Roz Wound Up

More Waiting Room Sketches

Above: Waiting room sketches. See below for details. Click on the image to view an enlargement.

Lately I've been having some shoulder "issues" so I go out with as light a bag as possible, often just a couple pieces of paper and a pen in my pocket! On this day I had some sheets of Folio torn to less than 6 x 8 inches. They were perfect for making quick sketches and on one I added some watercolor. When I got home later that day I glued them into my then current journal.

Don't give up sketching because you've got injuries! And if you have injuries, be sensible and carry less. You can still sketch. Think of the big picture—journaling the rest of your life.

Working with the Stabilo All Sketching People

Left: TV actor sketched with Stabilo All, used dry and then rubbed with my finger. Click on the image to view an enlargement.

I've written about using the Stabilo All several times. It's a watersoluble wax pencil. This time I used it dry and smeared it with my finger.

More People Sketches

Above: 9 x 12 inch page spread from the in-studio Fabriano Venezia Journal. Click on the image to view an enlargement.

I've been sketching a lot of people lately, in waiting rooms, on TV (as above) and at life drawing co-ops. (See some sketches from my recent visit to the Altered Esthetics costumed model drawing night here.)

I love changing what I'm using to get different effects. Above I was working with a Faber-Castell PItt Artist's Calligraphy pen. 

I'll have more people sketches up this week.

Koh-I-Nor Tricolor Pencil Sets

Left: Sketch using Koh-I-Nor Tricolor pencil. All of the colors in this sketch came out of one pencil with a multi-color lead. Click on the image to view an enlargement.

There have been kid's colored pencils with multi-colored leads for years. Now Koh-I-Nor has brought out Tricolor Pencils—their version of a multi-colored lead with what they refer to as top quality pigments. You can buy these pencils in open stock or in sets. (Note: these are NOT the jumbo pencils that are triangularly shaped. I'm describing regular pencils with round barrels.)

(Of course I bought mine at Wet Paint in St. Paul, where they have both sets and open stock. You can order from them or look on the internet. I am not connected to Wet Paint, I'm just a happy customer—who spends a lot of time there.)

The leads in the pencils I purchased in open stock were what I define as hard. They keep a nice point, they are a little brittle, but not overly so. They lay down a smooth line, but unlike many brands of "soft" colored pencils with wax or oil binders the color line is a bit wimpy. 

What is fun, however, is that each lead is made up of three colors of lead and at any given moment you'll wear the lead down to expose another fleck of color and that transition will show up in your drawings

I found that the lighter value pencils (ones with mixes of yellow and other high-key colors) were disappointing in trial because there wasn't a lot of variation in the color line. The same was true with some of the analogous color leads when those colors were all roughly the same value. I had the most fun working with pencils that had disparate colors in the leads.

While I find getting dark values with these pencils requires more pressure than I care to use (hence one of the reasons I prefer other lines of pencils) I do think these pencils are great for quick sketches like the one shown in today's post. I have three of these pencils in my life-drawing sketch kit.

A New Page on Roz Wound Up: Gouache Compendium

For folks who attended my free gouache demo tonight at Wet Paint and for anyone interested in finding a selection of posts about gouache—a place to start, since I write about it so much—I have created a page on this blog called, "Gouache Compendium." 

You will find the pages in a list in the left-hand column of the blog. The pages are listed alphabetically. You can also click on the title in the previous paragraph.

This was my way to consolidate information about the colors of Schmincke paint that I use, the brushes, and some of the most frequently asked about tips I give to people—in case I didn't remember to discuss them or in case I did remember to discuss them and people wanted to find the information again.

I want to thank Wet Paint for turning me loose on the unsuspecting painting public. I do want everyone to try gouache and they've been helpful in letting me spread the word.

And thank you also to all the people who came tonight and stood so patiently while I rattled on about my favorite medium. I appreciate your interest and patience. I hope that you got a sense of how versatile gouache is and that you will give it a go.

