This is a drawing I did of the Scottish Storytelling Center on High Street along the royal mile in Edinburgh. Even though the streets are filled with crazy old medieval buildings, this guy stood out. This section of the center is the John Knox house originally built in 1490. The second I stumbled upon it, I knew I had to draw it. Plus I never painted a storytelling center before.
Scotland
In Edinburgh, I was able to get a few drawings done. Yun was on a knitting retreat in Glasgow, so I was left to my own devices. This is the oldest pub and my first sketching target. I sat out in front drawing as the farmer’s market was in full swing all around me. I was even able to grab a vegan dumpling lunch at the market during a rest break. It was a bit chilly so I wore a glove on my non drawing hand. I never set foot inside the joint. I’m an exterior man.
Draw Like an Egyptian
This is the last drawing I did in New York before I left with my wife on our one month trip through Europe. I’ve done a lot of good drawings I’ll be posting when I get back soon.
Bruges
Recently I woke up in Belgium. I’m not really too clear on how that happened but there I was. First thing I did was find a nice spot to draw the groovy architecture which happened to be the main square. After a few days, our friends, the artist, Jean-Christophe Defline and his wife Valerie came to join us. We ate nice meals and strolled the medieval side streets. There was also fabulous museums where we saw the work of Jan Van Eyck and Hans Memling. Two of the greatest artists to ever walk the earth. Turns out, Bruges is quite lovely.
Monkey Man
A day in my life. Drag myself to Natural History Museum. Begin drawing. Explain to 6-year-old why I chose a monkey to sketch. Show tourist my watercolor set. Explain how I stain blank pages to a teacher. Let 8 people look through my sketchbook. Hand out endless squirrel stickers. Sneak quick 10 minutes of drawing. Have long discussion on urban sketching with a couple from London. Describe what pens I use over and over. Proceed to draw a little. Cover up a few mistakes with trickery. Field incoming compliments. Smile a lot. Head home tired but satisfied.
Titian
I just finished “Titian, His Life” by Sheila Hale. An 860-page biography. It basically tells the story of every single day of his 87-year life. Not sure how you can pack so much information into a single book. The Renaissance painter always maintained a large studio with tons of assistants. He could crank out many paintings with his art assembly line. As a result, he accumulated a large amount of wealth. It was needed to keep the operation going. The parts of the paintings he did himself were very arduous and time consuming. Sometimes he’d do the entire painting himself, depending on the client. Other times, the assistants he taught did much of the work and he added his touches as needed to finish. He was an intense perfectionist. He pushed his style very hard to be compared with his rival, Michelangelo. They lived at the same time but never met. Over time, hundreds of his paintings were lost, stolen, burned in multiple fires, forgotten, damaged, or just misplaced. Luckily hundreds have survived. No one will forget this portrait I did of him though.
Veggies
When we were in the Berkshires, I’d go to the corner farm stand to buy fresh fruit and vegetables. I decided to make a little wallpaper style illustration. Some fruits were very upset with me for not being included. The last straw was when I was yelled at by some watermelon slices and a fig as I was attempting to buy some plums. I don’t think I’ll do a drawing like this anytime soon. It was hard to be in the center of so much squabbling between kumquats and lemons.
A New World
America now has more dogs than children. We indulge dogs and abuse hogs. Someone mistreats a dog and we call 911. But if a company tortures millions of hogs as a business model, we dine on its products, invest in its shares and honor its executives. People are horrified by the idea of eating dogs, but pigs are just as intelligent and make fine companions too. When meatpacking plants closed during the pandemic, 240,000 hogs were euthanized by raising temperatures to 130 degrees. 31 states have laws making it illegal to leave a dog in a hot car but it’s no problem to torture and kill pigs that way. Female pigs often spend their adult lives confined to coffin-sized pens so narrow that they cannot turn around. They don’t go outside, touch soil, see the sky or exercise. Excerpts from a New York Times opinion piece by Nicholas Kristof.
Maine
Recently went to Portland, Maine to visit some friends. Checked out the Portland Museum of Art. Spent an afternoon at Winslow Homer’s art studio and house. Had lunch in Kennebunkport. Drew some obscure objects I found around my pals apartment. People scratch their heads at seeing the odd things I choose to sketch.
Rubin & Met
These are art objects I selected to draw in two important New York museums. It may seem like I draw the same things over and over making a dumb drawing you’ve all seen a thousand times before from me. Well, I plead guilty. Sometimes, I’m like a musician who has to go out and do his greatest hits each night at some god forsaken club. Occasionally, I’m that guy.
Ikabana
I do one of these flower drawings when I’m in the woods of Massachusetts each year. Hopefully this sparks joy. I think I was born with Ikebana skills which enable me to draw without a plan. Cosmically, I have a feel for what plant to place where next while creating a little artsy frame on my page. I’m the king of the without a clue method. Works for me every time.
Tree
While hanging out in the Berkshires this August, I had some free time to draw another tree. I chose a complex one with lots of branches in an old horse pasture. The field where I drew this was close to the Norman Rockwell Museum. They have a current show featuring original artwork from the old Mad Magazine. This was my biggest art influence as a kid. Seeing the actual paintings up close blew my mind. That would explain why this tree looks like it was done by an illustrator who worked for Mad in 1967.
Temperature Size Rule
The temperature-size rule is an actual phenomenon that describes many species of fish that are getting smaller as their habitats get warmer. Unlike humans, fish cannot regulate their body temperature well. When the water temperature goes up, so too does the oxygen they require. I’m not sure scientists have it fully figured out. It’s not so cut and dry, but clearly climate change is playing a part in it.
