I chose to put this elephant behind the foreground decor to give a feel of space and depth. I painted the background with a graded wash for the light effect. I was inspired by the African theme when I chose the golden pattern reminiscent of African design.
This sketch was done mainly with watercolours and brush pen. I did not feel the need to put any comment or lettering as the elephant was naturally taking a lot of space already in this double spread.
I did this sketch using on purpose the elegant writer pen which bleeds when you touch the line with water. I liked the result which gives a watery colour to the feathers.
I found a Thai proverb matching very well my double spread. Very meaningful!
Impressed by this magnificent creature, I painted it in my sketchbook adding some gold accent and framed the watercolour/brush pen sketch with some decorative tape. In the little lettering above the horn, I used the word learning curve for obvious reasons !
Today is a rainy day in the South of France and definitively a good day for frogs!
Interesting facts : Frogs are amphibians and the word “amphibian” comes from a Greek word that means “both kind of lives.” This is because frogs start their lives in the water and then live on land.
The British have been poking fun at the French for their penchant for eating frog’s legs since the 16th century by calling them “frog-eaters,” now commonly shortened to just “frogs.” But did you know that the Chinese are known to have eaten frog’s legs for millennia, and the Aztecs were partial to them too ?
Marmots painted in watercolour and pen brush in my watercolour sketchbook.
Marmots can be seen in our region in the Mercantour National Park, North of the French Riviera running along the border with Italy. Marmots typically live in burrows, and hibernate there through the winter. Burrows can be as deep as 7 meters (22 feet).
They generally begin hibernating in late September and survive entirely on their fat reserves accumulated during the Summer.
They emerge through the snow in April and early May (now), during which time there may be nothing to eat, and when they are especially vulnerable to predators..
A watercolour and pencil drawing from my sketchbook. I found an interesting quote about horses on the internet from an unknown author which illustrated perfectly my little sketch : “The earth would be nothing without the people but the man would be nothing without the horse”
Parrots are such colourful birds that I cannot resist to paint one and add fun facts about them.
Our friends from Scotland are coming to visit us which reminds me of the Scottish wilderness …its magnificent landscapes and the famous Highland cows . They are probably Scotland’s most iconic creatures as they are so amazing and impressive. After the wee and cute Easter chicks I did in my previous post, I just wanted to paint something radically different in my sketchbook and here it is…..
Little chicks hatching. I can’t think of a better symbol for new life and cheerfulness which are for me what Easter is about. I wish you a great celebration and for the young and not so young a succesful egg hunt!
From my stitched home made sketchbook a bit of Easter flavour….
Hobby Sketcher 