Trees in my Art

Pen sketch in my art journal
Woodpile under snow
Jan. 2009
You can see the Maple tree in the background,
along with Pines and a Pin Oak...

Watercolor done while painting with a friend.
Portion torn from practice page & mounted
in my art journal, 2009

Pen drawing inspired by Klee's art,
especially the "Twittering Machine"
2007

My first ever "Tip-In" for an altered book swap!
Watercolor and collage
2005

Watercolor in my art journal
Lake Erie park
2005

Pencil sketch from a Chinese art scroll
by Dong Qichang, Toledo Art Museum.
Watercolor added after returning home
2005
This scroll was housed in a glass case, and
the lights came on in the room as you entered, in order
to minimize light damage to the colors. As I stood and sketched,
the lights went out because I hadn't moved much, so I had to
walk around a bit every few minutes to keep the lights on
while I sketched!

Pen and colored pencil in art journal,
from a National Geographic magazine photo.
2003
Ruins of sculpture (South America or Mexico?)

Pencil sketch done in my sketchbook/art journal, 2001
Camp Avery Hand, Ohio (a Boy Scout Camp)
Had to darken the scan a bit...

Trees are a recurring image in my art.
I am intrigued by their variety of texture,
shape and personality. Bare winter trees
are even more interesting to me
as they have a sculptural quality
silhouetted against the sky.

Dawn asked if I have different journals for different media. I actually work in a journal until it's full, so the different media are all mixed in one book. It usually takes me a couple of years to fill a sketchbook/art journal.(So I am not terribly prolific!) I have one main art journal at a time, but might work in other smaller journals sporadically. This blog has served to inspire me to make something to post at least once a week!

In looking at my older sketchbooks, I did a lot of note-taking about composition, media techniques and ideas to be explored. I also enjoy collecting quotes about visual art, music and creativity, so those are also found in my journals. I believe an art journal should be whatever you want it to be, so pretty much anything goes. I have been known to glue in brochures from museum visits, write in notes from the exhibits I saw there, or paste in magazine clippings that I like or think might inspire some artwork later. The art in my journals reflects where I am in my development as an artist, so my older journals tend to have more drawings & watercolor work in them. As I've experimented with mixed media and combining elements of painted papers, drawing, fabric, and hand-carved stamps in collage, that is reflected in my art journal as well. Inspiration can be found almost anywhere. I hope you will act on that inspiration and create some art!