365 Things To Draw: Week 11

A late post of last week's drawings...

Beaners Fun Cuts

My son gets a professional haircut in a kids' car (my daughter also, earlier, on a pony) at Beaners Fun Cuts, in preparation for some future events.

365 Things To Draw: Week 10

This week's series have all been coloured using "gansai".

Bach's B minor Mass at the Winspear

A small sketch while waiting for the Richard Eaton Singers and the Alberta Baroque Ensemble to assemble on stage, for a performance of J.S.Bach's Mass in B Minor... one of my favourite compositions by my favourite composer of all time. This was the second live performance of this piece that I have experienced (the other was by Pro Coro, a much smaller choir several years ago). It's wonderful to experience the music this way as so many new discoveries about the music are made.

Hina-matsuri 2014

 March 3rd is Hina-matsuri in Japan, commonly referred to as "Girls' Day" or "Doll Day". We were blessed to have received an elaborate set of Hina dolls last summer which we set up this year in our dining room. Unfortunately, we seemed to be missing a series of dolls and other decorative pieces, but we replaced them with some stuffed toys and a bed sheet to make a fun and eclectic, "localized" version of a traditional custom.

365 Things To Draw: Week 9

This week's daily doodles...!

Chinese restaurant, Pacific Mall

Only three tables were occupied on this cold and quiet Wednesday night at one of the largest Chinese restaurants in the city.

365 Things To Draw: Week 8

My son's depiction of a ruler shows some promise, with a burgeoning ability to put down on paper what he sees in front of him. At the same time, I'm a little torn by the fact that this is a sign that he's making a transition from drawing for the sheer joy of markmaking, to a mode of drawing that will inevitably lead to the pursuit of realistic depiction as an ideal (not always a good thing).

Missionsfest 2014

 A peaceful view across the river from the Shaw Conference Centre, where we attended Missionsfest and heard a powerful testimony and message by Setan Lee, who survived the Pol Pot regime and was led to forgive his tormentors.

sleeping

 My son sleeps after a long day stuck at home with a cold.

For a change, I've used a larger (at least for me, anyway) 11x14 pad... so freeing. 

Elk Island hikes on Family Day

 It is Family Day in Alberta, and today happened to be (arguably) the most beautiful day of the season with bright blue skies and very mild temperatures.
I needed to get my snowshoeing fix and made an afternoon solo trip out to Elk Island National Park. The snow conditions were perfect on the Hayburger Trail; meanwhile (unlike previous visits) Astotin Lake only had an inch of snow cover and did not require snowshoes. It's a different experience every time.

365 Things To Draw: Week 7

This week's calendar drawings, full of more intentional collaborations with my daughter.

dining chairs at IKEA

I had a few hours to kill and decided to spend some time at IKEA. There are many uses of IKEA stores including dining (if you can call it that), entertainment, and of course (planned or rash) shopping. (Also, filming.) I discovered that sketching also has rich possibilities.

I have an ongoing fascination with chairs. Especially dining chairs. They seem to most closely reflect the same kinds of issues that arise in the conception of buildings, except on a much smaller scale... things like comfort, economy, structure, style, craft, ritual... I believe that dining tables should be full of different chairs, all with unique characteristics like the individuals sitting on them. Naturally, I bought yet another chair.

more skyline doodles

 A series of (mostly) blind contour sketches of the Edmonton skyline from the west. I really enjoy doing these... the process is really quite liberating and full of unexpected surprises.

365 Things To Draw: Week 6

Week 6 drawings.