There's definitely something about pine cones that make them such a fascinating object to study. I love the series of illustrations you made of them. But particularly the bottom-right corner one where the lines are barely touching each other. Its slight abstraction is appealing, Nikki-
Thank you for reading and your comments. Taking another look at this made me think I should go find some more pinecones and have another crack at drawing them. They really are fascinating!
Thank you for your sharing. Your openness, your reflections, your honesty, and insites. You are such an enjoyable read, and it tickles and inspires my creativity. Hope you'll still sneak in posts when you're in school.. Keep on enjoying. 🥰
Oh, Judy - thank you for your kind words. I am hoping to keep posting regularly while in school - I'm so excited about this new adventure I won't be able to keep it to myself. I hope you keep reading!
I too noticed the hand holding the pine cone. Excellent. Pine cones aren't bad either. Our yard is covered in them and I have admired the various shapes. but haven't dared to try and draw them.. Good for you.
They are fascinating when you get up close and personal with them. No two alike - so many variations in shape, size, colour, texture, crispiness (maybe some of those I found were actually from the previous year?) It was a fun exercise, one I'll do again with pebbles or leaves or something. It sure forced me to slow down and really look closely.
I’m facing a dilemma now that I’ve made the switch from illustrating via pencil/ink/watercolors to stylus/iPad/Procreate. Will I really bring my technology on a hike? Meld the two using a pencil sketch as art reference? I don’t know! I feel like one of those apes in 2001: A Space Odyssey, who banged on an obelisk and was transported. But, where? Maybe I should piss on the obelisk instead?
Hi Peter - it's funny - I was chatting in another comment thread with @susannahelizabeth about Procreate... I have inherited Dad's iPad (on which he has Procreate) and some time back did a little experimenting. What an amazing tool!! (Though, it also seemed like yet another thing I was trying to teach myself, which felt a bit overwhelming). BUT - I don't want to stuff it in my pack when I set out on the bike or on a hike... Good old notebook and pen are portable and resilient. That said, I am thinking maybe the combination of starting with a sketch and then continuing to work on it after importing into Procreate might be a good strategy...
I know. Another thing to learn! But another opportunity to grow! Life is exhausting, isn’t it? And yet, I love Procreate! The four “beginners’” seminars produced by Procreate (find ‘em on YouTube) are excellent, and I have a big crush on the présenter Christiane. She’s great, and so engaging! Love her Kiwi accent! I’ve watched them trough several times now and learn more every time. Worth the work I think. And you’ll learn how to pop a reference drawing on to the screen, and work over it, to bridge between pencil and Procreate. Kind of amazing really.
There's definitely something about pine cones that make them such a fascinating object to study. I love the series of illustrations you made of them. But particularly the bottom-right corner one where the lines are barely touching each other. Its slight abstraction is appealing, Nikki-
Thank you for reading and your comments. Taking another look at this made me think I should go find some more pinecones and have another crack at drawing them. They really are fascinating!
You definitely should!
Thank you for your sharing. Your openness, your reflections, your honesty, and insites. You are such an enjoyable read, and it tickles and inspires my creativity. Hope you'll still sneak in posts when you're in school.. Keep on enjoying. 🥰
Oh, Judy - thank you for your kind words. I am hoping to keep posting regularly while in school - I'm so excited about this new adventure I won't be able to keep it to myself. I hope you keep reading!
I too noticed the hand holding the pine cone. Excellent. Pine cones aren't bad either. Our yard is covered in them and I have admired the various shapes. but haven't dared to try and draw them.. Good for you.
They are fascinating when you get up close and personal with them. No two alike - so many variations in shape, size, colour, texture, crispiness (maybe some of those I found were actually from the previous year?) It was a fun exercise, one I'll do again with pebbles or leaves or something. It sure forced me to slow down and really look closely.
I’m facing a dilemma now that I’ve made the switch from illustrating via pencil/ink/watercolors to stylus/iPad/Procreate. Will I really bring my technology on a hike? Meld the two using a pencil sketch as art reference? I don’t know! I feel like one of those apes in 2001: A Space Odyssey, who banged on an obelisk and was transported. But, where? Maybe I should piss on the obelisk instead?
Hi Peter - it's funny - I was chatting in another comment thread with @susannahelizabeth about Procreate... I have inherited Dad's iPad (on which he has Procreate) and some time back did a little experimenting. What an amazing tool!! (Though, it also seemed like yet another thing I was trying to teach myself, which felt a bit overwhelming). BUT - I don't want to stuff it in my pack when I set out on the bike or on a hike... Good old notebook and pen are portable and resilient. That said, I am thinking maybe the combination of starting with a sketch and then continuing to work on it after importing into Procreate might be a good strategy...
I know. Another thing to learn! But another opportunity to grow! Life is exhausting, isn’t it? And yet, I love Procreate! The four “beginners’” seminars produced by Procreate (find ‘em on YouTube) are excellent, and I have a big crush on the présenter Christiane. She’s great, and so engaging! Love her Kiwi accent! I’ve watched them trough several times now and learn more every time. Worth the work I think. And you’ll learn how to pop a reference drawing on to the screen, and work over it, to bridge between pencil and Procreate. Kind of amazing really.
Ok - sold :) I’ll give this another go...
Not to overstay my welcome in your comments, but I wrote about my own transition from sketch pad to iPad here. https://petermoore.substack.com/p/goodbye-old-paint Good luck!