Mornings with Grandma

Pictured is Emma my granddaughter. We sometimes spend mornings together. On these occasions, we build stages for performances, swimming pools with cabanas, and caves for unicorns. We build our fantasies out of colored paper, cardboard, and scotch tape. Of course, with all of this building, we get hungry. So strawberry and chocolate donuts is a must to sustain all of this activity. 

Tinged with a touch of envy, It is enjoyable watching a child dream. To go to a place where morning glories truly do become fashion statements. 

       

Silver Sable German Shepherd

 

Super Sally

Sometimes we make the wrong assumptions. She was playful, gentle, and patient  

Jaunita

    

Colby's Charolais Fred

Handsome Fred is huge, but also sweet. This is due to a lot of pampering. This is reasonable because what is there not to like about Fred.

Using Strathmore Bristol Vellum

Graphite on Strathmore Bristol Vellum

If someone mentions graphite used as a medium for artwork, I always think of artist/illustrator Paul Calle. Although he worked in other mediums, he did amazing works using graphite. I always thought his style, with its controlled, directional strokes, was unique. He also used Bristol board frequently for many of his graphite illustrations. 
So I thought that I would give it a try. 

Charcoal on Strathmore Bristol 

This is an example of charcoal used on Strathmore Bristol Vellum.

Plein Air: Pearland Rice Canal

This is a 12" x 15" plein air oil sketch of a rice canal crossing County Road 100 in Pearland, TX.

I finished this sketch in September, and it took three mornings and a can of Gulf Off. 

Here are more sketches of the rice canal. There are tons of turtles, and the neighborhood kids try to trap them by tying bait to the end of a string and flinging it over the side of the bridge. The bottom picture depicts a crude oil pipe-line crossing the canal going to a storage tank on the other side.