1/13/19 Maple Leaf Park |
The Maple Leaf water tower is probably my most-often sketched artifact within walking distance
of my house. On days when our usual mid-January doldrums are broken by
well-deserved sunshine, I don’t care where I go – I just start walking, and
Maple Leaf Park is where I often end up.
As I studied the tower, I was thinking about color but found
myself reaching for my trusty Blackwing pencil instead. In bright sunlight, the
tower is full of interesting cast shadows from the girding around it. But the
most intriguing – and challenging – are those difficult shadows that describe
its form – a cylinder around the middle, a saucer on top and another on the
bottom. I love graphite for that type of shading; I haven’t used any other medium
that is able to express roundish shading in quite the same way.
Love this sketch! You’ve convinced me about the beauty of pencil sketches (watercolor and graphite).
ReplyDeleteI am finding that when I add color to one of my sketches I don’t like it as well at times!
Thanks, Cathy! When I used to use watercolor, I often found that I ruined a relatively good drawing when I added watercolor and regretted it. Plain old graphite can be the height of elegance and simplicity.
DeleteYour shading on the tower is really well done in this sketch...bravo!!!
ReplyDeleteThank you, Joan! Alas, that beautiful weather is now just a memory.
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