I do love a good crane! And layers of old and new in the city. Camden street is a great location for that jumble of shapes. I haven't used watercolour in my sketches in quite a while, as I'm using a Stillman & Birn Epsilon sketchbook - great for line work and tempera stick, but buckles too much with water.
I never get to sketch magnolias in real life. They come and go so quickly. Plus, it's still bloody freezing here in mid-March. Always feel sorry for the Texas majorettes at the St Patrick's day parade here in Dublin!
But Suhita had lovely photos for us to work from during one of her monthly sessions. Like everyone else in the group, I feel I'm getting bolder with my materials. Tempera sticks and Stabilo Woodies. Can't go wrong with these!
Plus I'm still exploring working to the edge of the page, as part of Liz Steel's Patreon group.
Three weeks back from Cill Rialaig, and this is my first time going back to watercolour and to the many photos I took. It's like my brain is needing time to process the experience before I can translate it into paintings. And also, I've been busy since. Ranelagh Arts Exhibition for Dublin Sketchers, One Week 100 People, visiting my mother, catching up with videos from Geoff Allen's class on Vivify, and everyday life of course. I went too dark again in my clouds. And, although I thought the paper was still damp enough for me to add more paint, it dried unevenly. It was quite warm in my little studio. More practice needed!
Each portrait is the time of a song. I'm loving pencils and crayons these days. As the days get warmer, I will get back to watercolour. Soon.
I found it too cold to sketch outside. Some of the ladies are 10 years older than me, and they don't seem to feel the cold like I do. Irish women don't feel the cold. So I decided to go inside the Ballsbridge library. It is a Carnegie library, like many in Ireland. I found a great spot on the first landing, looking out the window. This was my view. I drew from edge to edge, inspired by Liz Steel's theme for the month of March. And when I got home, I used a Posca marker to paint a bit of sky, which was blue on that day (still cold though). I'm working in a Stillman&Birn sketchbook. It's not an alpha or beta. Can't remember which it is, but the paper is quite glossy and smooth. Lovely for pen drawing. But not good for watercolour. So, tempera sticks and poscas to the rescue when I want an area of colour. The sketch with the chairs was my warmup. I drew the chair shapes with tempera sticks and drew everything then with a Sailor fude on top. Added some Neocolor for background, then Posca on top.
