MoMA

After the class was done (I did say I forgot to take pictures!), I took the train to Manhattan. Here is a glimpse of a day at the Museum of Modern Art. I saw so many fabulous things but my favorite exhibition was Stage Pictures: Drawing for Performance, a show of drawings and designs by artists, for the stage.

I wasn't allowed to use flash, so the photos are a bit blurry, but the drawings were wonderful, and films of the productions were projected onto the wall. The third drawing down, which is hard to see because, again, no flash, is a delightful example of line. And finally, Matisse's Red Studio.

Vine charcoal

In Sherrie's class I learned how to use vine charcoal in a wooden holder. The top photo shows all the materials; charcoal, sanding block, and holder. The next photo shows how to sharpen the charcoal. You actually hold the sanding block while you sharpen it but I couldn't do that and hold the camera at the same time. Voila, sharpened charcoal in a holder.

This was quite a revelation to me and I can't believe I got through four years of art school without learning this. Finally, I noticed that Sherrie holds her charcoal as in the final photo when she draws. This allows for a much lighter touch. This too was a revelation because I could never understand why my charcoal drawings would get so dark so quickly. It's very helpful to see how artists hold their tools, it's usually different than the grasp used for handwriting, but most beginners don't know this.

Bodhisattva

I love this one. I think I captured him in as few lines as possible.

America

A sculpture in the American wing.

Diana

She is in the entry way of the museum

From China

These are small ceramic sculptures that were found in Chinese tombs.

Soth India sketches

Devi

For the next few days I will show sketches that I did at the museum. I actually did these after the drawing workshop. I decided to go back with a sketchbook. I like how the following page comes through in a ghostly way.

To the museum

The day after I arrived I walked to the Philadelpha Museum of Art. The top is city hall as seen from the street, see my caryatids way up there? The second photo is halfway there, you can see the museum above the sculpture's leg. And the last two because I just love them. It still amazes me that anyone could carve such perfection. I would be in tears surrounded by shards of marble if I even attempted such a thing.

Philadelphia

I'm heading to Vermont today to visit my family, so I'm posting a little about my trip to Philadelphia, New Jersey, and New York City to show while I'm gone. I took very few photos, unintentionally. One time I thought I had my camera but didn't, another time I had my camera but forgot to charge the batteries.

What you see here is the view from my hotel window! I was ecstatic when I drew back the curtains. This is the type of thing I flew all the way from New Mexico for, especially the moodiness of the sky. And face to face with a beloved caryatid! The hotel was in the perfect location, just a ten minute walk from Studio Incamminati, and on the 17th floor. The fabulous Reading Terminal is where I ate at least once a day, including those jewel like East Coast strawberries that are red all the way through, purchased from an Amish farmer.

Halo

Sash

Do you ever feel like you're on the cusp of understanding something, but not to the point where you have the language to express it? In Philadelphia, I picked up a wonderful little book called 101 Things I learned in Architecture School, by Matthew Frederick. I've learned so much about design from the simple insights he shares on each page.

In one such insight, he says, "True architectural style does not come from a conscious effort to create a particular look. It results obliquely -even accidentally- out of a holistic process." He uses American colonial houses as an example. A builder in 1740 did not think "I really like colonial houses, I think I'll build one." Houses in those days used small panes of glass because that's what the technology of the time could produce. Shutters were not decorative, but functional, used to keep the sun out. Colonial architecture simply resulted from the materials and technology available at the time.

That relates to what I was trying to say at the end of this post, but I still can't figure out quite how to explain what I'm trying to say.

Niji

In this quick sketch I tried a fun tool called a Niji waterbrush. It's a brush that already has water in it, so it would be good for traveling. I have a hard time knowing which lines are relevant, and experimenting is the only way to find out. I admit, it's hard to post when you kind of want to keep your learning curve to yourself.

Line

This is a drawing using only line. I find this hard to do, knowing what line to put where, knowing what information is relevant. But the challenge intrigues me, the challenge of choosing a line then surrendering, trusting it so it doesn't look labored.

