No Present Like the Time

A little life drawing for you. This is Ida in an Eames Chair, 14"x17" charcoal on paper. This was done in Joe Begnaud's studio a while back.

Been a while since the last blog entry. I had the chance to browse a few blogs, and I realize that the most successful ones are the ones that are updated more regularly. Well, I never set out to win any awards with this thing.

So, a lot happened in the interim: I had to go to New York, as my father had to have open heart surgery, and at the same time, my brother-in-law became a first-time dad. So, the visit was kind of an emotional rollercoaster. I also got sick with an ailment that seems to have visited most of the people I know including my family, my co-workers, and basically anybody I run into on the street in Portland. I had a birthday, and I also played two league matches to start the men's 4.0 season. All those things combined served to kind of run me down so that I fell ill again, or perhaps, I relapsed from the first illness. It was only yesterday that I really started feeling like myself again.

I missed a week at Berehaven, but I'm making good progress, still. Gnomon is nearly complete, and it looks like I had envisioned it. There was a small issue of the earth tones in the shadows sinking in, but I hit the completed sections with retouch varnish, and I was able to match the adjacent areas. I actually (geek) made a little diagram to remind me what I varnished, so I can apply retouch to the rest of the piece when it is done, so that the varnish surfaces and gloss are even. I kind of forgot that this happens when you work big. It's been a while, and I'm glad I'm doing this, regardless of the time factor. I won't be working this size for a while, as most of the ideas I have are for smaller pieces.

drawing room was excellent this week, with a model I had not met yet. She was graceful like a dancer (I suspect she was a dancer), and had a lovely poise. I hit the mark a few times that night, so I was pleased. I haven't taken pictures of the drawings from that session, but I have some from other sessions. I may post them here, but I think I might hold out until I get this website thing underway. Yes, I will have a site again, finally. It's a long time coming, but the priority wasn't that high when I first started the full time job. Now that I'm back painting my own work on the side, it's time to market it a bit.

I have a big trip planned for the Spring. Details soon.