Sketch and Knitting

I just keep doing what I do…

This time, I’m knitting no socks but a fingerless mitts/scharf set. The are “Merletto” pattern from ravelry.com. The scharf is an improvised bias knit triangle with the merletto pattern. Maybe more on that when it’s finished. I want something that keeps me warm but is not looking like i’m wrapping myself for deepest winter.

Last weekend would have been sketch crawl. I had family visiting and was exhausted from a hard week at work, so I didn’t make it there. I did a little sketch anyway. It is a charcoal sketch illuminated with watercolours. I realized again how much I love natural chacoal. I will have to do more of that.

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My Weekend two Weeks ago

Two weeks ago, we had a long weekend at Germany thanks to the Day of German Unity being a monday. I did so much I didn’t get to write postings about it.

Saturday, I was to a metal concert. Still without a camera, I can’t offer pretty pics. The headliner were Suicidal Angels, a thrash metal band from Greece. Loved them.

The real heros of the night were Red to Gray, a Bavarian thrash band that’s ten years old but never made it to financial greatness. Which is totally undeserved. They played powerfull and agressive yet unbelievably tight. I especially loved the complex rhythms and frequent rhythm changes.

The second band on the stage were Running Death, a local metal band. I’m not sure if they want to be death or thrash, they are young, but they sure have potential.

The opener were Decomposed Existence, a death metal band from greece. I like death either really, really evil or with a dash of melody and they were neither, but they know how to make music, so there, too, is potential for improvement. Also, I had a nice chat with the singer later that evening.

By the way, I have a new digital cam by now, and another concert ticket for mid november, so watch this space….

Saturday I was completely floored, I was in bed most of the day. In the afternoon, I dragged myself out of the door to do this; it is a little woodland pond in the woods near us.

Monday, I took my mum on a little hiking trip near Reutte/Tirol. It was a wonderful warm day, the last real summer day this year. The lake Urisee looked really romantic this day as you can see.

Sketches

Last weekend I have been painting a little in my sketchbook. Enjoy.

Yes, the next one shows tomatoes….

The marigolds have gotten too cold once already-

29th Worldwide Sketchcrawl

So there was a sketchcrawl again. We met at Nymphenburg Palace, but it was raining and very cold, and on my way there i stept onto something that made a hole in my shoe. So we went indoors in a little museum that has carriages and porcelain.

The first one is a pencil sketch of some metal ornament on a carriage.

That was another ornament on another carriage. It is unfinished, because they didn’t allow us to return to that part of the museum after leaving it for lunch.

We had a nice lunch with lots of chat in a little french restaurant. After that we went to the porcelain department of the museum. There I painted three bird statuettes made from porcellain.

The first one is a peacock. the pentel waterbrush I own really has changed sketching for me. Now I can do watercolour sketches almost as easiely as pencil ones.

A guinea fowl made of porcelain. I love their sleightly stylised forms and lovely colours. I figured out that I find it annoying to work without black in my paintbox. As you see here, I can mix grey without it, but it takes too much time and produces a mess on the little palette.

The last one was another peacock. I was in a hurry because everybody else wanted to leave. The form is not that good but I like its colours.

Sketching, Stitching, Crocheting

So sorry I neclected my blog. My cold was still lingering, and heaps of stuff to do at work. I always was so exhausted after work. I don’t like staring at a computer or doing too detailed embroidery with sore eyes. Now I’m really better and regular blogging and crafting will hopefully resume.

First I show a little sketch done outdoors, It shows, well, corn, and a little pointless doodling with colour. I call it “the colours of corn”.

Second is a little sneak peak at some crochet I did on the commute. I’ll show more of it after hiding the loose ends, washing and blocking.

Last, another sneak peak at some embroidery I currently work on.

Sketchcrawl of July

I feel better, but still sort of worn out. So I take the chance to post some more stuff I didn’t get round to before my vacation. There was another sketchcrawl in july. We went to Olympia Park, the weather was very sunny and hot.

I tried to sketch this duck, but when I got to filling in the colours I ran out of bread crumbs and it waddled away.

Next I tried my luck with some geese, they were not as likely to run but the things they can do with their long necks defied my sketching abillities.

There was a little funfair in place, and I went on to sketch the ferris weel – again no success, it looks like something done at kindergarden. Too many moving parts and complex perspectives for me.

