Take a Peek over my Shoulder

Take a Peek into my Sketchbook

My goal is to draw everyday. It feeds my spirit and calms my soul, a very healing process.

Occasionally I scan and post some of these sketches on my Flickr.com account to share with other artists and the world at large. You can view the latest by clicking on the "Sketches" banner on the left. They are in reverse chronological order, most recent on top.

Process

Hour-by-Hour, Step-by-Step Work in Progress

I love to watch other artists at work! Watching an idea sprout out of a mind, through a hand, and take material form on paper is a wondrous thing. Few people would have the patience or time to watch my entire eight to ten hour process from the first lines of a sketch into a fully rendered drawing. So I scanned a recent drawing approximately every hour along the way -- resulting in a sort of time lapse drawing!

Here, step-by-step, hour-by-hour, is a graphite pencil drawing-in-process of Irish Setter "Maggie Magee, 1977-1985."

Materials

I've been an artist long enough to see some my earlier work first yellow, then slowly disintegrate. As a museum professional, I've been horrified! Now all the materials I work with are as archival as today's technology can manage:

• Acid-free, archival surfaces: 100% rag for papers, gesso coatings for boards;
• Artist-quality pigments that are as lightfast as possible -- color pigments should always be protected from ultraviolet light behind glass (or varnish for oil or acrylic paintings);
• Safe fixatives and solvents, distilled water and pure mediums;
• Acid-free matboards and mounting boards.