch some day.



Turns out I'm farther behind than I thought, so to keep this blog post at a reasonable length I'll catch up some more in a day or two.




Sunday, January 24, 2016

Back to the Classroom

It's become kind of a thing for me now, attending a weekly class during winter.  Since I work full time it's hard to work attend one of those week long workshops put on by professional artists, usually in another state, which means traveling time and expenses to boot.  So, instead I find a local artist I like who holds classes on a weeknight.  Last winter I attended classes with Candace Rideout  Getting input from a more advanced artist can be very helpful and keep you from falling into a rut.  After a while it's easy to miss fundamental issues that could be resolved to make your art that much better. 
Something as simple as repetitious patterns can seem invisible until someone else points them out.  Another advantage to attending classes is the opportunity to meet other student artists and feed off of each other's energy, everybody has something unique and valuable to contribute.  This winter I started attending classes with Susan Jarvis.  I've attended classes with Susan in the past but it's been over two years, I decided it would be worthwhile to go back.  This painting is the result;

art painting landscape mountain aspen tree autumn fall foliage

"Kings of Autumn"

Acrylic, 24" X 12" on 3/4" deep cradled panel
Original - $265



While the reference photo was mine, taken in the Uinta Mountain Wilderness near Mill Hollow and the composition was mine Susan helped me tweak the painting to help me make it the best I can make it.  All those little things can add up to make a much stronger overall impact.





Sunday, January 3, 2016

Some Ten Minute Sketches

Here are the last few ten minute sketches, all in pen this week;

art sketch pen ink truck Chevy flatbed vintage derelict
This 1930 Chevy flatbed truck is part of a monument on Main Street, Coalville, Utah

art sketch pen ink landscape rural farm open land
I made this sketch to specific proportions as an exploration for a possible painting.

art sketch pen ink truck flatbed Ford abandoned
I don't remember specifically where I took the photo of this 1946 Ford flatbed truck, I think it was somewhere west of I-15 in Utah County.