(Click on paintings or drawings below to view larger size.)



Saturday, June 16, 2012

Another View of Mount Fuji




When Fujifilm asked if they could use an image of my Virtual Paintout “Postcard from Mount Fuji” to demonstrate the high quality of their printers, I didn’t realize right away that this would lead me to discover the world of canvas prints. I had thought prints would pale in comparison to real paintings, but - to my astonishment - the result was excellent. When enlarged, my tiny brushstrokes seem transformed into huge colour marks that stand out on the canvas. They’ve explained to me that they use a special printing process on a Fujifilm Acuity UV (ultraviolet curing) printer, where ink is water based and when exposed to UV light, the molecules bond to each other and to the support. The water then dries up immediately.

 

I've tried this out on other small paintings and sketches.  They not only withstood magnification but have been given a whole new life – no longer limited to just one wall or hidden in a sketchbook on a shelf.  For instance, I now have a giant enlargement of my tiny 5" x 8" sketch of Ostend on my office wall. After spending two years reducing everything to thumbnails for computer monitors, it's a lot of fun seeing big for a change! Thanks Fujifilm!

Saturday, June 2, 2012

Le Kauwberg - les dessins


I never tire of drawing the patterns created by the slopes and foliage of this park. On May 27th, I brought my Faber-Castell Polychromos and 8.5" x 11.5" Daler Rowney sketchbook there -- I've decided this is the combination that works best for this subject -- and I captured a small family picnic in the grass (above).


In March I drew the sand of the former quarry using the same FCP coloured pencils in an 8.5" x 11.5" Strathmore sketchbook which has lighter paper but it's also grainier so I was less happy trying to make that combination work. 

I find it so difficult to come up with the perfect drawing kit -- always trying to find a lightweight solution that includes everything I could possibly need. The FCPs are too heavy now that I've assembled such a large set but if I try to narrow down the selection, I'm convinced I'll be missing an essential colour. 

Every season at Le Kauwberg provides new inspiration but I tend to spend more time there in Spring:

5.5" x 8.5" DR sketchbook in early June 2010
8.5" x 11.5" DR sketchbook  + FCP in April 2010
8.5 x 11.5 DR sketchbook + Derwent Coloursoft + FCP in April 2011
I've saved most of the above images to my Flickr account as well.  Here is a link to a drawing from late summer last year: 20 August 2011.    (8.5" x 11.5" DR sketchbook + FCP) 

More to come!