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

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

John H. Vanderpoel's 1935 book, The Human Figure: Life Drawing for Artists, contains 430 pencil and charcoal drawings by the author and artist including a self portrait (see below). The book offers detailed descriptive writing on the the structural components of the eyes, face, hands, feet, etc. with an emphasis on how the parts come together to make the whole. As Vanderpoel writes in his introduction: "Every stroke of the artist's brush [pencil] should prove his [her] unders

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

Back in April I stumbled across an article at the Ultimate History Project website titled "Baby Farmers and Angelmakers: Childcare in 19th century England." It was a disturbing account of the terrible mistreatment of children under paid fosterage in Victorian England. The article included a photo labeled "Slum children in London, c. 1880" and it prompted me to execute a very quick sketch of what is perhaps two siblings huddle close together (sketch below): The experience of

I recently took time at work over lunch to sketch portraits of prominent women in theological thought. Above is a sketch (done in HB pencil) of the Jewish French mystic and philosopher Simone Weil (1909-1943). The photo used for reference (circa 1921) is uncredited but readily accessible online. For more about Simone Weil please visit the American Weil Society. The above sketch (done in 2B pencil) is of Catherine Pickstock, Fellow and Professor of Metaphysics and Poetics of E

This past October and November I focused on producing quickly rendered portraits. I wanted to improve the accuracy of rendering a likeness while maintaining a fast pace. I used a 2H pencil and, depending on the image, I allowed myself 10-15 minutes maximum for each sketch. Below is small sample of some the portraits I produced. Note: while the sketches are my own, the photographs used for reference do not belong to me and were sourced from Google Images. At the time, I did no

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

With the two portraits below I was trying to produce a very quick but accurate likeness of my subjects, and to achieve this goal I chose to use either conté or grease pencil. I am pleased with the likeness rendered in this first portrait. The conté glided across the paper in a trail of it's own debris, and although the subject's chin and bottom lip is a little too large, I managed to correct them somewhat by softening the lines (for the lip) and darkening the surrounding area

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