Drawing Copy



13" x  18"



While I was working my way through my drawing classes some years ago, my teacher assigned a project asking us to make a copy of an old work of our choosing. Now I am disappointed that I can't recount where I found my drawing to copy except that it was in a book or who did it, although I'm not sure that an artist was even mentioned. I guess at the time I was just happy that it was very old and I loved it. So I picked a drawing size that I liked and got to work. There's something uncomfortable about copying another's work but I believe that one can learn a lot from it. I began by putting a wash of Burnt Sienna or Umber on my watercolor paper and then completed the drawing with brown ink, watercolor and white colored pencil. I'm not sure what the original artist used or had available at the time. It is one of my favorite drawings from school and surely makes me want to go to Rome and spend a summer drawing statues! Can you imagine that? I would love to know more about it so I've been wondering where I can find this statue or if it really does exist. I did find some statues on the Ponte Sant'Angelo, which is a bridge over the Tiber River in Rome but she was not there. :(

Last week I attended the dedication for this new sculpture that is at the main entrance to the art center where my studio is located. It is a 14 foot tall structure that is meant to provide a recognizable landmark for the center. I can guarantee that it will work better than the invisible sign that hangs 20' above the doorway! The sculpture was created by Norfolk, Virginia native and world class sculptor Rodney Carroll. Hopefully it will beckon people to come in and take a look! I like it.
See his website for more of his work:
www.rodneycarroll.com

Duck Decoys

When we were on the Eastern Shore of Virginia a couple of weeks ago, we visited the town of Chinoteague on Chincoteague Island. There we stopped by a shop to see the many decoys, about 2000!. Years ago they were made for hunters, of course, but now they are also popular decorating accessories and viewed as an important part of American Folk Art. Some are very primitive looking but many are finely carved and painted. Apparently the largest price paid for duck decoys was 1.3 million dollars for two by a Massachussetts artist in a private sale a few years ago! The first known collector was a man named Joel Barber who began his collection in 1918. Anyway, I've never seen so many ducks! And other birds.