A Dot on Her Forehead

12" x 9" Charcoal Pencil on Paper

Here is a more recent sketch from the weekly drawing session. It was done in the usual amount of time - two or two and a half hours. It's one of my back-to-the-basics studies. Of course I enjoy color, and that's important, but most of my sketches are black and white. Color plays a role in form, but I think the greatest weight of the form is carried by values - that is, light and dark.

Our model that night had spent some time in India and had traditional Indian clothing and jewelry. And of course she had to have that dot on her forehead. It's called a "bindi".

For more about drawing sessions, go to "Labels" on the side bar and click on "sketching" or "drawing."

West African Man

Pastel on Gray Paper

It seems about time on this blog for another sketch from the weekly drawing session. This pastel study of a man from West Africa was done a few years ago. He was wearing a very colorful outfit which I'm sorry I didn't have time to finnish drawing. I focused mostly on his head, especially his face.

For more about drawing sessions, go to "Labels" on the side bar and click on "sketching" or "drawing."

Rubber Boa!

Last Saturday I took a long hike up a local canyon to do some plein air painting. Halfway up the canyon I came across an odd-looking but familiar kind of snake, a rubber boa. A few days later I told some people I know about the encounter and someone wanted to know how dangerous rubber boas are. Well, I think a few photos I snapped during the encounter might illustrate exactly just how dangerous these snakes can be:

Yeah, they're THAT dangerous!

Rubber boas are actually the most docile snakes I've ever come across in the wild. They are non-venomous. They're slow and have never even tried to bite me even when I've handled them - and I'm so fascinated by these snakes I catch them every time I see one. They have disproportionately tiny eyes and a tiny mouth even for their small size. Unlike most snakes that have pointy tails (or rattles!) rubber boas are rounded on both ends. These features, along with their coloration, give the rubber boa the initial appearance of a really big earthworm!

Rubber Boas are generally nocturnal. I've come across them only three or four times over the years in my many hikes in the Wasatch mountains. You can read more about rubber boas here.

Rubber boas have defense strategies but I've never seen them in person. I carefully pick them up and handle them gently. They seem cool with that. After a few minutes of awe and wonder I set the snake back where I found it and let it slither off in peace.

It might be better to not handle the snake at all, but uneven lighting prevented me from getting a good photo of the snake on the ground. Besides, I'm such a kid when it comes to nature!

Caution: Catching snakes is not recommended if you are not properly trained and experienced in the matter. If you don't know the difference between snake species, learn! Most snakes can bite. Venomous snakebites (such as rattlesnakes) can be extremely serious. It may seem macho to handle venomous snakes but loosing a hand, arm - or your life - is not macho! I've never tried to catch a rattlesnake and give them a wide berth when I come across them in the outdoors!

New Show and Demo

Photo courtesy of David Hawkinson.

The Terra Nova Gallery has a new show opening this Friday, May 4th. It's a group show that will run through the month of may, and I'll have a few small paintings in it. There will also be demonstrations Friday evening by a few painters and other artists. I'll be one of them. Everyone's welcome to come see the opening and enjoy the demos, including whatever on earth I'm going to paint!

Terra Nova is located at 41 West 300 North in Provo, Utah. Phone: 801-374-0016. You can find more information on their website:

http://www.terranovagallery.com/

Come enjoy the show!

The End is Near!

Photo Courtesy of Ron Escudero.

The end of my show at the Window Box Gallery, that is. There's just a couple days left to see it. You can read an earlier post about this show here.

There's some red dots (denoting sold works) but there's still plenty for art collectors to choose from. These are oil paintings painted alla prima en plein air. (I love using French words!) They're paintings of local landscapes, some painted in beautiful places just outside of town. I hope these paintings will encourage people to enjoy and take care of the wonderful natural places we have here locally.

Although the show ends Thursday, May 3rd, I hope to continue to work with the Window Box Gallery and encourage you to visit their gallery from time to time to enjoy the artwork. The gallery is located at 62 West Center Street in Provo, Utah. Au revoir!

Return to an Old Cliffrose

10" x 8" Oil on Panel

While exploring the steep slopes of the mountains by town a few years ago I found this cliffrose. Last weekend I finally scrambled back up the mountainside to paint it. It's rather large for a cliffrose, I think. From a distance it looks like a juniper, which also are common in the area, but a closer look showed it to be a cliffrose. A month or so ago I painted another cliffrose on the same mountainside. I wrote about that here.

It was a beautiful day to be out in the mountains. There were several deer in the area I hiked, as well as chukkar partridges. One chukkar came close enough as I painted to let me snap it's photo.

Chukkar

The green is starting to come out on the lower mountain slopes, lagging behind the Spring growth in the valley. Spring wildflowers are making their appearance, too.

The next photo shows my setup and where I was painting.

Pochade boxes can go anywhere!

 These photos give some idea of the view I had of town from where I painted.

There was probably time for another painting that day. There sure are plenty of subjects here. Instead I elected to scout around and become more familiar with the mountainside. It's wonderful to have a place so wild so close to town. It's an area I can sort of see just by looking up from the valley, but that's certainly not the same as being up there!

Death, Taxes, and a Navajo Woman

Today there was a statewide earthquake drill called, "The Great Utah Shakeout." An important thing to do in earthquake country. The intention is to educate and prepare people concerning what to do in a major earthquake. That way people won't just run around in aimless circles franticly waving their arms and screaming in terror - which also sort of describes how I do my taxes. Today is also tax day in the U.S. I wonder if there were any exercises today about how to file last minute tax returns during an earthquake? Brings to mind Benjamin Franklin's quote about death and taxes.

But to get to the image above, last Thursday a Navajo woman modeled for our weekly drawing session. This sketch was done in a 12" x 9" sketchbook with charcoal pencil. Hope it moves you, tax free!

For more about drawing sessions, go to "Labels" on the side bar and click on "sketching" or "drawing."