Art
I was originally thinking of putting more finished and meticulous drawings that I've done here. But I changed my mind.
Currently, I prefer not to labor over my drawings and sketches or be totally accurate. I'm loosening up a bit. I do, however, try to get reasonable perspective and proportions. Some of the time.
So, I've decided to post the sketches that I do when Al and I go to our neighborhood parks. That's what I really enjoy, sketching in the park with Al relaxing beside me.
2025 Fourth Quarter: October - December
Materials: Stillman & Birn Epsilon mixed media sketchbook, smooth surface, 6 x 8 in (15.2 x 20.3 cm), Pitt FM pen, alcohol markers.
We weren't able to get out to the parks that often towards the end of the year, but happily we did get out several times. So that was fun!
2025 Third Quarter: July - September
Materials: Stillman & Birn Epsilon mixed media sketchbook, smooth surface, 6 x 8 in (15.2 x 20.3 cm), Pitt FM pen, alcohol markers.
I like to sketch and color on site, but a couple of the sketches I colored at home. There are several parks that we go to frequently, and it's fun to draw the same scene a different way, or to find a new part of the park to draw.
2025 Second Quarter: April - June
On the first few sketches, I used a Bee Paper Marker Journal and a Pitt Artist Pen fude nib medium (FM). On the rest I used a Stillman & Birn Epsilon mixed media sketchbook, smooth surface, 6 x 8 in. (15.2 x 20.3 cm) and the Pitt FM pen. It's fun to try a new sketchbook!
And now, I'm sketching, coloring, and completing the picture on site (sometimes not coloring at all) rather than having to do the coloring when I get home. Then I'm free to move on to other projects.
Sometimes I just take a few markers and other times I'll carry a lot more. I like to be playful and amuse myself by trying out different things.
2025 First Quarter: January - March
Neighborhood Parks
I used a Bee Paper Marker Journal 5.5 " x 8" (14 cm x 20.3 cm), Pitt fineliners or Pitt FM. I sketched on-site and colored with alcohol markers at home.
These were fun to do (regardless of how they came out)! On many of these I played around with leaving more white space. I experimented with a monochrome theme on the purple trees. On the next one (yellow background and orange people), I sketched that more hurriedly because I wanted to go home and have lentil soup.
2024
Visiting the neighborhood parks.
Materials: Bee Paper Marker Journals (5.5 in. x 8 in.) and Pitt Artist Pens. Alcohol markers (Ohuhu, Blick, Copic) - coloring usually done at home.
This is a selection showing different ideas and colors that I played around with. Some of the drawings I'm happy with and others I have to smile at and say, "Well, I love you even if you came out downright awful."
October 15, 2022 -November 4, 2023
Views from neighborhood parks.
These were done in Bee Paper Marker Journals, spiral-bound, 5.5 in. x 8 in. (14 cm x 20.3 cm). On some I used fountain pens, but mostly I used fineliners (Pitt Artist pens, Staedtler pigment liners, or Pigma Micron) and alcohol markers (Blick, Copic, and Ohuhu).
I occasionally bring a few markers with me and do some coloring at the park, but usually I do the coloring at home where I have all my markers and lots of colors to choose from. I take a few reference photos to remind me of shadows.
December 27, 2020 - July 16, 2022
Views from neighborhood parks.