Accepting new challenges in the encouraging worldwide community of artists

Accepting new challenges in the encouraging worldwide community of artists

#the100day project - Day 40: Black Walnut Husks - Direct Watercolor

Winter is a great time to focus on completing unfinished projects, editing terrible audio on video tutorials, updating website and organizing photos, sketches and reference materials from past adventures that I didn't take the time to process mentally before packing my bags and heading out again to explore the world.  This year of pandemic isolation and the lack of new adventure distractions has forced me to confront the chaos that has accumulated over the last ten years.  Though I've been at the task of resolving the chaos for an entire year now, I feel as if I've just scraped the surface.

Unfortunately, most of the tasks necessary involve being on my computer.  One way that I'm giving myself a break from standing at my desk editing, sorting, equalizing and eliminating, is to participate in other artists' challenges rather than playing my own invented games. I've taken on two challenges, #the100dayproject and Marc Taro Holmes' #oneweekonehundredpeople.

For #the100dayproject I'm doing a daily sketch of the black walnut husks I've collected to make my own natural dye ink.  In addition, I'm playing with tools and materials I haven't used in a while, combining media that I may not have combined before and trying new ways of making lines and strokes.  Occasionally I fall back on my automatic mark making.

#oneweek100people is like treating myself to dessert throughout the day.  I love making these little suggestions of people who are either real or imagined.  The challenge for me is that I'm not out and about seeing people moving about in the world.  I see birds, deer, bobcats and squirrels.  When I'm not inventing a person, I'm working from a photograph ... something I rarely do and don't enjoy doing.  I keep my sanity by allowing myself to veer away from the photograph as soon as the image on my paper begins to take on a personality. 

The major task that fills my day is that of reworking and creating the online classes I present here on my website as well as on Skillshare, and the occasional webinar I teach for an art group.  Currently, I'm piecing together the INK AND WATERCOLOUR webinar for an art group in Cardiff, Wales.  While sorting through sketching I created during my time in the UK, I stumbled across the Kaleidoscope Origami video at the top of this post.  I had totally forgotten about the fun I had with the app that helped create it.  I'm hoping I can find the app again.

My second shot of vaccine is scheduled for Monday!  It's too early to tell how being vaccinated will open up travel for me again.  I'm being as optimistic as possible.

If you'd like to see more of my daily sketches for the two challenges I mentioned, please visit me on Instagram.

All of the Black Walnut Husk sketches are being posted HERE