"Outside Clifden" pen & ink 6 x 6

Way back in 1989, I surprised my Mom with a 60th birthday trip to Ireland.  We spent a fabulous ten days driving up and down the west coast, from Shannon to Lahinch out to Clifden, than back and south to Galway, Saltill, Kenmare, Kilarney, Dingle, Ballybunion among other places. We covered a lot of ground. I am so blessed that we had the time together. 

Both Mom and I agreed that many times on our trip we opened our mouths to say hello to someone we knew realizing at the last second that we didn't know them at all.  They were another in a series of Irish doppelgangers (talk about crossing the language streams) for American friends or relatives who are just a fistful of generations from Ireland.  

Here's a sketch of some tractors at rest on the road outside Clifden, and a photo of Mom on our trip.

Thanks for looking. 

Arthur Rackham - Snow in Pines

 We had our second real snow of the season yesterday.  This one was heavy and wet, and resulted in loads of downed tree branches and power outages.  We lost ours for about 30 hours, and spent the afternoon hanging at the local coffee shop because I had grad school work to do.  We watched the sun go down, hoping we would arrive home to lights.
Stepping into the parking lot, the snow-covered trees caught my eye. I told my 

husband they were the Arthur Rackham trees from "The Night Before Christmas".  He saw it right away.  We read the book aloud every Christmas Eve. Here are a couple of pictures of the trees, and the illustration from our book.  The snowy angles are exactly the same, and maybe the trees in the coffee shop lot are talking to one another tonight under the starry sky.

And, we got home to the electric company trucks in front of our home.  Nice crew, men and women, working hard.  Our power came on within the hour!

"Weekend Getaway" oil 16 x 12

A few years ago I spent a great weekend in Provincetown painting with friends.  It was a cool couple of days, definitely pre-season, but so nice to be out walking the lovely streets with all their activity.
The January theme for my Girls Just Wanna Paint group was "referencing the golden section". Here's a good article about the proportions and how the ratio is incorporated into design.  
I have a few changes to make to this painting, but it captures the feel of the day, and uses the golden ratio as a basis for the design. 

Below are a couple of in process photos, and a pen and ink drawing.
 

"Snow Day" pen & ink 8 x 9

Two and a half years ago we invited a couple of kittens, fostered through the Standish Humane Society, to come live with us.  We told our contact through Standish, that we wanted a brother and sister pair.  Maggie and Fred are a treat; funny, loving, a bit wild, and unpredictable.   Yesterday was our first snow day of the year, and I spent the morning hanging on the couch with NPR on the radio, good coffee in my cup, and Fred curled up by my side.  Absolute bliss.

Rainy Day at the Coffee Shop 9 x 12 pen & ink

Another wonderful morning spent hanging in the coffee shop on Beacon & Charles Streets in Boston.  Parking is free in the city on Sunday so if you get in around 8:30, the streets are pretty open. I love watching the pedestrians, today pedestrians with umbrellas, walking in and out of the Common. It's so interesting to sit, draw, and listen to the buzz of conversations in the shop.  
I took a few reference photos of pedestrians to use in my drawing, but mostly, I like to try to grab their gesture as they wait for the traffic light.  

I think I'll add a little rainy day hint of color to the distance in this drawing.  I like to think of generations of people walking through the stone pillars at the corner of the Common.   

Rainy Day at the Coffee Shop - start

Childe Hassam "The Avenue in the Rain" 1917 and the West Wing

We have been binge watching "The West Wing" during this Christmas break.  I love the show, so wordy and fast-paced. I have no way of knowing if the show is an accurate depiction of the White House staff in action.  However, during a scene in the White House, I saw a familiar image in the background and looked it up.  Yes, this Childe Hassam painting, "The Avenue inthe Rain" 1917, is in the White House collection.  Turns out Childe Hassam painted at least 25 patriotic images with flags, many of 5th Avenue in New York.
During the latter part of his career, Childe Hassam lived in New York and had a studio near the 5th Avenue parade route.  In 1916 5th Avenue was the scene of a Preparedness Day parade, showing support for the US involvement in The Great War. The parade of 137,000 laborers, mothers, teachers, businessmen and doctors lasted over 13 hours. 
The flags were the inspiration for Hassam's patriotic series.

  

"Sunday Morning Coffee" pen & ink 6 x 8

Sometimes I drive into Boston on Sunday mornings, hang out at a coffee shop and either grade papers or do some drawing.  I was sketching today at a tall table, when I looked up and there was a friend I hadn't seen in quite a while.  We spent the next hour catching up, which was a gift on this beautiful morning.