The last sketch os a part of Fernsehturm (TV broadcasting tower). Like always with buildings, I miscalculated its size so it didn’t fit my paper, otherwise I’m content with this one.

I finished the day with a delicious thai lunch from one of the food stalls at the fun fair, the others continued but I had to leave to prepare a few things for my upcoming vacation. It was a great day with my sketching buddies, although my results are less than stellar.

Pinus strobus sketch

What the title says. Again done on a short break while inline skating. I do feel I’m getting better.

General “Life is Good” Posting

Sorry the chaotic timeline, the pics here are from the last two weeks. I just HAD to post about Dennis Hopper first. Life is good these days, even when it’s not exactly wild.

About fiber content: I’m knitting like mad, and stitching a little. But this is all slow work, and seeing scarves grow in 10 cm steps and embroidery in square centimeters would only bore you. Charting knitting or crochet is also tendious and time consuming. You will eventually see such content again.

Sketch of a peony that will soon open, done during a short break while inline skating.

Another sketch from another inline skating afternoon. I did this one standing under a bridge by the river, without taking my hand gear off, so it’s kinda simple.

A pond in the woods.

Wee little swans in the park, I see them often on my way home. There are eight of them this year.

Father hugo’s rose, one of my favourite once flowering roses. Unfortunately, they don’t quite like the climate of mx hometown, so this one is no impressive shrub I could showcase whole.

R.I.P Dennis Hopper

A great one has left us. I probably can’t say more intelligent or touching things about him than already have been said. I think Easy Rider and the lifestyle of Hopper and his ilk had a deep and lasting influence on today’s culture and counterculture. What’s probably greater, he did what he felt like, and was good at it most of the time. Check out his paintings and photography if you haven’t.

In interviews he claimed that his drive behind painting and doing photography is that he wants to leave something behind that lasts. But while his art is good, he left the most lasting impressions on the world by just being himself. Of course, being driven was an impotant part of it.

My most poignant memory about him would be that saturday afternoon I watched The Last Movie and fiercely tried to enjoy it, while the rest of the family kept complaining about that “awful waste of two hours”. I think I was in my late teens and had seen Easy Rider recently. He was not even of my generation, I’ve been born 1972.

For a few moments I was contemplating doing some sort of commemorative art. But again, what could I do that hasn’t been done? Also, I can’t draw a harley. So I’m going to honour a wild one by being wild. I had an automatic drawing session today and post the results, which I wouldn’t normally do. And yes, I’m gonna drink more than one beer in his honour as soon as opportunity arises. When I do those I scribble or paint with closed eyes until it feels enough, then I paint over this what I feel like.

Some time ago I wanted to stop that separation between private and public art, seems I haven’t gone as far on this path as I told myself I did. It’s people like Dennis Hopper who remind me what joy there is in being wild, being myself. Probably we’d better not go as far in this as he did at times, but I know I could use some more of his spirit.

Two pics without title

Black ink and acrylics on watercolour paper, the first one raw the second one coated with white acrylic paint first.
Size: 17*24 cm

I’ve Been to Metalfest Austria

Yes, a 4-Day metal festival! There was lots of rain and temperatures < 10 degree celsius, but we met very nice people with a pavilion, camping chairs and a fire, so it didn’t matter. Thank you guys and girls if you read this!

I saw lots of bands, I especially liked Vader, Bolt Thrower, Testament and Behemoth. Korpiklaani were good fun.

Ah it was so good, almost like being young again. The week at work was close to torture, I haven’t been that tired for a long time, but never mind. This sure won’t be my last festival.

Sadly, I had problems with my cam, so there aren’t that many pics to chose from.

Well, the pineapple on the second page contained something very tasty and very alcoholic. After drinking from it I dragged out my sketchbook and sketched that beer. The pineapple is a guest sketch by our neighbor and pineapple donator. Was the only occasion on the festival I was crazy enough to sketch.

The photographer on the stage is the very guy who supplied the pineapple and sketch. Check out www.apesmetal.com for his work.

Another one of our photographer neighbors. I hope you guys don’t mind, but if you want me to take these pics down just say so.

These are Six Feet Under, I think. They did a very good show, and it’s one of the few acceptable band photos I’ve got.