 

Classes for 2013 Are Being Set Up…

Above: Sewn-on-the-spine journal examples. This January's journal practice will make the 7.5  x 9.5 inch journal shown in the center (the sample has purple bookcloth). Students will paint their own decorative paper with color inks. Read below for more details. Click on the image to view an enlargement.

2013 is almost here, it's not too early to start thinking about learning new book arts skills. My teaching schedule for the beginning of the year is set. I hope that you will consider joining me for the following class offerings at Minnesota Center for Book Arts. This year's session of Journal Practice™ will focus on sketching in ink with a variety of exciting pen types. The multi-session nature of the class will allow you plenty of time for experimentation at home on a variety of exercises and continue to get feedback from the instructor. Regardless of your sketching skill level you will learn about inks and pens and papers in such a way that your practice can continue to change and grow. I will also be offering my 6-session color theory class which will help you understand how to approach color regardless of the medium in which you work. 

Journal Practice™: Sketching and Working with Ink

Saturday & Sunday, January 12-13, 2013; 10am-5pm
Plus three Mondays:  March 25, June 24, September 23, 7-9pm

$320 ($290 members) + $30 supply fee; EARLY BIRD: $260, expires 12/15
Certificate: 20 hours, Category D

All skill levels welcome (in binding and sketching).

Course Description: Make a hardbound sewn-on-the-spine journal covered with Japanese book cloth and painted paper you'll create in class using color inks. This 7.5 x 9.5 inch journal will become your workbook in which to explore different methods of working with ink. Begin your ink experimentation using a dip pen. The instructor will provide drawing exercises and tips that will enhance your sketching technique. Additional sessions explore working with brush pens and various types of felt-tipped art pens. Different papers will be sampled for work with ink. Journaling and observation techniques will be discussed in each of the sessions. (Dip pen is included in the supply fee; a list of recommended pens for future classes will be supplied at the first class—students may elect to work with pens they already own within each category of pen.)

Intro to Design: Color Theory for Book Artists

Six Mondays:  January 28, February 4, 11, 25, March 4, 11; 7-9pm
$195 ($175 members) + no supply fee*; EARLY BIRD: $155 expires 1/2

Certificate: 12 hours, Category A (fulfills design requirement)

All skill levels welcome

Course Description: In this class you will develop an understanding of color theory that will inform and enrich your book arts decisions. You'll feel more confident in your color choices, whether you are selecting papers, fabrics and foils for a structure, printing a fine edition, creating a series of prints, or painting an illustration or artist book.

The class will begin with an exploration of the mixing of colors using watercolor paints. (No painting experience is necessary—we are concerning ourselves with understanding pigments and color relationships.) There will be exercises for you to complete at home to fully understand the concepts.

Over the course of the lessons there will be lecture and discussion geared towards helping you work with the principles presented in a concrete way on a specific project. Each student will be encouraged to work through on a book arts project of his or her choice with direction from me and feedback from classmates.

Supply notes: All students will need to purchase a few sheets of 22 x 30 inch watercolor paper (which we will tear down), a size 8 watercolor brush, and either a 3-color or an 8-color set of watercolors for the initial lessons' homework exercises. (The 8-color set is recommended for students interested in illustration and printmaking.) A recommended paint list will be sent to registered students. Students are responsible for purchasing materials for their independent project.

If you don't have a current book arts project I will provide economical suggestions for students interested in working with the concepts, but who don't have a specific project in mind.

Come along and find out more about color and how to work with it in all your book arts projects—structures, illustrations, design, and printmaking. You'll learn how to work through the planning process of your book arts projects with confident color choices working for you.

Don't Forget the Free Gouache Demo on Monday, November 26, 2012

Above: Sketch of competitor on Survivor—pen and gouache on Gutenberg paper in a 6 x 8 inch handmade journal. Click on the image to view an enlargement.

