Expressive Watercolor

Watercolor Sketch by Kiah Kiean

I frequently check out the Urban Sketchers Blog for inspiration since I find the work to be so fresh and unassuming. In doing so, I came across the work of artist, Kiah Kiean, whose work has qualities that are so luscious, they inspire me to sketch more, myself.

In my watercolor monotype class, I encourage my students to experiment with the natural properties of watercolor: the way the pigments in the paint interact, the way the water acts on the work surface (in my class it's plexiglass), and effects that can be achieved only with water-based media.

The work above is not a monotype, rather it's an example of one of the most expressive street sketches that I've seen, full of energy, movement, vibrancy and texture. I find this work to be very inspiring as I'm drawn to the contrasts in color and tone while being engaged by the intensity of energy and willingness to use unexpected color splashes for excitement which adds even more to the scene.

In my class, we are experimenting with powdered natural pigments mixed with gum arabic in addition to watercolor paint applications to the monotypes. Some of the effects seen in the sketch above are achieved with the "pigment washes" that we create. If interest is indicated, I can discuss the pigment experiments more fully in a future post.

UPDATE: If you're interested in splatter illustration art, you should check out the work of Ralph Steadman who is a pioneer of this technique.

My trip to the Grand Tetons and Yellowstone

Quick sketch from my visit to the Grand Tetons last week.

I visited Yellowstone National Park and the Grand Tetons last week and it was really beautiful. The sky was cloudless during most of my stay there and the temperature rarely went above 73 degrees according to my rental car's thermometer. During the day the sky was bright blue and windy for a couple of days leaving me mercifully bug-free during the windiest of times on the trail.

I tried to visit as many places as I could during my week there and I took the opportunity to explore as many different hiking trails as I could discover. The terrain changes vastly from the Tetons up to Yellowstone where thermal areas seem everywhere. Hence the proliferation of geysers that draw the crowds (like Old Faithful). Below is a pic I took of the "Grand Geyser" which goes off every 8-9 hours or so. I was lucky to catch it when I did.

Grand Geyser, Yellowstone National park

I also saw alot of buffalo along the roadside as well as deer, antelope and even a wolf. It was good to see animals in their natural element and not harassed or imprisoned by self-serving humans.

On one of my hikes I saw a moose with her two calves and on another hike, an antelope being pursued by a coyote. The antelope came bounding out of the woods, up the hill from me and ran down the hill, crossed my path not 5 feet from me and then disappeared down the hill. By the time the coyote arrived at the top of the hill, the antelope was long gone and the coyote turned around after seeing that it was only me left on the hillside. It all happened quite fast and I had no time to take pix.

Buffalo along the road in Yellowstone

I loved taking long hikes away from the crowds and was able to do a 9 mile hike up into Cascade Canyon and back. The trailhead for the canyon was most easily reached by taking a ferry across Jenny Lake. It was a long and beautiful hike. Lots of waterfalls and this was where I saw the moose and her calves.

Waterfall along the Cascade Canyon trail

Cascade Canyon Trail

Sketching at the Farm

I've been going to the local farm alot lately sketching new subjects and compositions for upcoming work. It's an exciting time there now since it seems all the animals have had children and these babes are running all over the place.

And I love to visit the donkeys who are always so expressive in their body language and are usually pretty active. The larger of the two donkeys walked over to a spot in front of me and plopped down on the ground there. He then put his head down and looked at me in a way that was reminiscent of the way my dog lies down and watches me to see what I'm going to do next. It's an endearing pose and I was inspired to capture it in this sketch.

Usually I use Micron pens and watercolor since that is the most portable but lately I've been using pen and ink for sketching. It's not as convenient to schlep the ink bottles and pen nibs/handles but I love the feel of the pen tip gliding on the paper with very little drag. The Micron pens don't move as smoothly on the paper.

A note about sketching

Sketching is one of my favorite activities though I don't do it as often as I'd like (or should). There is something exciting about the spontaneity of the drawing regardless of whether a close likeness is achieved. In fact, the freshness and lack of meticulousness of the drawing can exude a magical quality that sometimes is missing in more labored and refined works.

I love to see other people's sketchbooks almost as much as (and sometimes more than) seeing their finished pieces. It is revealing and very personal to see how someone draws in "real time" on-site while the event or situation is happening. I find it infinitely more interesting when museum and gallery shows include drawings and sketches of the artists that are featured as well as their finished works.

There is a book that has come out that I am really looking forward to seeing. It's called, An Illustrated Life: Drawing Inspiration From The Private Sketchbooks Of Artists, Illustrators And Designers by Danny Gregory. Danny Gregory has written several books mostly dealing with the art of sketching and I am an avid reader and fan of his blog and several of his books. You can see his blog at http://www.dannygregory.com/.