Tag Archives: monochrome

Barry’s book

My friend Barry is writing a book about his recent experience of learning to use a wheelchair and the wider impact this has had on his life. He’s kindly asked me to illustrate the reflections and anecdotes; some are positive, … Continue reading

Posted in Barry's book, Bath, illustration, Lexington grey, monochrome, street scene, urban, urban sketching, waiting | Tagged , , , , , , , | 4 Comments

Selfies, again

The usual parade of glum and suspicious late night portraits… Sherry says the third one is how I’ll look when I’m seventy! In the second one my mouth is my third hand, holding the extra brush-pen I’m using. By the next one I’d … Continue reading

Posted in brush pen, faces, ink brush, Inktense, self-portrait, technique | Tagged , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Madeirans

People watching in Madeira, where the fine weather encourages lots of public loafing; very helpful for sketchers! The first three were done using Derwent Inktense pencils. They’re very smooth to draw with, quick to capture an expressive line, non-smudging (the key … Continue reading

Posted in figures, holiday, line drawing, Madeira, monochrome, pencil, people watching, urban, urban sketching | Tagged , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

City life

People about town; waiting for the lights to change so they can cross the road (excellent fast sketching opportunity, the tableau changes every couple of minutes…), watching a busker (the violin playing slack-rope walker I’ve sketched before, see below), dodging … Continue reading

Posted in Bath, brush pen, buskers, figures, ink brush, Kuretake, Lexington grey, monochrome, people watching, shoppers, street scene, urban, urban sketching | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

More illustrations

An antique phone, a g-clamp, and nine leather jackets; all from life, and all illustrating a particular story in Barry’s book. It’s interesting to be using fountain-pen for these, as almost all my daily sketching is now done using brush-pens. Pen-lines have … Continue reading

Posted in Barry's book, clothing, domestic, Lexington grey, line drawing, monochrome, technique | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Six corners

The same busy corner of a kitchen work-top, sketched on six different evenings, in fountain-pen, brush-pen and pencil. It could probably make a very dull time-lapse; sauce, wine and oil bottles slowly moving around the pepper grinder! Lexington grey in fountain-pen, … Continue reading

Posted in brush pen, coloured paper, domestic, ink brush, interiors, kitchen, Lexington grey, line drawing, monochrome, objects | Tagged , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

26 more Japanese commuters

More quick sketches from Japan, this time a collection of commuters at Kyoto main station around 10pm. I was sketching from one of the many high balconies (see below), pleased to catch a couple of salarymen in the middle of a … Continue reading

Posted in coloured paper, from life, inks, Japan, journeys, kit, Lexington grey, line drawing, monochrome, night, people, trains, urban | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | 3 Comments

38 boats

While in Stockholm we caught a ferry to Grinda, one of 30,000 (!) islands in the surrounding archipelago. We swam in the warm Baltic and I tried to sketch the many pleasure craft that passed. As most were going fairly fast I ended up with a collection … Continue reading

Posted in boats, coloured paper, holiday, Lexington grey, line drawing, monochrome, pencil, Stockholm | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 5 Comments

Worshippers, ancient and modern

Lexington grey fountain pen and water-brush, white Gelly Roll pen, white gouache, on coloured paper,  A5 – 10 minutes line drawing at the museum, and 30 minutes adding the light and shade at home A small fraction of the 2,000 votive figures … Continue reading

Posted in collections, coloured paper, exhibitions, Lexington grey, monochrome, museum, Stockholm, urban, white pen | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Afternoon shade

Another one from Portugal using gouache and inks on tinted paper. Sketched while sat in the shade of a spreading oak tree on one of the terraces in the fabulously strange and beautiful gardens of the Quinta Da Regaleira in Sintra. … Continue reading

Posted in botany, from life, garden, gouache, Portugal, sketching, travel | Tagged , , , , , , | 1 Comment