Monday, November 26 from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. I'll be doing a free gouache demo at Wet Paint on Grand Ave. in St. Paul.

I'll begin at 5:30 demonstrating some exercises I think will help you get a feel for gouache. Then I'll progress through several painting approaches that I use.

I work with Schmincke gouache which is pigment with no opacifiers. This wonderful paint is perfect for all fine art applications, for visual journaling, for color sketching, you name it. Schmincke gouache can be used in thin translucent washes as well as heavier more opaque passages. 

If you've got questions about this medium Monday is your chance to see a bunch of approaches as well as take advantage of a great deal on Schmincke gouache. I hope you'll join me.

Let's End the Week with a Dog…Meet Maxwell

Above: Maxwell sleeping next to me on the sofa. Staedtler Pigment Liner on Gutenberg paper (6 x 8 inch journal 12 inch wide spread). Click on the image to view an enlargement.

Every so often a friend will leave me in charge of his or her dog. Gasp. I love it when that happens. Walking and sketching and walking and sketching. I get to have some dog energy in the house, all while having a life model.

Maxwell is a small rat terrier (wait maybe he's a Jack Russell I'll have to ask—I don't know a lot about little dogs!). You can't see it here because his blanket hides his mouth but he has a front tooth that sticks up outside his lip and gives him a bit of a sneer—he looks very jaunty, like a pirate (a fictional one, not a real pirate who might do you harm). 

His family was going out of town for the day so I nabbed him for two overnights, I mean really, why shouldn't they drop him off early and then not worry about him when they returned the next day after a long drive. Ha, cunning plan.

We had great fun. Despite being told he didn't like rain he was perfectly happy walking in the drizzling conditions of that weekend. He adapted immediately to the amenities here. He identified Dick as the soft touch within 30 seconds of meeting Dick, and they bonded over cheese. Mostly he cuddled with me and we went on adventure walks. It was delightful. And he was so well-behaved. When it was bedtime I told him to go into his crate and in he got. (Actually a couple times when I had to do something on the computer he got into his crate to rest happily too.) I was told he was a barker but only late one night when partying college students walked by did he "woof." "Thank you Maxwell," I called out from bed, and he was immediately silent. (Evidently if you don't say thank you he'll keep barking.)

I made a number of sketches of him while he was model in residence. I hope to do some paintings of him later this fall. But today I just wanted to share the memory with you. There is something so exquisite about small dogs with their tiny paws, and their elegant features. And you can pick them up and cuddle them so completely. And there is something delightful about the clicking of dog nails on the tile and wood floors—regardless the size of the dog.

MCBA Visual Journal Collective's November Meeting Wrap Up

Left: Ken Avidor showing a page spread in his journal—a drawing of his new home, the Depot in St. Paul. Click on the image to view an enlargement. See below for more details. Artwork ©Ken Avidor.

Monday at the November meeting of the MCBA Visual Journal Collective 19 artists showed up to swap materials they no longer had a use for and share what they have been working on in their journals.

Gwen Partin also shared a favorite book of hers with us—100 Creative Drawing Ideas, by Anna Held Audette. (I'll add this to our 2012 reading list.) Gwen liked the book because as a teacher it provides a lot of suggestions for exercises for her students.

In the first photo here you'll see Ken Avidor talking about his new home in St. Paul at the Depot. You can see lots of sketches from this new venue on Facebook, but if you aren't on Facebook check out Ken's postings on UrbanSketchers—TwinCities. There he and his wife Roberta (another talented artist) have been capturing the events and sights in St. Paul since their move this summer.

Right: Matt McIntosh shares a page spread in one of his journals showing a map of Minnesota and the research he did before he relocated here. This sparked a lively discussion and questions about our state cookie! Click on the image to view an enlargement.Artwork ©Matt McIntosh.

Matt McIntosh is a recent arrival from NYC. He shared several pages of his journals with the group. He is an adventuresome painter working in coffee and white out and other unusual items (I remember also honey and chocolate). 

