A Lifetime Isn’t Enough For The Beauty Of This World…

Mabel's

The last of the New Mexico road trip posts. A journal spread/watercolor of the front of Mabel's house from a shady adirondack chair one hot afternoon – pencilled onsite and finished in the studio. 

Mabel's-door

Mabel's front door…my comfort drawing in the midst of a week of stretching and experimentation with the pencil and looking and seeing in a different way.

River

An early morning retreat for drawing on the mighty Rio Grande while it was peaceful, quiet and cool. A little cross and it's reflection in the water. A watery memorial? Sun glinting.

Wall-of-work

Besides my little retreat to outline drawing (Mabel's door), I spent the week in Sas's Drawing as Discovery class really exploring other ways to draw.

Pencil-quad

Four exercises for seeing with a pencil…blind contour in the lower right hand corner…a quick gestural drawing of the same nest, apple and rock to it's left. A little more time for detail in the upper right hand corner. And finally a five minute drawing in the upper left. One pencil, looking for the both the volume and texture. Ditched the rock, added a horizon line.

Bed

A sunny morning in my solarium perch brought my trusty Faber-Castell pen to the creamy white page for a blind contour drawing of my bed.

Nude

And oh the figure drawing morning…difficult for me, not my favorite drawing activity. Looking for the volume and not the outline. Much easier when I switched it up and picked up a brush and some ink. With this drawing I finally felt like I was getting closer. Such a mystery.

Big

Approached this BIG piece of blank paper as a fencer would. Black gesso, brush in hand. Begin. Make a mark. Respond. Draw. Obliterate. Draw again. Some white gesso fencing. Add some pencil marks. Moments and movement caught in time. Satisfying. Freeing.

Map

I journaled along the way and as contemplation when I reached home base. The map of my summer rambles in the Land of Enchantment. Little photos and watercolors…

Santa fe spread323

…detailed borders, ephemera and lists…

Haikus324

…black and white photos and haikus. A shelf of bones…

Georgias-house-blog

…and reflections on my visit to Georgia O'keefe's house in Abiquiu. 

Postcard

An altered postcard for Consuelo and a bit of a poem from Mary Oliver…

"A lifetime isn't long enough for the beauty of this world and the responsibilities of your life. Scatter your flowers over the graves, and walk away. Be good-natured and untidy in your exuberance. In the glare of your mind, be modest. And beholden to what is tactile and thrilling. Live with the beetle, and the wind."

from: The Leaf and The Cloud.