Sherrie said that most artists, when they are learning to draw, get so hung up on correct proportion that their line loses its life. She said the way to get around this is to draw lines with confidence first, and with practice your eye and hand will learn to hit their mark. This is opposite of the way most beginners think. They labor to "get it right" first, then try to add some sort of flair in the end because their drawing looks stiff.

Light

Sherrie McGraw pointed out that there are drawing drawings and there are painting drawings. Painting drawings are what I've been doing the last couple of days. That means putting masses of dark and light next to each other to create form. Drawing drawings create form using only line. I'll try to do one tomorrow to show what that means.

Sherrie McGraw's drawing class was excellent, I can highly recommend it to anyone considering studying with her. Often, art instruction suggests to "Just draw what you see". Sherrie's instruction is different, she emphasizes using line to convey only relevant information. She says "Don't copy, understand." Understanding what makes an image come alive on a page is the difference between a drawing and a rendering.

Waiting

For this one I rubbed powdered graphite and charcoal into the paper, then carved out the lights and darks. A student at Studio Incamminati showed me this technique. I loved Studio Incamminati and have been daydreaming about the day I can go back again. I will share more details as soon as I get the chance, if that day ever comes!

I was thinking about the bosatsu, and how their deep compassion allows them to postpone their own nirvana in order to guide every living being toward enlightenment. It just seems like they will have to wait a damn long time. I guess when you're enlightened though, you're not waiting for anything because you're already there.

Bosatsu on cloud

This is drawn from a photograph in a book called "Bosatsu on clouds" that I bought in Uji, because you're not allowed to photograph the bosatsu inside the temple.

Bosatsu study

For this one I used a pencil (or graphite, as they say in the art world) and something I hadn't used before called a stump. A stump is a paper tool used for blending. I was just testing it on a piece of copy paper but I enjoyed it so much that the face of a bosatsu emerged.

Sitting #2

This is a study from a detail of a photograph of a wooden bosatsu from Byodo-in Temple in Uji, Japan. There are 52 stunningly beautiful bosatsu carvings in this temple, and Uji is very famous for its high quality green tea.

Bosatsu means bodhisattva in Japanese. A bodhisattva is one who renounces nirvana, remaining on earth to help all living being attain enlightenment. Lately, I've been feeling drawn to images of those who aren't wracked with anxiety.

Sitting

The drawing class in Philadelphia was fabulous and I'll share details as soon as I get the chance. Tonight, some studies of my stone buddha on a paper I've never used before called pastel card.

No smoking

This blurry shot reflects my point and shoot photography skills. There were a few more signs left after this one, but the batteries ran out. The end of the road.

Hacienda

There is a time of night, when its no longer light but not yet dark, where neon is at its most beautiful. I think I captured it here.

Western View

The inside of the Western View is as great as the outside. The sun was setting and it's near our old house so I started getting the tristeza (sadness, but sounds more poetic and closer to how it feels in Spanish). It's also at the end of city before Route 66 turns into open road, just you and the big night sky.

Westward Ho

Can you imagine people did all this without the internet? No checking reviews on Hotel.com, navigating with GPS, emailing reservations, confirming by cell phone. Driving until you run out of gas or the sun sets, praying there will be a place to stay. The way history reflects the human capacity to just go moves me.

Duke's

Louie and I couldn't decide which one was better so I posted the same place yesterday and today, just different angles. This place is on the edge of town. Who was Duke? I think about him making the effort to build his own cafe, years of getting up early to scramble eggs, and wonder what the circumstances were to his walking away.

Cafe in the clouds

Mac's

Louie and I stopped here for a root beer float and a turkey club toward the end of the project.

Drive in Liquor

I love the way that pole to the right looks like a cross.

Kimo

The Kimo is still up and running in downtown Albuquerque. It was designed in Native American style, note the great trim at the upper right.

Aztec

Zia