Man Waits for Microwave 

Posted on September 18, 2016 by Sarah Sullivan
Sketch of a man looking out window by Sarah Sullivan

Man Waits for Microwave

This morning our houseguest stood at the window and looked out while he waited for the microwave. I liked the way he seemed to be distracted by the morning view, with his head up and his arm limp, as he gazed out for a moment. I was able to get the basics of this sketch and then later this evening finished it up with more detail and color. Since I did not finish the sketch in real time, I decided that I may as well experiment with the color scheme. I selected two complementary colors, yellow and purple, and worked to get depth and definition with them.
This is a pen, pencil, watercolor pencil and watercolor sketch on multimedia paper, with some editing in Procreate.

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Two Pink Flamingos

Posted on September 16, 2016 by Sarah Sullivan
Two Pink Flamingos Interact at the San Diego Zoo

Two Pink Flamingos Interact at the San Diego Zoo

I took my sketchbook to the San Diego Zoo yesterday and sat in the shade near the multitude of flamingos. These two caught my eye because they were going back and forth, squawking, poking, and sticking together in the crowd.

This was a pencil, pen, and watercolor crayon sketch. Later I added watercolor and then edited a bit in Procreate.

 

 

 

 

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Luke Waits for His Walk

Posted on September 13, 2016 by Sarah Sullivan
Luke Waits for His Walk

Luke Waits for His Walk

I sketched and sketched Luke this evening, while he waited and waited, keeping a close eye on me. I liked this sketch because I caught a bit of his attentive look.

This is a Procreate sketch.

Posted in Facial Expression, Telling a Story | Tagged , , | 1 Comment

Listening to the Teacher

Posted on September 12, 2016 by Sarah Sullivan
Listening to the Teacher

Listening to the Teacher

Today I attended the first session of an art class I will take this fall. While we listened to the teacher explain the plan for the semester, I sketched a row of my fellow students. After years of watching middle school students listen to their teachers, it was great to see the same body language in use as these adult students signaled their active listening to our teacher through eye contact, quiet bodies and hand gestures.

It was fun to be part of a classroom again where students are eager to learn.

This is an ink sketch on multimedia paper. 

 

 

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A Perfect Camping Spot Revised

Posted on September 11, 2016 by Sarah Sullivan
A Perfect Camping Spot Revised

A Perfect Camping Spot Revised

I was not satisfied with yesterday’s sketch and kept working on it today to try to understand my misgivings and to fix them. I wanted richer brights and deeper darks in the forest and more green in the foreground because these are truer to the way I felt about the camping spot. Also, in the original sketch that I made in Colorado, I sketched what I saw. This morning I began to think that the objects such as the folding chair, paper towels, cups and a second small table distracted from the message of this sketch and so I removed them.

Although I mainly used Procreate, I also used Snapseed to add the brights and darks because this app is perfect for targeting specific areas of a sketch. 

 

 

Posted in Body Language, Deliberate Practice, Facial Expression, Learning, Story Creation, Telling a Story | Tagged , , , , | Leave a comment

A Perfect Camping Spot

Posted on September 11, 2016 by Sarah Sullivan
A Perfect Camping Spot

A Perfect Camping Spot

I started this sketch last week in Colorado but abandoned it because it did not convey what I felt about the place we were camping in. In the original sketch the camper fills the page and dominates the focus; only a bit of the immense forest shows. Additionally, the figure in the original sketch is immersed in reading and does not seem aware of the grandeur of the forest. The original sketch was about a man, a camper and a book.

I wanted to make a sketch about the impact of camping in a gorgeous forest and so today imported the original sketch into Procreate and then scaled it down, thereby leaving lots of empty space on the page. Next I used the empty space to surround the camper with forest.  Finally, I altered the figure’s head, showing him lifting up his face in admiration as a way of indicating the impact the forest has on those of us lucky enough to camp there. Now this sketch comes much closer to what I wanted to say about this perfect camping spot.

This is a pen and Procreate sketch.

 

Posted in Body Language, Facial Expression, Story Creation, Telling a Story | Tagged , | 2 Comments

After Oral Surgery

Posted on September 9, 2016 by Sarah Sullivan
After Oral Surgery

After Oral Surgery

Going to the oral surgeon is not fun. However, it does present a novel opportunity for capturing a type of body language that I do not normally see.

This is a watercolor and soluble pencil sketch that was edited using Procreate.

Posted in Body Language, Facial Expression | Tagged , , , , , , | 3 Comments