Monthly Archives: December 2005

Blind Contour Hilarity

Posted on December 5, 2005 by

First a thing of beauty:

A couple of big clumps of agapanthus in my garden are just about to burst into bloom. Look at all the stems!

Something that I often overlook is how beautiful the buds look just prior to poping. The purple and green are perfect together.

Agapanthus are native to South Africa and thrive in our climate. They are an environmental pest if planted near bush land. But I do love it so, they are clump forming with strappy leaves which stay green all winter, and summer brings those big star burst blooms.

Drawing on the Right Side of the Brain

OK these aren’t actually meant to LOOK like hands, the exercise is meant to make you SEE what you are drawing rather than drawing a ‘hand’ which is stored as a sort of symbol in your head.

You draw the object by observing it minutely but not looking at your page as you draw. It is meant to switch off the left (logical) part of the brain and get you into a zone where you observe in great detail, the subject.

I’m not there yet. I find myself skipping over detail with fair regularity. I’ve got a few more exercises to go ’til I’m onto the Modified Contour Drawings. But so far I’m enjoying it… much better than the other drawing book I have which exhorts the drawing of many elipses!!
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Baskets

Posted on December 4, 2005 by

I did a Basket Weaving with Natural Materials workshop today with Gippsland basketweaver Pat Dale. I have had her book for about 6 months, and jumped at the opportunity to do a workshop with her.

The basket is mostly made with materials that Pat has found locally or grows in her garden. Willow, watsonia, NZ flaz, bannana trunk, pandanus(?), native vines, reeds and button bush.

I’ve bought enough materials home to make another one and I want to incorporate fabric and yarn in it.

I have also cast on for a lace scarf, but there isn’t much to show yet, so perhaps in the next day or so.

Plus, I’m trying to go through “Drawing on the Right Side of the Brain” in an attempt to improve my drawing skills. I’ve got the book out of the library, so I’m trying to devote an hour a day to the book over the next couple of weeks. I’m going to be doing some blind contour drawings tonight.

I am hoping that I can improve, because my lack of drawing skill is starting to be a real hinderance in my art work.
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Cheers

Posted on December 2, 2005 by

Thanks for the congrats about my wins at the Traralgon Show :-).

I think I’m sick or something though, or perhaps still tired from last weekend. I’ve been missing my spark over the last few days, a bit headachy and a bit stuffy, but generally just tired.

I am also very sad today because Singapore will, this morning, hang a young Australian man, Van Nguyen. What a wretched waste.

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