Wagon Shed, Wind and Water

Tags

barns, Canson XL multi-media paper, graphitone, Kathleen Renninger, outbuildings, Pages from a Nature-Lover's Diary, titmice, wagon shed, water-soluble graphite

Wagon shed in progress

Wagon shed Sketch in water-soluble graphite

The Story Behind the Sketch:

Artist friends George & Charlie & I were set up out in a field sketching this old combination stable and wagon shed ( & corn crib, I believe) . It was an attractive scene, with interesting large rock formations in the foreground. We had stood up to get ready to go for lunch when a big wind came along & took everything—I mean, everything–the chairs, umbrellas, tables; our supplies were scattered everywhere. It so happened that I had just drawn a dark area in the opening at the left of the building and added water to it to intensify it—a litlle too much water, letting quite a pool in that area. I figured the air would dry it while I was gone, but the wind had other plans. As you can see in the first photo, it simply blew the blackened water down into the lower part of the drawing, letting a streak. )

The Technical Stuff:

Paper: Canson XLMulti-media spiral bound sketchbook. Pencils: Graphitone water-soluble graphite (light, medium and very dark). Brushes: Niji Waterbrushes, flat, and small ( pointed)

My Experience in Doing this Sketch: 

I used the light grade of Graphitone to sketch in the main shapes, then started toning & adding contrast with the darker grades , spreading, blending, & intensifying with water. While the grass in the foreground was actually one of the lightest values in the scene, this was in incidence where  discretion was the better part of valor. It would have almost required masking fluid to cover that area, especially the stems of plants growing tall against the rocks. Choosing to make this area darker than the rocks seemed prudent, and still made for an effective rendering. I also had to decide to limit the detail on the rocks, or they’d have become  too dark.  The tree foliage was done by “scribbling” & then extending the edges with a damp brush. I  ended up using a kneaded eraser to remove some of the detail from the roof to gain a little more of a sunlit look, & better contrast. I got lucky while stroking vertical lines into the siding on the front of the structure; at one point my pencil was just damp enough to let a very textured stroke or two—which I feel added to the overall effect quite nicely.

As far as that nasty streak left by the wind, it wasnt’ hard to turn it into a plant stem. (When you can’t get rid of your mistakes, camouflage ’em!)

 

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Today’s Excerpt from ‘Pages’:

Titmice on Clothesline 

http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_ss_i_0_18?url=search-alias%3Dstripbooks&field-keywords=pages+from+a+nature-lover%27s+diary&sprefix=Pages+from+a+natur%2Cstripbooks%2C328

NOTE: 

All images and text in this post are Copyright K. A. Renninger 2014. I am more than happy to have you share them through your own blog, and hope you will do so—but you must give me credit. Anyone who uses them to make money will be prosecuted.

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A Two-handed Approach

Tags

Antietam Farm, barn, canson XL watercolor tablet, farm buildings, graphite, illustration, oil pastels, Portfolio Water-Soluble Oil Pastels, springhouse, wagon shed, Waynesboro PA

wagon shed with vines

The Story Behind the Sketch:

The tendonitis I had quickly developed in my left wrist from over-use, had left me unable to sketch at all for a couple of weeks, –most distresssing!— but with the help of a brace, visualization/relaxation , and careful avoidance of use, I began to feel like I could try it again. 

After a three-week hiatus from painting-out with the group, I was missing my artist buddies. Hauling the chair, table, & other equipment needed for this activity, worked out okay thanks to help from friend George. The group went to the beautiful Antietam Farm outside Waynesboro, which has a delightful assortment of old  buildings including this wagon shed.

The Technical Stuff:

Canson XLwatercolor tablet, Portfolio Water-Soluble Oil Pastels, 5B graphite sketch pencil. Various acrylics brushes.

My Experience in Doing this Sketch: 

Having some use of my right hand now, I chose to use both in doing this sketch. First I drew in the general outlines of the bulding with the oil pastel using my left hand. I found that, in “thinking with my left” so to speak, my sense of perspective was different; it took some getting used to.  I did some brush work with both left & right, eventually falling  into a rythm of adding color with one hand & brushing water over it with the other.

The picture seemed to lack definition, as I find my work often does when using water-soluble media, so I outlined almost everything with a graphite sketch pencil. I made a point of doing this with my left hand so as to stay in practice.

One of those things that happens sometimes with outdoor sketching is that you have to change locations halfway through the sketch due to some weather condition, in this case hot sun. My painting partners & I actually had to move inside the wagon shed. Needless to say; I had to “wing it” from there on out. As a result I’m not sure I got the perspective correct, but then again , with old buildings, things are apt to be crooked anyway!

NOTE: All images and text in this post are Copyright K. A. Renninger 2013. I am more than happy to have you share them through your own blog, and hope you will do so—but you must give me credit. Anyone who uses them to make money will be prosecuted.

Old Building, New Purpose

Tags

artwork, barns, charcoal, drawing, farm buildings, graphite, sketches, sketching, wagon shed

wagon shed turned corn crib

 

This is a farm that I pass by often but could never get a decent photo of. ( Why is it that there are always 30 cars on your tail when you want to pull off & get a shot?) so I did much of it from memory.

The farmer apparently is using new pole  buildings across the road to store equipment, so turned this into a giant corn crib. ( The other end of the shed just has a big tarp hung over it.)

This is graphite on some old sketch paper I had around here. Added some darks with charcoal, although it’s tough to get it to really bite-in  if there’s already a layer of pencil under it. The notes scrawled in the corners were mixes to get a good black paint in watercolor, which my friend Charlie was telling me about while I was working. I dont think he’d mind if I share: #1 Burnt sienna & Ultramarine Blue, #2  Hookers–or –Sap, green & Alizerine Crimson.

NOTE: All images and text in this post are Copyright K. A. Renninger 2011. I am more than happy to have you share them through your own blog, and hope you will do so—but you must give me credit. Anyone who uses them to make money will be prosecuted.