Sketchbook Tuesday :: I said I wouldn't

 I did buy three tomato plants this year. Even after last year's pitiful results. Inspired by a friend, I put them into large planters on our deck, the sunniest and warmest spot in our woodland yard. So far, so good. I have lots of green tomatoes now, only a couple have ripened. But I am hopeful.

right now

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 "right now" staying focused on the present, mindful and in the moment, an image from the week, that acknowledges the "right now".  If you would like to join me in this mindful weekly exercise, put a link in the comments for this post to share your "right now" image.

telling lies

7:56AM - WIP

colored pencil on museum board

6 x 6 inches

©Ann Thompson Nemcosky

No, it's not finished yet. But yes, it is getting closer. It has occurred to me while working on this that it's all a lie. The drawing that is. It's all about trying to make you believe something that isn't, and never was. You see, I have my reference photo, that I took when I was actually there. Yet the photo isn't really the moment. And to make it even further from the truth, I manipulate the photo on my computer - cropping, adjusting color, brightness, and contrast, until it no longer resembles what came straight from my camera. From there I make a print to use as inspiration for my drawing. Which is another step away from the actual moment of the scene. Yet my manipulation of the truth doesn't stop there. Will you still believe it's water if I make it just a little more greenish blue? Because I am really feeling turquoise for the water just because I like the way those colors work with the orange-ish sand. Which I exaggerated with just a little more color saturation. Because the orange is such a nice contrast to the blues of the wet sand. Not to mention that all of those foamy bits didn't really fall just that way, I am only trying to convince you about the foam and the movement of the surf, since you weren't actually there to see what exactly it looked like, at that moment. And sometimes shapes work better for the composition if they are moved around, or otherwise altered just a bit here and there. Looking at my drawing in progress on the computer screen does help me see where it needs more work. Where it needs to be more convincing. So it can, hopefully, be truer to the story it tells.

Oil painting has its limitations. 

We can't paint nature; it is all a big prevarication, but we have to tell a convincing lie. 

You can only make a sign language for sunlight.

~ Charles W. Hawthorne ~

Sketchbook Tuesday :: fly away

Late this spring and into early summer we have had all sorts of creatures making their home here at our little mountain cottage. First it was a mother mouse giving birth in her nest made inside my mostly new bag of potting soil. Yes, I was quite surprised to find her there with her brand new babies. Then we had a yellow jacket nest the size of a basketball underneath our front porch. And tucked under our back deck we hosted a nest of baby birds that we believed to be catbirds. Our back deck is a full story off the ground and a door from the garage leads outside under the deck. I discovered the bird nest one day quite by accident but believed it to be empty. When I went down a few days later with my camera I was startled to see little faces looking back at me. It wasn't long after that the babies left the nest to begin their lives in our yard and woods. Late every afternoon we hear their distinctive calls.

 When our house was full with out-of-town guests we took them up to Grandfather Mountain so that they could get a true mountain experience. It was hot and hazy, yet still the views were stunning. Up above everything. Almost like flying.

right now

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 "right now" staying focused on the present, mindful and in the moment, an image from the week, that acknowledges the "right now".  If you would like to join me in this mindful weekly exercise, put a link in the comments for this post to share your "right now" image.

What's on the drawing board

7:56AM - WIP

colored pencil on museum board

6 x 6 inches

©Ann Thompson Nemcosky

 

Here is an update on my latest colored pencil piece. This represents approximately 4 more hours, maybe 5, since I last posted. I know, I am terribly slow with these colored pencil drawings. But really, if I am completely honest with myself, that is one of the very reasons I enjoy doing them. As I am working from top to bottom in this piece, I am constantly revising as I go. So as a new area begins to develop, adjustments are made to previously drawn spaces, until finally, at the end, it all makes sense. Hopefully. I have just begun working on the foamy bits in the surf and already see that the wave needs more contrast. So it goes.

Summer has kept me occupied with so many things, especially lately, that my posting here has been a bit sporadic. We had a busy week with a houseful of guests that was loads of fun. Then my laptop wasn't playing nice with the internet and spent several days in a time out at the repair center. For these reasons I wasn't able to be online and missed posting and commenting. I do really appreciate all of your kind comments and feel my usual rhythm about to return any day now. Maybe.

right now

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 

 "right now" staying focused on the present, mindful and in the moment, an image from the week, that acknowledges the "right now".  If you would like to join me in this mindful weekly exercise, put a link in the comments for this post to share your "right now" image.

right now

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 

 "right now" staying focused on the present, mindful and in the moment, an image from the week, with no words or a few words, that acknowledges the "right now".  If you would like to join me in this mindful weekly exercise, put a link in the comments for this post to share your "right now" image.

Sketchbook Tuesday :: meeting Deborah

This past Saturday I had the wonderful opportunity to meet fellow artist and blogger, Deborah Lowe, of Making a Splash. We met at Cheap Joe's, looked at the art and talked art supplies, of course. Her energy, and love of color and line must have rubbed off a little as I found myself buying a set of Inktense pencils before leaving Cheap Joe's. Once home I put them to use with a pen and ink drawing of a few flowers from our yard.

It was such a treat meeting Deborah! And naturally, the paparazzi was on hand to record such a momentous event!