Blown Glass Rooster

I can't think of a title for this so I'll call it what it is....a glass rooster. It's a little tschotske that came from my parent's old house. I have no idea where they got it but it's a colorful little thing. I drew and painted this from life. I scanned the painting because it's small...roughly 5" x 9" so every little boo-boo shows up and the colors are a bit blown out. It was a fun exercise and I enjoyed getting my brushes wet again. I'll be on to another sculpted paper project tomorrow and it may take a few days before I have anything to show. I'll have to wait for each coat of gel medium to dry and I don't want to rush things. 

Another Shell Sketch

I've got a rather large conch shell I've used as my model this time. I'm not quite as happy with this as I am with the first shell sketch. I think my pastel paper may have been too dark. I'm posting it anyway. I had plans of doing a series and calling it 'Shell-f Life'. I may still follow through. Have to see where inspiration takes me.

Back to the Drawing Board

I found myself stuck on a problem with my cat collage *sigh* so I decided to go back to my roots...drawing. I haven't sketched much of anything in quite some time. Being able to draw and sketch should be a basic skill of every artist. I realized I had grown lazy, using my computer screen as a light box to trace simple outlines for my paintings from photo references. I was always so eager to get started on the painting I was neglecting my prep work.


I have this shell that has sat on the tank lid of my toilet as decoration for years. It's a crazy looking thing. Well armored with spikes poking out at every angle. This must have been one bada** snail when it was alive and I'm sure it died of natural causes.

I sketched this shell from four different angles with ballpoint pen. I used a pen to keep myself honest. No erasing. Then I found a few sheets of sanded pastel paper. I hunted through my art supplies and found my sketch set...one sepia pencil, one sanguine, one china white and also I grabbed a medium charcoal pencil and went to work. I'm posting my current results for Operation Snail Shell.