Besides using unorthodox drawing and painting materials Matt writes obituaries for his art materials when they run out. He shared one about a tube of paint. They are accompanied by illustrations of the tool or material.

Left: Matt McIntosh shares a journal painting of his cat—he used paint and white out. Click on the image to view an enlargement. Artwork ©Matt McIntosh.

Mark Odegard brought several journals to share with the group on his first visit. He talked about his exploration of nature and the use of natural materials in his journals. (He uses 3M Super 77 spray to attach them.) He has traveled extensively and when traveling he uses smaller journals and works in pen, pencil and watercolor.

When asked if he makes his own journals Mark (who was one of the coordinators of the Minnesota Journal Project 2000 and helped bind all the books for that project) replied "I get a lot of pressure from Roz. I try to resist that. Binding is a whole other thing."

Left: Mark Odegard shares cutpaper and natural material paintings in one of his nature journals. Click on the image to view an enlargement. Artwork ©Mark Odegard.

Mark also likes to challenge himself in each new journal to take a different approach. He might work only in black and white in one journal, or only use shading and no lines in another. It keeps his approach fresh and his observant eye keen.

Jean Shannon was on hand to share her journal work (she also organized the swap). Recently she has come to rely on the Pentel Pocket Brush Pen as a favorite tool. It's rich black line is the perfect foil for her saturated use of color.

Right: Jean Shannon with her journal. Click on the image to view an enlargement. Art©2012 Jean Shannon.

Book artist Theresa Harsma shared a journal she is working it—an out of date calendar diary in which she is working with freeform doodles and drawings, exploring pattern and shape.

Left: Theresa Harsma's out of date calendar is the perfect book for exploration. Click on the image to view an enlargement. Art©2012 Theresa Harsma.

Artist Patty Scott spent almost a year in South Africa and has recently returned. She shared several journals from her time there. They included landscapes, cityscapes, portraits of the locals, and botanical drawings.

Right: Patty Scott shares a page of botanical drawings from her South African journals. Click on the image to view an enlargement. Artwork©2012 Patty Scott.

There were other artists visiting the group for the first time. Sadly the photos I took of their pages were too blurred to share here, but they were fun to see in person. David Wolley has just started keeping a visual journal and he explained that when he sits down to work he just "picks up whatever is on the table to work with." His goal is to "make the page look different from what I started with.

That's a goal we all share, filling pages as we go along.

Suzanne Hughes shared a wonderful squash painting in her current journal. I didn't get a photo of it, but you can see Suzanne's lovely painting at the link provided, on her blog Suzanne I am.

I hope if you're local, or visiting from out of town on a third Monday of the month, that you'll come and join us and show us what you're working on.

Don't forget our December 17 meeting begins EARLIER at 6:30 p.m. We are having a drawing scavenger hunt (you'll draw things). Read the MCBA Visual Journal Collective page for details. It's free and open to all adult journal keepers. All drawing skills are welcome. I hope to see you there.

Thanks to Jean and everyone else for making November's Swap Meet great fun!

Scavenging for Graphics: A Seasonal Offering

Above: Turkeys and a couple Pilgrims, placed on the same shelf with an eraser that uses a profile of a Native American for advertising branding. Click on the image to view an enlargement.

Today's "Scravenging for Graphics" is perhaps more "decorative arts" than graphics, yet the stylistic approach always tells us something about the time in which they were created, and something about the attitudes of that time, and ultimately something about the collector (though in this case not enough without additional questions answered).

With Thanksgiving just around the corner I think it's a good time to think about all these issues. Graphics have the power to enlighten, to inspire, but also to marginalize, dismiss, monetize, and perpetuate ideas and stereotypes.

What today are we accepting when we respond to the graphics and marketing of the consumables or decorative pieces we use today? What does our consumption say of our sense of life?