An Old Autumn Tree

Time away from the blog has told me: 

I needed to get back to my true purpose:

To remember why I draw.

I had gotten distracted, 

starting to think that it was 

about showing others, forgetting

my internal need for 

observing, recording, reflecting,

When I'm in my personal process,

knowing that I'm not obligated to show everything,

then I can also choose to share.

Phew! 

I sketched the tree out the window during breakfast

at my favorite bed & breakfast in Bar Harbor.

After, I had a lovely sketch walk 

along one of the carriage roads, 

with a friend,

a friend who is more familiar 

with what's happening in nature

than I am. 

We would stop, she would point out

what she was seeing,

give explanations,

while I sketched & wrote down her quotes. 

I too was in the mode of stopping & noticing.

Very very wonderful, a gift,

at this time of year when there is so 

much variety & change.

Autumn Changes

Changes as October hurries on. 

The leaves, blow & fly these days. 

Trees are  are partially dressed, 

arms & fingers revealing themselves more each day. 

Above, a sketch based partly on a summer photo 

of Somes Sound, Mount Desert Island, 

and partly (mostly) on memory. 

In the scene above, the trees are still

wearing their September coats. 

Completely from memory, 

that high spot I described 2 posts ago, 

on my way East, Augusta to Belfast by the horse farm.

PS. I replaced the sketch that was originally 

in the previous post.

Do scroll down to check it out...

A sketch of a sketch, the original served 

as a good reference for this one.

My own changes:

Creating more from memory,

 looking into my mind more.

I feel the change coming on of moving inward,

to a more private place. 

I have the intention to not post here for awhile...

On verra, we shall see...

I am hearing: "Follow your Heart," 

express your authentic self,

in the midst of so many distractions out there.

Change of Scene at the Bookstore

After my university class in the "big city" of Augusta, 

I enjoy going to Barnes & Noble. 

I like to do a tour of the store & then 

relax with a latté in the café 

while going over class notes.

Yesterday 2 women were loudly discussing POLITICS 

loudly in the café:Ack! Serenity disturbed! 

So I took my cup to a chair across from the art section. 

The change of scene had a marvelous effect. 

I never would have thought to go there 

without this disturbance! 

I ended up receiving a flow of art ideas 

for my upcoming work, 

& while there, grabbed a quick sketch. 

Change of scene: A simple tool 

for making the most of a moment.

 Profitez-en bien!

PS (I replaced the sketch that was here previously with a revised version. A sketch of the sketch...)

Autumn Trees Shout Out!

My twice weekly commute to French class 
has been more enchanting than ever.

Each time I see different mixes of colors 
along a 40 mile stretch of road: 

Through woods, by lakes, next to fields & farms,

with distant small round top mountains 
to the north, east and south.

Heading East just as you come to 
the hilltop Seahorse Farm,
distant views emerge, of Penobscot Bay, Blue Hill,
and the hills of Mount Desert Island,
while peaceful horses graze 
in rolling pastures to your right.

Wednesday, 
I finally stopped at a little lakeside State Park
 to do some sketching.

The only other person there, 
under a shaded pavillion was a watercolor painter. 
It was understood
that we would not chat but just paint & draw.

Such intensity,

such vibrancy,
 these hardwoods shout out their beauty,
with arms reaching out to me, and to the sky.
Each spot along the road is different.  
Some places are in full color,
 others have faded, 
others have more evergreens.
Still other hadwoods are only beginning 
to change from their summer greens.

This last shout out of the leaves as they depart is festive.
 I am in the autumn of my life, "golden years" they say.

It does seem to be filled with days of brightness,
(as well as soft fog and grays.) 

Upcountry Fairs

In "big city" Portland, 

my predominant means of viewing art work 

was in privately owned galleries. 

Here, I prefer outdoor Fairs & Farmers' Markets, 

where local artists & artisans

set up their booths alongside 

harbors, rivers, or in town squares. 

Part of the fun is strolling outdoors, 

 chatting with vendors & other folks. 

Great places for sketchbook journaling!

Above, a summer Art Fair in Bucksport, 

along the Penobscot River.

Taking Sketch Notes at the Common Ground Fair

In 2014 & 2015 I did photo blog posts of the Common Ground Fair, one of my all time favorite events.

