Friday, June 28, 2019

Draw What You Love: My New Neighbor

I have fallen in love with my new backyard neighbor:
A big hanging nasturtium. 
(En français, capucine. Po polsku, Nasturcya) 
Each day it grows new buds & blossoms. 
 There are at least 45 at this moment!
 This was not my usual very quick sketching. 
Slower, more left brain consciously accurate. 
I chose only one part of the abundant plant~ a vignette. 
You might call this a study-sketch.
I used pencil, even erasing & re-drawing. 
I was deepening my understanding of individual blossoms & leaves
and how they related to one another. 
My eyes were feasting on the colors.
By the time I finished the sketch, a gentle rain had fallen,
and configurations had changed.
I started with a preliminary contour sketch to help me focus.
I knew I couldn't draw the whole plant. 
The contour in ink was the introduction, a greeting. 
My gaze danced in & around blossoms & leaves, 
getting a feel for rhythms, lines & forms. 

While painting, I absent-mindedly tried out some colors
on this page as it was the nearest paper in sight.
And near the bottom, I seem to have been exploring 
some initial lines of nearby lupines.

The wonderful effect of drawing, 
beside the visual & tactile pleasure, 
is the concentration, the focus, the calm that occurs in me.
I always go back to my early guiding principle,
as presented by Frederick Frank, The Zen of Seeing:
Seeing/Drawing as Meditation, back in the early 70's.

20 comments:

  1. When I read your words describing your eyes dancing in and out around the blossoms I know exactly how you mean! So much to see our hungry eyes bounce all over, so exciting , the words of a true love of painting, I know this feeling well, your painting is beautiful, the colours are so rich, it’s wonderful!

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  2. LOVE THIS! LOOSE AND FULL OF COLOR!! GREAT JOB!!!!! I LOVE NASTURTIUMS AND YOU REALLY CAPTURED THEIR COLOR AND THE JOY OF THEM!

    Re Smallies --- The IDEA of them came from a friend - Fay -- she called hers 'Littles' -- but to me, they are just 2" x 2" -- and thus -- Smallies - so yes - my own title.

    And no -- no ink lines -- if I'm doing a splash and splatter -- I rarely use ink unless I can't quite get the negative painting to define the areas I need better defined ... thanks for asking.

    Hope you have a great weekend!

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  3. BTW, did you know the leaves and flowers are edible? They have a wonderful peppery taste!!! I grew them to add to my salads ... YUM!

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  4. Laurie, yes, our eyes dancing, bouncing, weaving...I feel so grateful to be able to experience this process..and grateful to see the process in you over at your blog...

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  5. Lin, Oh yes, the JOY and sheer celebration of nasturtiums! It's as if I'm discovering them for the 1st time in my life! And yes,the visual effects of nasturtiums in salads is stunning, though they are potent! Love our exchanges about this passion of sketching that we share!

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  6. Oh my...LOVE LOVE your words as well as the painting!!! Moving and heartfelt!! Great job! And oh my...Francks book(s) inspired my visual art too! My English prof recommended his works...fell in love with his drawings! I read many of his books...my favoite..Zen Seeing,Zen Drawing.

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  7. Summer in Maine. A feast for all the senses.

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  8. Hello, what a lovely plant. The flowers are beautiful. Your watercolor sketch is lovely, well done. Enjoy your day, happy weekend!

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  9. Beth, This nasturtium IS in our dear Maine, but the origin of our garden nasturtiums is a species native to Peru! Called Capucine in French because the floweer shape resemebles Capucine monks' hooded robes! Thanks to naasturtiums.wordpress.com ~Rita

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  10. Eileen, thanks, and happy weekend to you! You will no doubt observes some wonders of nature.

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  11. I am waiting for mine to bloom! I love this..all of it..
    I have followed a few quick tutorials on line..Chris Petri..and one..like Charles Reid..he takes part of a bouquet.like you did and I love that..go see I love them both♥
    Lots of the word love here lol;)

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  12. This is utterly beautiful! I've been away from the blog world far too long and LOVED being greeted by your beautiful paintings in my newsfeed. :)

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  13. Thanks for leaving a comment Alexandra! Glad my nasturtium greeted you, it is a friendly sort! I enjoy your whimsical drawings so much!

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  14. Dear Monique/Nana, Thank you! I will check out those sites. I so enjoy your love and passion over on your blog! And how you are always learning and developing! Rita

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  15. Your art and your descriptive words are lovely and charming..Gorgeous drawing and use of color!!!

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  16. I love this, Rita. It is incredibly beautiful and I really appreciated your sharing the technique of how you did this and how it varies from your other work. I adore nasturtiums and I can only imagine the visual joy of seeing this beauty every day. No wonder you had to paint it!

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  17. P.S. Haven't read Snail Eating -- now I'm intrigued! Thanks!

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  18. Lovely as always--what a pretty neighbor.

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Thank you for your comments! They mean a lot to me!