“By all means grow old, but don’t mature. Remain childlike, retain wonder, the ability to be flabbergasted by something.” - Billy Connolly.
Happy new year Doodle addicts!
I have given my students the problem of creating 100 self portraits in 20 days on 5x7 in paper. The challenge is to create something other than an image that depicts a 'dead-pan' stare. When the brain is given a problem, it goes to work immediartely to solve that problem. I have seen some wonderful solutions. This is a tall order for teens who are sensative to judgment and still developing in thier perception. It has generated wonderful discussions of self-awareness, world view, and judgment. Those who engage in the exercise in an authentic manner have only good things to say about the experience. It is not an exercise for everyone. We are on a journey. Be Bold! Be Honest! Draw what you see. Draw what you think. -Peace
Pen over pencil with contemplations that hint at child development and parenting strategies. A very wise person told me that it is our life's work to forgive our parents. Another wise person told me that sometimes there is no forgiveness, just forgetting.
I’ll be honest, 2024’s not been too bad mostly but the recent crap weather in Scotland has a lot to answer for. Cold and miserable? Sure, but it’s not exactly been winter as we know it. Roll on spring! In lighter news... happy Pokemon day :-D
Of all the things to jumpstart my inspiration for this, I never had an eye-test and a fresh set of glasses the day after the Samhuinn Fire Festival took place… but alas, here we are!
Continuing to look at the mysteries of plants used as bush medicine by Indigenous people in the East Kimberley of Western Australia. These two plants are common throughout the area. The one on the left is used for colds and the right for soap. How many of us would know what to look for?
Weird things, that I come up with.This is just some of the stuff, I have doodled and/or done. I really love Ancient Egyptian mythology and was testing out my gold and silver paint pen. Sadly the pens both ran out of paint. :(
I'd like to introduce an old dear friend. This is my anxiety, depression, anger, and worst critic all in one package. He shows up alot in my doodles to criticize my work and life in general. I am a nervous wreck, which gives him his name.
For a long time, I always misheard the lyrics in the song ‘Torn Green Velvet Eyes’ by The Magnetic Fields as ‘Tom Green Velvet Eyes’… told myself that one day I’d draw something inspired by this mishearing of things and well, here you go!
Bob the Drag Queen is a legendary performer and personality. She is one of my favorite people. I kept the composition simple to focus on shading and facial dimensions. I paid close attention to not lightening her skin tone and respecting her heritage but also contrasting the gold dress and blue background.
My favorite way to eliminate the often paralyzing fear of "ruining" "good" paper is to just paint on any and all junk mail that comes into my house. Higher end catalogs are great for this, they don't use slick, thin paper (and even that gets used in collage or as a desk cover for other projects) and they're already bound for you. Just add marks! Carry it with you. Scan the pages you like. Cut it up later for making other art. It's "just" junk mail, so there is literally no pressure. I have HUNDREDS of these type of things and I run across them all the time, forgotten, in some old backpack or purse or drawer and it's a treasure to look through them again, and add new marks, paints and words.
An exercise in observation - quick sketch. I was told that if I made a drawing a day for 365 days, that in a year, I might have a couple nice drawings.