 But this year I quick sketched, & truly Sketchbook Wandered. 

It's probably what I love doing best, even though it is, well, sketchy.

We arrived early. Even waiting in the line outside the gate was enjoyable.

 The book is small, the lines are fast. I quickly add color later,

but I write/jot down some color names while sketching.

Recently, while seeing seeing some very refined & illustrative sketchbook journaling, 

I'd started to question & wonder about my process. 

But Saturday I came back to myself, doing what is most natural to me. 

This note-taking is my best way to put me in touch with my experience.

Seasonal still lifes are everywhere, 

especially at the Farmer's Market stalls.

One of the highpoints was The Gawler Family Band (Google them!). Oh, the JOY that they radiate!

There were 6 of them this year, the Mama & the Papa, the 3 musical daughters & the musical son in law.

 And we got to join them in sing alongs, musical folk tradition at it's best. 

Later on some of the family would be leading a work song workshop 

while shucking garlic.

For the first time I got to see the Vegetable Parade, a tradition since 1990!! 

People of all ages wearing exquisite hand sewn vegetable costumes! 

It's the best parade I've ever seen!! 

Sometimes just a quick second is all it takes to capture some of the magic, in this case "garlic braids". 

There is so much more to show & tell, but for now I'll say,

What a way to celebrate together & to greet Harvest Time & Autumn!!

On the Edge of the Town & the Sea

The sweet Gazebo down by The Harbor Walk in Belfast.

(it's my impression, not realistic...)

I sketched near "The Boathouse", (Steamboat Landing) yesterday, mid-day. 

This public park is the site of Harbor Fest, Weiner Fest, the Celtic Celebration,

 Extreme Frisbee (previous post), Arts in the Park, Summer Evening Concerts & more. 

But on this day there weren't many people & the boats in the harbor were resting quietly. 

It was calm except for an enthusiastic group from New York who kept cheering 

other people from New York who kept arriving at the Boathouse.

I think they were building something in the Boathouse garage 

while they laughed & shared stories, 

including stories about the old days in NYC.

As I left I thanked "my bench",  this public bench,

 at the edge of this public park,

at the edge of the river & bay, on the edge of the town.

On the edge of the town, which is my town, Belfast, Maine.

The French Breakfast at The Language Exchange

My old school in my old city,

 The Language Exchange in Portland

 just celebrated 20 years of the weekly French Breakfast,

 Le petit déjeuner (no English allowed!). 

I was so sad that I couldn't be there for the party,

but I sent a birthday card.

My first petit déjeuner, 15 years ago, 

marked the debut, the beginning, 

of a new era in my adult life: 

My French studies.  

Today, they are still such an important part of my life!

Merci, Valérie, et Bon anniversaire!

Sweet Home Belfast Farmer's Market

At the Belfast Farmer's Market, as summer begins greeting autumn.

I arrived early & while watching vendors set up 

a woman near me said she arrives early each week

 in order to get in line to buy her elderly dad 

his favorite loaf of bread, before it runs out,

from Plymouth Pond Farm & Bakery. 

Eventually I also joined the line & while waiting

I started the above sketch.

I hung out at the market for about 4 hours. 

In between sketches I chatted 

with various friends & acquaintances 

at "my" centrally located picnic table.

Toward noon there were very few baked goods left 

at Plymouth Pond Bakery (sketch above).

Belfast Farmer's Market:

Less 

movement,

less quantity, 

less variety, 

less stimulation,
less noise 

fewer crowds

than at my old 

Portland Farmer's Market.

More 

conversations, 

more greetings,
more space,

more tranquility.

Same 

colorful, homegrown

produce & products
& vendors who smile as they
talk about their process & products
& as they exchange money
with people like me who also smile
& fill straw & cloth bags.

There was a time when I lived here 

but longed to be there.

But recently I have come Home 

to my small Belfast town,

including its Farmer's Market.

To market, to market, 

(not buying a pig)

Home again, home again

Jiggedy Jig.

Acadia Accordion Sketchbook 2

 

It was still high tourist season on Mount Desert Island but a friend & I drove over anyway. 

We found a few quiet places for sketching.

  I added 2 more panels to my Acadia accordion sketchbook (Moleskine). 

(first featured in a post on June 20)

There are still many blank pages to fill. 

