like the man from la mancha, i am on a glorious quest. i persist in my study of bougainvillea. a less noble cause than MFLM, but surely no less difficult!
to aid in my study i carefully observe others who have painted bougainvillea. a quick google search for “bougainvillea watercolor” reveals many samples to examine.
unless i’m drawing/painting from one of my photos or life, i’ve written the artist’s name on the copy. it’s helpful to keep a record so that i can go back at a later date if necessary and study more of their work.
these were done prior to my study. i was using the blob approach to shrubbery. recording it as one shape instead of lots of smaller shapes that make up the whole.
let me tell you people, once you begin to attempt to capture your world via ink & paint it’s an obsession that totally takes over. if you have a one-track mind.
i decided i needed a gray toned book to paint inside. i’ll use some watercolor, but mostly gouache, or maybe white pen. or black. or blue. or whatevs! i also got 2 new pens, both noted above. most satisfactory.
i’m gathering together my art supplies in a trader joe’s bag to haul up to our coastal hideaway 550 miles or so north of here. carol is on a jet plane flying through the friendly skies at this moment. i’ll pick her up from the airport in a couple of hours.
i got a stack of the eco qua notebooks. the crinkly paper is irresistible. utterly & completely.
and some more of my favorite ultra round brushes.
i like.
big.
brushes and i cannot lie.
next up. sister and i on a california adventure! stay tuned.
Oh, I’ve been off the computer the past few days, getting my house straightened up before I head to the hospital for surgery. I’ll be checking in sporadically before I go to hosp. on 23rd. I should be able to tag along with you Moss sisters to Mendocino, a place I always wanted to visit, also Bodega Bay, where The Birds was filmed. I hear Mendocino is quaint and very scenic coast. I hope you have a grand adventure, laugh a lot, and make art…can’t wait to see pix of the place you’ll stay in.
LLOL….I like. big. brushes and I cannot lie…….ahhhhahahaha too funny!! Them other brothers can’t deny.
I do love Bougainvillea. Having living in Calif for a number of years I learned to appreciate them. My first home as a married person featured an enclosed courtyard filled with them. (in Coronado, CA) I have lived in Many places in the US and even Puerto Rico and am very happy where I live now in PA but do miss the beautiful Bougainvilleas! And I love the way you interpret them with your blobs………….. Looking forward to the beach adventures. I recognized you sister right away in the picture.
Is there another way to approach shrubbery than blobwise? If there is I sure haven’t found it yet (which may explain the quality of my painted shrubbery). I love how you get obsessed with a subject and keep trying at it. Wishing you and your sister a wonderful getaway!
I’ll be going on vacation in three days to the house of MY sister who will be away on her own vacation. Free vacation for me in a beautiful luxury patio home in a wonderful part of the country. There will be walks, there will be bike rides and there may even be a zoo and a fabric market or a trip to a big city. I’ll be there for ten days and am counting down the hours until I get to go, which makes me restless at the office right now where I should be doing something like work or whatever you call that stuff my mind is just not capable of. 😉
Having just lost my canine companion of almost 16 years, I haven’t found much to draw my sight away from grief, but your “blob approach to shubbery” has made me smile. xxoo
Your bougainvillea studies are definitely paying off. Delightful! Will you he posting from your beach abode?
Oh goodie I’ve been waiting for this trip ,I did something like it in 1980 when I zoomed up there from OZ ….I too love crinkly paper I have a Rhodia Journal the paper is the same colour as the Moleskine ….think I will google Bougainviller today ….will we be stopping at the cypress tree at Carmel….I know it’s stunning but I always think of Play Misty For Me and hum Roberta Flacks wonderful song….
Oh! Wave if you go through Petaluma on your way to the coast! It’s very definitely MAM weather here today and tomorrow at least – cloudy-ish, cooler with possible raindrops! Next week will be cooler as well. Just ignore me if I strap on my roller skates and hang on to your bumper, ok?!
Hope you have a fabulous time in NorCal and that it has cooled down a bit from the crazy heat!
Aloha, Kate
Bougainvillea! There is not one of those creatures within my sight. The blob is the way to go. I am so glad your are venturing to No. Cal. My old stomping ground. I hope it is cooler there.
AHA.. The blob approach – that’s what I’m doing. And when I rework it to try to make it right. Thank you for the clue. Looking forward to your beach adventures.