Dear Sarah 009
Of keys and capybaras
(Just joining us? These letters chronicle our full year of daily drawings and accompanying correspondence/conversation. Learn more about Sarah Harvey here. More info about me can be found here.)
Dear Nikki - January 9, 2024
A spa with capybaras? There better be some drawings of that!!! I'm looking forward to getting more art supplies soon--I have a list for the drawing course I'm starting in two weeks. My list includes something called a small stump, India ink, a dip pen and two inks, and two types of charcoal.
It turns out I like drawing with a pen! Knowing that I couldn't erase anything made me go very, very slowly and carefully. I dug out the book I used a few years ago to try and teach myself to draw (cover attached) and discovered that the first chapter concentrates on line drawing with no attempt to make anything three-dimensional, and the second chapter is "Turning Edges Into Objects." This approach really suits me, since I'm not good at (or I don't think I'm good at) learning something completely without instruction. You suggested drawing prompts a while ago; using the book is my version.
Here's a quote from the book that really resonated with me.
Avoid doing a verbal play-by-play as you draw. Instead, try to empty your mind of words. You'll find it easier to draw if you allow time for nonverbal, visual processing.
This sounds very meditative--and probably easier said than done.
The idea of approaching drawing nonverbally really appeals to me: It's not a bunch of keys, a library card and an upside down key ring in the shape of the Scrabble letter S. It's a series of intersecting shapes and lines. The author also talks about drawing objects that have meaning for you, or have shapes that please you. For me, that means drawing things that are nearby, in my house, since I'm not in, say, Japan. Tomorrow I may draw a jug or an egg beater or a pysanky. Or my cast iron Dutch oven, which is being put to use right now.
Bread is in the oven. My first time making the famous no-knead bread. It's not that I hate kneading, just trying something new.
Dear Sarah - January 9, 2024
I love your key ring - the SCRABBLE tag is intriguing - where did that come from? I also like drawing with pen - there is no option to erase, which is helpful when stomping on the head of the ugly inner critic. Take Fuji - my first several attempts (with my new pens - see previous message) had the slope far too steep. That’s still the case, but by adding the darker sides I sort of made the wrong angle less so and at the same time gave the grand old volcano a bit of volume. This was my view from a coffee shop at an outlet mall where the other members of our party headed off to do some shopping. In the foreground (not shown) was a small amusement park. The outlet mall was large, so I guess they need somewhere for the kids to go while the adults are shopping.
Said stop was on the way to the onsen (hot springs) resort we stayed at last night - on the coast - I need to Google to find out exactly where that was. To be clear, there were no capybaras in our hot spring-fed pools, but the capybaras we saw today at a regional zoo totally enjoyed their daily dip in their own private hot springs. They deserve a drawing all their own (their blocky heads surely couldn’t be too hard to draw??) but it is now getting very late and we are all weary after our travels. Also, very clean. I have never spent so much time in hot water as I did during the 24 hours or so we were at the onsen. Also, have never eaten fish in so many varieties.
Alas, my strength is fading before I can possibly describe all the new things I ate while we were away. Generally, I stay away from food that still has eyes, but in this case, I fully embraced whatever was being offered up and, yes, a tiny plate of teeny weeny fish may have been consumed… with relish. For breakfast. When in Rome…
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