And hopefully many more occasions to visit this beloved place.

What are the places to which you love to return? 

Trying New Materials

Trying new tools: Rigger brush (love it!) 
Pentel brush pen
Arranging mini palettes in miniature homemade paint boxes 

(more on that soon)
...and...

Letting ideas flow for my February 2017 art show

at The Language Exchange in Portland.

Color Mixing Charts: Photos

I'm in a process of exploring color via my watercolors.

Everywhere I go, I see color mixing charts,

including at the Deering Oaks Farmer's Market.

As Jeanne Dobie says in her book (previous post), colors sing!!

Studying: Sketching and Watercolor Painting

From my small Art Learning Sketch Journal

For learning about drawing, sketching & watercolor, there are some amazing videos & books out there! Teoh Yi Chie, sketch artist, covers a wide range of related subjects with great depth. I learned from one of his tutorials about the book, Making Colors Sing by Jeanne Dobie. With it I am exploring the nature of individual watercolor paints in terms of transparency to opaqueness & how to mix colors. 

Anne-Laure & her site "Watercolor sketching" with demonstrations is wonderful. I learned about her through multi-talented Blog artist, La Table de Nana, who is also generous in sharing resources. 

How the Internet has changed the nature of studying & learning! The educational systems of just a few decades ago were more limited. However, my university experiences without the Internet but with live people & campuses were also very rich. Being immersed in a culture of learning is invaluable. Learning how to learn.

What I wish is that universities in the US were free & equally available to all young people, 

as they are in some countries. But that is another subject...

Still Life with Toys

I'm grateful to have things in my home that make me happy.

(I'm grateful to have a home, for that matter). 

I recently had a realization of the fact that 

we didn't have many things when I was a child,

and that it wasn't just a matter of lifestyle, but of necessity.

My refugee parents had arrived 

just a few years before I was born.

We had a home, food, clothes (hand me downs & 2nd hand) 

& I did have a few toys which I loved so much.

I am able to have more these days.

But I try ( I try) to purchase new things

with care & moderation...

Nature Sketch Journaling

Inspired by some books about Nature Journaling which I had brought to our Sketchers' Group, I found myself recently drawn to a chaotic, even junky field of "weeds" during a foggy morning walk. The fog moistens colors & guides my eyes to objects up close, the books remind me to observe small  things. I was astounded by the Queen Anne's Lace, & by the changes she is going through as we move increasingly quickly toward autumn.

Having my portable watercolor set-up more figured out, it is easier to stop spontaneously to sketch. The water bottle hangs in a bag at my side, the small watercolor box rests on the book. As I walk, the book & pen stay out of the bag, prepared for sudden stops. 

 In Season: A Natural History of the New England Year states that the myth that New England has 4 distinct seasons is not true, because there are "as many seasons as one wants to make of them, innumerable happenings that run into each other". Changes are varied: matings, bloomings, migrations, emergences, hibernations, deaths...The Queen Anne's Lace was showing a number of simultaneous changes: One disc was slightly curling in like an upside down umbrella, others were closed up in round cage like forms with dark burgandy seeds arranged in round patterns...

Clare Walker Leslie's Keeping a Nature Journal is a "bible" on nature sketch journaling. 

All of her books are artistically & scientifically pleasing & inspiring. 

Hannah Hinchman is another guru of the nature, or illuminated journal. Leslie was one of her mentors. Hinchman talks about the magic transformation that occurs while walking & observing in A Life in Hand:

"In the early stages of a walk, colors seem only pleasant & ordinary. 

If I am outdoors long enough...all the colors begin to become more brilliant & distinct..."

Frederick Franck, in The Zen of Seeing:

"For the awakened eye, nothing remains a mere thing. It reveals itself to be, 

instead of an object, an event, in the timeless abyss of time. " 

Queen Anne's Lace, on my foggy morning definitelly became a magical event!

 Welcome to New Zealand, meant for young readers, is super inspiring with various "walks" & ways to organize observations. Lovely, colorful handlettering is an integral part of the pages. 

Clare Walker Leslie:

 "Nature offers us a thousand simple pleasures~plays of light & color, frangrances in the air, the sun's warmth on skin & muscle, the audible rhythm of life's pull & push~all for the price of merely paying attention."