I have submitted my entry in for the Blarney Books and Art Biblo Prize.

I enter each year, not to win, but to be involved and support Jo at Blarney Books in Art, which is in Port Fairy, a few hours from Melbourne, This is its 14th year, staying the same but changing slightly over the years. This year you pay the entry fee and receive a random book title of an Australian book published recently. You then creatively interpret the book in any format.

I first read my allocated book “The Three Burials of Lotty Kneen: Travels with my grandmother’s ashes” – looking for inspiration along the way. I always have in mind to draw in a book, because that is what I do, draw in books. However, initially I was going to draw these on separate watercolour sheets but went back to my comfort zone of drawing in the book. I don’t have to worry about leaving margins, matt board, framing, and D-rings. Every entry goes on the online exhibition and 100 get chosen to be an onsite exhibition, and there are winning categories, However as I mentioned I enter to be involved, not to win a prize.

Here are my initial steps.

“The Three Burials of Lotty Kneen: Travels with my grandmother’s ashes” is about Krissy Kneen’s search for herself.  When her grandmother dies, Krissy sets out with a box containing her grandmother’s ashes, intending to trace her life and perhaps locate some remnants of her family. The book is about identity, belonging, love, family, the search for truth. It is a mixture of memoir, travelogue, fable, myth and recipes.

 I was inspired by the recipes of Jota and Medames of Slovenia and Egypt in the books and also the place of food in the finding of family. The author’s relationship is that “food is beautiful. Food Is art and for me, as for my grandmother, food is the primary way to express love.”

I drew on pages of the book that have the recipes, with watercolour pencil. The description of the individual ingredients to make a recipe are drawn and these are the parts that make up a whole.

Jota in Slovenia

I quickly discovered how much water the paper would take with my watercolour pencils. I draw, add colour and then add water to the page. I had to add the colour, (not with layers I usually use with watercolour paper), and a bit of water to move it around and increase intensity of colour in small areas. I could then go in and add details such as a hard line. But looking at the back of the page I can see it is buckled with water.

I could not add any more colour or water to the page.

Medames in Egypt

I forgot to take photos, so this is the finished page.

See my previous year’s entries at 2021 2020 2019 2018

Sketching at the Queen Victoria markets in Melbourne was organised by Amy Diana of Nature Journal Club. It had been a night and morning of intense rain, which cleared up in the city by the time we met. It may have kept some sketchers at home, but also marketgoers. That meant that it was relatively quiet. Lthere were lots of locals doing their shopping and tourists too.

The idea was to look at the fruit and vegetable stands in one section and choose a few items to bring back to a shared table to sketch. We made our selections in 30 minutes and then 2 hours sketching, chatting, and drinking coffee. You can see our table layout above (thanks Amy for taking the great photo). Raw vegetables are a great nature sketch subject. They stay still and you can observe closely, move them around, or cut them open ti investigate further.

These were all sketched on location, except for the peas.

All in watercolour pencil of course. I had planned to complete them at home, or add a bit more, but ran out of time and focus. I have moved on to other projects.

However I did purchase some quail eggs to sketch later and keep the eggs once used.

I was prompted to film another live sketch, after my sketching a coffee cup two weeks ago.

The aim is to show you how I sketch with watercolour pencils, rather than explaining in words on the page.

This time, my second filming attempt was a bit more organised, but I have a steep learning curve to go. I figured out how to rotate the video this time. The phone sits in the bracket at the top, face up. I pressed Camera and then Time-lapse, and then started sketching.

I had chosen my subject – one I have sketched many times before – vegemite on toast. Yes, I lather it on! I waited for the toast to cool, so that the butter would not melt. I chose the watercolour pencil colours that I knew I would use and sharpened them all. These are all Faber Castell Albrecht Durer watercolour pencils:

• Black
• Burnt Umber
• Walnut
• Payne’s Grey
• Brown Ochre
• Burnt ochre
• Light Cadmium Yellow
• Ivory

it is a Staedler sharpener

The brushes are my tiny brush and my medium brush. I have no idea of the sizes. I have a larger brush and a bigger brush (a 6 ??? ) that I use at home. Out and about I would use my Medium tip Kuretake Waterbrush.

Filming this time, I felt very self-conscious as to my hand movements: of how many times I changed pencil colour, my hand movements across the page. I was questioning myself whether this is what I would do if I was not filming? The answer, maybe not quite, but close to. I filmed the first video and realised that my hand dominated most of the page, and added the second piece of toast.

