Everyday Sketches

I enjoy growing a variety of tomatoes — for the taste, colour and shapes. These are just a few of this year’s crop.

A quick sketch of part of a beautiful garden where I had a chance to spend a couple of days. The apple trees were fully laden with fruit.

The ink drawing was done on site, the colour added later from a photo reference.

In the town of Alexandria there are many older buildings, including the occasional barn still standing from the early days of agriculture by Scots immigrants. Our local Glengarry Sketchers group met up at the site of one of them today.

It was chilly and overcast when I started this sketch.

Then the blue skies and sun gradually appeared to produce some shadow on the barn. (I’m still searching for the right colour for barn wood, this one got a bit overworked).

I grew zinnias from seed this year so I’d have flowers for cutting all summer. They have grown very well, and, once cut, last a long time in the vase.

This day lily is one of my favourites – I love it’s robust, intense blooms. Painting yellow flowers is tricky, requiring grey for the shadows and faith that it will look right when dry, which is a challenge for me. Practice will help. Fortunately this beauty will keep blooming for a few more weeks.

I found some wild blackberries growing in among the wild lilacs.

There are some robust buds and blooms in my garden as the day lilies come into flower. A wet spring gave them a good start. I found a bit of shade to stand and observe and sketch.

Our local sketching group headed to the Glengarry Pioneer Museum last Saturday. I brought an older sketchbook with me in which I had left one blank double-page spread. I easily found a view to fill it. I took my time with the drawing and elected not to go over it with pen, but just to start painting. It took awhile, including a pause to consult Working with Colour by Shari Blaukopf for a good mix for darks. The Sap Green + Carbazole Violet combo was a revelation!

I had hoped to get two sketches done that morning, so, with only a bit of time left I elected to do a quick sketch, drawn directly with pen and then some watercolour.

Here are the results of a slow and of a fast approach.