Category Archives for drawing

Time lapse drawing: Bleed

Song is Radiohead’s Reckoner.

Steps: pencil, black ink, erase, watercolors, wet the paper, drip paint, draw in petals and flowers.

I was thinking of lots of things with this one: the initial idea was that of holding something so tight – in this case imagine an excruciatingly cute little palm-sized creature – so tight – that you crush it. Gross, right? But then in the sketching phase instead of clasping her hands together I had her form two separate fists, so this no longer works unless she was holding two (!) excruciatingly cute little critters. So, basically, this piece is about desire, and pain; wanting something so bad that you actually destroy it.

The title, “Bleed”, references both the pink trickle down her arms, and the painting process of wet-on-wet watercolors, literally dripping ink onto the paper and watching the colors run.

Also thinking of the lyrics to Gravenhurst’s Black Holes in the Sand.

Coming back to the drawing after taking a break, it occurs to me that it also looks as if she just dominated in a street fight, which uh, works for me too and is equally bad-ass. This girl can beat you up sitting down! The fist is such a charged gesture.

The humble Locket

Most popular during the Victorian Age, lockets are either hanging pendants, pins, or rings meant to house photos, pictures, or even a lock of hair. Powder, medicine, herbs, poison, ashes or good luck charms were (are?) also common… basically anything small that could be carried around and kept handy. During times where bathing was sort of a luxury, lockets could hold cotton balls soaked in perfume. Lockets always remind me of being little, when tiny objects were so precious that you wanted to keep them with you always: seed pods, notes, pebbles, little bones, insect wings. Though these lockets are like most manufactured today: meant for holding pictures, but they could be filled with just about anything: I like to think of them as the smallest possible <portable> curio cabinet!

Locket containing George Washington and Martha Washington’s hair sold at James D. Julia Auctions August 5, 2009 for $ 7,475.00 (source here)

(source here)

This Victorian Era locket was found in 1971, inside a cave on Okinawa.  There are four different locks of hair which some are light brown or blond.  Presumably the locket was lost by a U.S. servicemember during the battle.  No other identifing marks. (source)

The way in which lockets can be memorial, housing likenesses and even bodily remnants …basically… makes them relics – some powerful stuff! Photography of religious relics generally seems to be forbidden, but check this one out! It would need a HUGE locket:

Saint Vincent’s arm (source), tucked away in Valencia’s city cathedral.

Here are some of the lockets I’ve constructed in the past week or so:

(Maybe one to keep hair in?)

Cafe Racer art show

It’s been a long time since I’ve spent any time in the University District, and this was the first time I’ve actually been to Cafe Racer. Off of Roosevelt, this little hole-in-the-wall is kind of awesome, walls smattered with self-admittedly “bad art”, couches in the back, good food, and they make a delicious mocha, served in a pint glass.

My booth and enthusiastic booth bunnies!

The show was cozy, friendly, quick (only being five hours) and lots of fun.

I managed to score one of Jen Ralston’s fantastic plushies (whose work you may remember from the flier) – who is now named Lorenzo:

(“Look how cute I am!”)

Her work is great. All of her little creatures are perfectly palm-sized, and they just make you want to scoop them up and hold them.