I hope that this gives you an insight as to my approach and method of using watercolour pencils

Things you may note

• Mixing the colours –

– for the Vegemite I sketched on the page with Black and Walnut on the page before adding the water. Knowing your colours and what they will do when water is added and how they mix is great.

– mixing off the tip of the pencils – Black and Walnut – a method to add colour to the when the page was already wet. If I had drawn on the page it would not have gone on smoothly, clumping and not spreading

• adding from the tip of the brush

• using the brush on the page

-dragging on the page to pull the colour across and spread it. It will get lighter as it spreads and you run out of pigment to

-stippling on the page – not dragging, but just adding a little water can intensify a colour and you can move it around a little.

I hope this gives you some ideas. This is just how I use watercolour pencils. Let me know if you have any questions. I would love to know any new things that you learnt from this.

One day I will film and use this out and about Urban Sketching so that you can look over my should there too.

on the way there – my usual travel sketching

Urban Sketching

Who are Urban Sketchers ? Urban Sketchers is a global community of sketchers dedicated to the practice of on-location drawing. We share our love for the places where we live and travel. There are regional chapters aroudn the world !

This weekend we were invited to to sketch with the Albury En Plein Air group. About 25 of us got together over a weekend. It is a bit of a journey from Melbourne so I made it a long weekend. We all arrived and left at different times and organised our own accommodation. Some of us caught up at some meals.

A lot of organisation had gone into the planning of the weekend. It was relaxed and easy going, with the opportunity to sketch in many places wirh diffferent people. We had a schedule of starting time and catch up times. However it had been pouring rain all week and the organiser had back up plans all the way. Thankfully the sun shone for two days and we could sit out.

I spent time sketching with differnet groups of interesting people. Some of us talked alot ! We all come from different art backgrounds and use different art mediums , both in our usual practice and on the day.

Albury has an amazing variety of historic buildings from many eras, even just along the main street Dean Street. I could have sketched for a week !

Gregg had also organised a catchup as a group on Saturday at a local Art shop and gallery Art Parts Fine Art Supplies. When we get together as a group at the end of a session we have a throwdown. This is where everyone puts their skechbook or loose sheet of paper out. of what they did that morning/ afternoon This is where go get to see what everyone has done. I think that it is a very important part of an urban sketchers event as everhone gets to see all the very different styles people have. It is very important for new people to the group (or to sketching) to realise that everyones art is different and and no two are alike. It is great experience for anyone hesitant about sketching in public or joining a group. AND we always take a group photo !

dinner

A few of us went out to dinner on Friday night, so of course I sketched it It is not an urban sketch as it is not sektched in context. Thers is no story being told here of the surroundings, or as a record of time and pplace, I could have sketched the restaurant surroundings and staff, to tell a story.

I have many different sketching themes and many of them are stand alone obects. They have a story but I dont tell it in my sketc,

I went sketching at Melbourne Zoo last week.

As you can see from the photo below, it was a beautiful day of blue sky and sunshine.

A few weeks ago I wrote a blog post with hints and tips for sketching at the Zoo, based on my previous visits. I plan to visit regularly and let other Melbournians know when I am going. On this day, artist Tatiana joined me. We sketched and talked at the giraffe enclosure and then went our own ways til we left, each of us very happy with our day.

I spent over two hours at the Giraffe and Zebra enclosure. There are three giraffes and four zebras. They were up close most of the time, but not always. They would move around eating from the different food baskets in the trees. Most of the time I stayed in one place, instead of walking up and down to follow them.

zebra

I moved into the Australian section. There was one koala I could see and sketch. He was sleeping. All of the visitors passing behind me were excited to see a giraffe but did not stay long as he was sleeping, Last time I was here, they were both VERY lively,

and also the Tasmanian Devil. He was sleeping in the sun, near the fence, but moved his head (but did not change his body position) around a few times. He would return to one of a few positions.

At the giraffes when there was a Keeper Talk. SO busy.

It was school holidays and I knew it would be busy. I was there from 9:00am til after 1:00pm . I should have left at 12:00pm when I started to feel tired. That is the entire reason for becoming a Zoo Member, I can come and go whenever I wish. In hindsight, this was the only thing I would have done differently. And perhaps not sketched in the sun for so long. I had a hat, long sleeves and sunburn cream, and drank lots of water.

on last sketch at the Reptiles. It was crowded and warm inside. I was tired.

On a closing note. I started out the day, sketching on the tram. Fortunately, in doing this first sketch in my everyday sketchbook, I realized it was a day that I felt like doing detail. That set my tone for the day.