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by Leonie Andrews

New starts

[This post was originally written on 15 September, but for some reason I forgot to post it. Oops.]

I recently went to the Urban Sketchers Symposium in Poznan,  where I did a workshop with French artist Olivia Markus. She was teaching,  amongst other things, an interesting approach to colouring sketches. The point of which, in part, was to reinforce a sense of depth of field in your sketch.

Two sketches I made at the Symposium

I think the simplified colour choices deliver exciting results. Of course, they also challenge your use of tonal contrast. So far, I’ve mainly used them for scenes with people in them. The limited colour selection imposes a unity, which is often missing from my regular sketches.

Now, I’m taking the next steps of testing out what I learned and then trying to integrate the process into my practice.

Evening moods in Wrocław
On the train from Wrocław to Prague

I use watercolour as my main medium, so that does yield different results to the inks that Marcus uses. To be fair, I really haven’t tried the process with ink yet.

Demonstration in support of Palestine,  London

I’m also experimenting with which colour combinations work most effectively together.

I find the stark black pen a bit strong, and it tends to overwhelm the watercolour’s subtle tones. Lately, I have been using less black, instead choosing to use a more intense pigment.

Friday,  queues at the coffee shop, first version
The final version with black and white marker bring added.

I’m still ‘not there’ yet in terms of the outcomes, but as today’s sketch show, there is some progress.

Today’s café sketch.
by Leonie Andrews

A bit of a diversion

Every weekend we have a Zoom call with some fellow artists in the UK. We meet for an hour to make art and chat. We started this during COVID, so its great that we continue to meet, both online, and now twice in person.

One of the sides, in book form

There’s no program, other than what we feel like doing. Before we start there’s always a discussion about what we will do tonight (our time).

The other side, in book form

I went back to some collage yesterday. I found a large envelope that I decided to turn into a small ‘maze’ book. Having cut the basic shape I started applying very random collage and marks.

One side as collaged

In the end it did take more than our one hour to complete, but by thar stage I was so engaged in the process that I kept going until I was done.

The other side as collage

For the first time in quite a few months I felt the stirrings of excitement, the potential to make new work. I can see several ways to proceed. While it is a ‘work’ in itself I see the possibility of using it as a springboard to new pieces, where they draw on the colours and marks in the book. There’s also the potential to work directly back into the book itself.

Random abstract collage
Marks made with watercolour pencils
There are endless options to work from

Who knows where this will lead.

by Leonie Andrews

Reboot

Thanks to those of you who helped with my previous posting question.  I feel I am back on track, even if it wasn’t necessarily the track I thought I might be on.

To finish off the Georgette Chen series, I sketched from a photograph of the artist in her later life. It’s so much more relaxed than her earlier studio photos. In it she’s wearing a housecoat over what appears to be an embroidered blouse that might be from one of the Slavic countries.

Georgette Chen, in later life

Chen’s biography in Wikipedia, describes a life of such interest, international travel and melodrama that it deserves a mini-series at least, https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Georgette_Chen 

I wanted to learn more so I ordered a copy of an oral history interview with Chen, held in the collection of the Singaporean Library and Archive. Alas it didn’t deliver. Chen was very vague, not to say quite inaccurate about a number of things, including where she was born. It’s not clear if it was failing memory or dissembling, but no particularly interesting  anecdotes were forthcoming.

My next subject is a return to the USA and that wonderful artist Eva Hesse. Sad to note that Chen, born some 30 before Hesse, outlived her by over 20 years.

by Leonie Andrews

My first Inktober

There’s no doubt that the shame of the shear amount of rarely used pens and ink that I own is a contributing factor to my first ever participation in Inktober. It’s one of those myriad art “challenges ” that breed in the dank corners of social media, however this one has become one of the better known month long events.

The sad result of too many trips where buying art supplies became our souvenirs.

Simply take whatever form of ink you like, Biro, pen and ink, brush pen, whatever and draw every day for the month of October.  The rules are satisfyingly loose enough for people to pretty much do what they want, and of course, you post the results of your daily efforts on whichever of the social media platforms you favour.

Fountain pens and brush pens filled with different inks

There is a list of daily prompts you can follow, or you can do your own thing. I’m opting for the latter. My plan is to draw portraits of artists from old photographs.  I hope this will give me sufficient leeway to focus as much on my technique as it does on the subject matter.

Now I have a month to rectify, or at least revive some skills in that area.

To be honest, I really need to! In the run-up to the challenge, I have struggled to get a reasonable result because I largely have stopped using my fountain pens for regular art making.

What I am using for the challenge.

I’d love to hear if any of you are doing Inktober too.