If you haven't discovered the whimsical work of Emma Fitzgerald I encourage you to visit her artist site.

Recently I've been working on character designs for a graphic novel. One design, contributed by my youngest, was a sketch of a rabbit with antlers and wings. Looking at my son's drawing I immediately thought of the folkloric creature called the Jackalope, a rabbit with the antlers of deer but no bird-like wings. Shortly after I stared some preliminary research into the standard physical appearance of the Jackalope I came across the familiar image of Albrecht Dürer's watercolo

I was leafing through my sketch books and I came across two pieces of work that at the time were each a monotonous struggle to produce but now that I examine the sketches I find them satisfying. In my September 25, 2018 post titled "vanderpoel's EYES" I discussed John H. Vanderpoel's 1935 book The Human Figure: Life Drawing for Artists and shared some of my sketches based on Vanderpoel's own studies found throughout the book. Below is a double page spread of my sketches based

Went to the Cabin Coffee shop for the first time. I've passed it a number of times but never entered. My youngest likes the wooden ducks in the windows and I find the rustic cabin decor cozy so I finally went in and tried sketching the patrons around me. The seats are clustered close together and I found it tricky to sketch my fellow customers a such close range. To my surprise the sketches I'm most pleased with (man and girl both wearing glasses) were of customers in closes

E. and I went to The Old Apothecary Bakery and Café; me to sketch and her to write. Below is a sketch of the young writer at work. This is only my second time at the Apothecary Bakery and I plan on visiting more often. The café has great atmosphere and the food is delicious. While we were there a tour group of 6 or 7 retired folk from a docked cruise ship sat, ate, and talked just a few seats away from us. It was fun listening to their conversation and on their way out they s

I have been coming to the World Tea House since 2012 to write or read, and lately to sketch. The service is excellent, the tea selection extraordinary, and the atmosphere calming. In August, N. and I went to the World Tea House and I did a few sketches--along with notes--including one of three friends drawing and talking together. #WorldTeaHouse #tea #ink #sketch #friends #Halifax

One of our favorite cafés is the Wired Monk Coffee Bistro. It's atmospheric, the walls are covered with fantastic local art, and they sell this amazing sweet caramelized walnut croissant. N. and I have been going to the Wired Monk lately to enjoy tea, reading, and sketching (and croissants). Below is a sketch of N. reading and the one below that is a rough sketch of a section of the Bistro's interior. The sketch includes some notes and reflections about the different memorabl

A couple of weeks ago N. and I went to Glitter Bean Cafe for the first time and each bought a tea. Glitter Bean is a cooperatively run, queer-centred coffee shop that opened in July and it served as the location for another two pages from my libraries and coffee shops sketch book. The interior of the coffee shop is open and bright so I felt very exposed when sketching some of the customers. When it came to sketching N. (above) I could take my time and linger when studying her

I enjoy sketching people in libraries and coffee shops. I do it quickly and discreetly. It's a challenge to nail down a pose, even a very rough and quick pose, because people are constantly moving, shifting, and fidgeting. I sketch fast but sometimes I need to wait for my subject to return to the original position I first started sketching them in. I have learned that people fidget in patterns or cycles: nose scratch, lean back, hand on chin, lean forward, nose scratch, hand

After trying my hand at reproducing some of Barbara Cooney's art from Christmas Folk, I thought I'd try reproducing something that was a little more playful, something in a so called cartoon style. Malcolm Livingstone's fun adaption of the classic Billy Goats Gruff from the My Big Book of Fairy Tales (1987), was just the challenge I needed. Livingstone's art is simple to look at but I found it difficult to imitate. The troll in particular took much longer to paint than I thou

Every Christmas my wife reads Natalia Belting's Christmas Folk (1969) to the children and we all love looking at Barbara Cooney's wonderful illustrations. Barabara Cooney's art is detailed, sweet, and inexplicably moving. I can't articulate the feeling her art evokes but if you are curious about her phenomenal career I highly recommend Dr. Nathan Perl-Rosenthal's 2017 wonderful piece in The Atlantic titled "What Would Miss Rumphius Do?" Below are a few of my attempts at mimic

In August my wife convinced me to pick up a handsome set of four sketch books manufactured by Studio. Normally I refrain from buying more art supplies than I can use at any given time but of the four unique cover designs only one complete set was in stock and I knew I would regret not grabbing them when I had the chance. While all four sketch books (roughly 8 x 11) offer 30 sheets of cream coloured paper bound in black cloth tape, each dark blue cover sports a different patte

Ross Farm Museum is a living heritage farm where the interpreters dress in period costume and perform the daily duties and responsibilities of early nineteenth century rural life. Settled in 1816 by Captain William Ross, his family, and 172 disbanded soldiers, Ross Farm is one of my family's favourite Nova Scotia Museums to visit year-round. If we don't get up to the farm this February we'll definitely be there in the spring once the piglets and lambs are born. The sketch abo

This Fall birds became an unexpected obsession at home and the city offered ample opportunity to indulge in the practice of "Birding." What I like about the three pieces below is how the different types of pen I used gave way naturally to different styles of sketching. The medium point pen used for the boys sketching at the Museum of Natural History (see below) was just starting to run low and it allowed for a nice broken line, and in just the right spots. A month's worth of

While I like the uncertainty and speed tied to drawing only with an ink pen, I do appreciate the greater flexibility that comes with putting down layouts in pencil before I introduce ink. The drawings above and below took a little more time than usual but it was worth it since I achieved the greater degree of realism I was aiming for by applying ink over accurate pencil layouts. #pencil #layouts #accuracy #ink #graphite

I've explained elsewhere on my site that one of my approaches to drawing involves foregoing the use of pencil layouts or sketching before introducing ink or paint into the piece. Drawing with ink is a risk as it affords little room for correcting any glaring mistakes but it's also very satisfying. It not only reduces the time I spend on a piece (therefore keeping it fresh), but it also forces me to commit fully to the first lines I put on paper. This ink drawing of a young bo