I'm traveling through England ans Scotland for the next two weeks, and of course that meant I had to start a new travel sketchbook! I found it fitting that the first page shows the route I will be on.
Something a teacher said led me to imagine a world of pink clouds and golden castles, playing along the way with prime numbers. I'd like to add more patterns to my sketchbook now.
BEING GREEDY CHOKES ANANSI From Favorite Folktales around the world by Jane Yolen. One time, Anansi lived in a country that had a queen who was also a witch. And she decreed that whoever used the word five would fall down dead, because that was her secret name, and she didn’t want anyone using it. Now, Buh Anansi was a clever fellow, and a hungry one too. Things were especially bad because there was a famine, so Anansi made a little house for himself by the side of the river near where everyone came to get water. And when anybody came to get water, he would call out to them, “I beg you to tell me how many yam hills I have here. I can’t count very well.” So, one by one he thought they would come up and say, “One, two, three, four, five,” and they would fall down dead. Then Anansi would take them and corn them in his barrel and eat them, and that way he would have lots of food in hungry times and in times of plenty.
Doodling has become an essential part of new beginnings in my life. The blank page is encouraging unplanned art that surprises me and pushes me in new directions. This piece speaks to me of fresh starts and flowing into the future full of change and magical possibilities.
Love dahlias, not just because they are so ornate, but also because they bloom so very late. The tuberous begonias and potted dahlias are still in full bloom at the start of November, how cool is THAT? (For the northern hemisphere and 47th parallel, no less!) This is a stylized drawing in colored pencils.
