Drawn From The Heart » On The Easel

Drawing Still In Process – Take A Peek At Earth Seed

Carol — Mon, 01 Mar 2010 12:54:34 +0000

I was up to my neck in creation last week. One idea after another kept coming at me and I took notes as quickly as I could, but some of them got away. Oh well. They’ll come back someday I suppose.

I’ve scanned a few parts of Earth Seed. Some parts are much more developed than others because I’m not working over the entire drawing consistently, but it’ll be finished in a little while and then I’ll release it back into the wild. (I have a capture and release program for creative ideas.)

Earth Seed Drawing Concept Map

Beneath > Earth Seed WIP

Carol — Mon, 01 Feb 2010 23:06:05 +0000

The drawing called Beneath has become Earth Seed. I hope this mind map explains why.

Beneath Becomes Earth Seed

Click image to see enlargement.

Beneath – Exploration Drawing WIP

Carol — Thu, 26 Nov 2009 14:26:43 +0000

I’m working on an “exploration” drawing. My explorations begin with a feeling or meaning and I keep drawing until I find it on the paper. In this one, I’m looking for the feeling in this series of words:

under>beneath>shelter >protected >insulated

I’m not sure where the desire to draw “under” or “beneath” came from, but it had been floating around in my mind, in one form or another, for a few weeks. I’d sketched a sprouted bulb shape over and over again without knowing why until I saw it emerge in this drawing.

In addition to exploring a feeling, this drawing works with spaces and shapes. It feels very physical when I pull the drawing out of the paper with highlights and push it back in again with shadows. Drawing like this makes me feel in tune. With everything.

FYI

WIP = Work In Progress

There’s no image of this piece to show you because I don’t have a scanner at the moment. (I’m working on that.)

It may be that I don’t have a scanner because many things about this drawing are unclear, and showing it to you would make me feel vulnerable. (I’m working on that too.)

Valentine’s Day Drawing – Heart and Apple Blossoms

Carol — Sat, 07 Feb 2009 14:37:54 +0000

Valentine With Apple Blossoms

We had a Valentine’s Day Exchange today and my drawing was a challenge. I discovered that it’s difficult to balance a design in a heart shape unless it’s symmetrical, and I didn’t have a symmetrical image that looked right in a heart shape! Quite a conundrum. Then the flower and leaf forms of the apple blossom image, that I finally decided on, had to be emphasized slightly more than nature intended to give the eye something to catch on other than color. I added the Trompe-l’oeil frame around the heart because the shape didn’t seem finished and wanted a weighted edge that says “I am enclosed and defined by this shape.”

Here’s my creation.

Roots – WIP a Little Farther Along

Carol — Mon, 12 Jan 2009 14:45:41 +0000

Here’s where I am on Roots. As you can see, I’m working in the details using small squares. To do that I cut small squares out of paper (masks) and place them around an area to draw. Masks keep me focused on one area at a time so I can get all the tiny little details in the right place. I probably won’t use the masks to draw the borders of this drawing because I want to invent various shapes and shadings as I create it.

I found this drawing when the leaves were still around and I felt a call to look for a representation of “sanctuary.” I wandered around and took several photos but didn’t feel as though I’d caught the feeling in any of them. Then, just as I gave up, this tree with her roots exposed seemed like the most beautiful thing I’d ever seen. As soon as I gave up my rational and systematic search for a scene that expressed an emotion, I found what I was really looking for.

This tree’s roots are embracing those leaves, and there’s a lovely bare spot to sit snuggled up to her trunk right between them, if you are a small creature.

Roots WIP