Leaf Ghost #81

So many new experiences this time around!

This is the first time I’ve ever brought leaf ghost stuff on vacation with me. First time drawing with dip pens on an easel rather than a drawing table. And first time drawing outside (unless you count some class sessions in art school that I found unpleasantly overwhelming).

Here the experience was delightfully relaxing. The weather was perfect. The morning was full of birdsong, and when someone nearby started mowing the grass (like I needed to go on a trip to listen to that noise), I put on my headphones.

As wonderful as it was to lose myself in drawing, I admit that the cross hatching approach might not have been the best fit for vacation. It’s wonderful and meditative, but each drawing takes three or four hours to complete. And I have other things I like to do as well when I’m out of town.

Still, it was a great opportunity to try several new things. I’m glad I did it.

For the record, that’s Winsor & Newton Emerald and Vermilion. I packed the bottles of ink in an egg carton to keep them from shifting around and breaking in my luggage. 

And if you look closely at row seven, column four, the dark lines in the middle of the square were an accident. The hot tub on the deck kept turning itself on at random intervals, and each time it startled me. When I was drawing, it made my hand jerk, gouging the paper and getting a tiny scrap on the tip of the nib that made the lines too thick until I noticed what was happening and cleaned it off.