My kitchen

I was really dreading this assignment - I like quick sketches, and I'm not good with detail. So Tommy Kane's class in Sketchbook Skool was tough for me. Tommy Kane's specialty is slow drawing, not so much in how slowly his pen runs on the page, but in the amount of detail he includes in every drawing - every brick of a building, every jar on his kitchen counter. I wasn't sure I was going to have the patience for this.

But good student that I am, I stuck to it. I procrastinated for a few days, then settled on a spot in the kitchen I was happy to draw. BB placed masking tape on the floor so I could set my chair in exactly the right spot, and then I could not put it off any longer!

Once I started, I got lost into it, losing track of time (although I don't think I spent the required 3 hours - maybe 2, including the watercolour layers, which is a record for me). And I'm glad I did it. Whether this becomes my style, I doubt it, but I feel if I could do this, I can draw anything!

Two things that I will take away from this class:

1. What I found particularly useful was how Tommy started his drawing, with a simple rectangle for the front of his cooker, from which every line, angle and proportion was derived. Yes, there are wonky lines, yes, some items are way too small or way too big (I won't tell you which), but the overall drawing somehow works. Well, I think so, at least. And I'm not fishing for compliments here!
2. I also found it useful to see how Tommy added layer upon layer of watercolour to build up the strength of the colours. Having done watercolours for years, you'd think I'd know all about glazing, but there is a difference between reading about something and seeing it with your own eyes. Somehow, it clicked with me.

And this drawing also serves as a "portrait of the artist", as I drew and painted the reflections of my legs and the chair in the drawers.

First stage: drawing - with a black Uniball Fine Line pen. These pens are lovely writers but I had never thought to use them for drawing. But they are waterproof and fade-proof. And if they are good enough for Tommy Kane, they are good enough for me!

Second stage: first layer of watercolour. I'm using a tiny little Winsor & Newton set, very handy for outside sketching and for holidays, it's so portable. And a waterbrush (which saves you having to carry a jar with water, again, ideal for going out of the workshop into the world).

Final stage (as above): with a few extra layers of watercolour to bring out the colour in my beautiful kitchen cabinets!