Just Have a Go.

Our bikes stand by while engines are refuelling.

 Just Have a Go.

Zeebra will agree with this in her “time out for art”

First Wwoofing place, frame from op. shop.

  “You are not going to post that rubbish?” My ego enquired,

“Why not?”

“Your grandkids can do better drawings and the photos are just snap shots.”

“Because I am not a genius you would have me doing nothing but sit around watching TV. I am not hurting anyone enjoying a pastime, people with no mobile phone to play with would be left twiddling their thumbs and getting up tight and impatient. “

Keeping up with the news.

So why not show other people that they do not need an expensive toy or talent to look at the wonderful world around them. Matt Groening did not let it stop him while he was waiting, he drew Bart Simpson. I enjoy the lulls in life, instead of getting impatient, I draw and it is relaxing and takes my mind off myself. Even when you have some discomfort the diversion will take your mind off what is ailing you.

I am on the bus, what are you doing.

My sketching is not for other people, it is for my enjoyment. Critics can knock it, that is no problem, as long as the comments are constructive, I can learn from criticism and if it is intended to upset me I can laugh at it. Then like a gift that is not accepted, it will remain with the giver. Dale Carnegie said “When someone hands you a lemon, make lemonade.” Your friends will not knock your efforts, at the worst they may have a laugh and laughter is good. When the first baby laughed, that was the beginning of fairies, according Peter Pan.

I am on the bus too, I didn’t see you get on.

My sketching helps my memory; I can recall details of places and things after sketching them. Like photos they are good to look back on, but you can add a bit of yourself in a drawing, a camera just shows the facts; the artist is at liberty to alter the composition, leave things out or add in. When I say artist I am including myself, because if I don’t, no one else will. Yes an artist can distort, or get really abstract.

An old wooden recycled frame, not plastic.

Drawing is like playing the ukulele, the more you practice the better you get. It is that way with most things. I say most things but I can’t think of anything that doesn’t improve with practice. It may take a lot of time and practice so the sooner you start the better. That is my biggest fault I started too late. I let my ego get in the way of a lot of things when I was young. Thinking I might look silly or it was not masculine. Groucho Marks did not worry about being silly and John Wayne is dead, so don’t be shy, have a go.

She went only two stops, but it was too far for her to walk.

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How to Think.

Like sun beams.

 

How to think.

Looking for a smile.

I have to weed the garden. That is not how to think. Think in a positive way. You do not have to weed the garden, natures garden is growing nicely without my interference. You may think the garden needs some tender loving care, I need some exercise and fresh air.

Unnoticed, but cows appreciate.

Do not see weeds, see flowers growing out-of-place. Take a thoughtful look at the Dandelion. It is a beautiful example of what some people dismiss as an invasive weed. Yet a child loves the yellow flowers to make a daisy chain and is delighted to blow the seed heads everywhere.

Look at me, please.

Time is not important to a child. The Dandelion clock is a child’s toy. A child picks the seed head, parachute ball, holds it close to the lips and puffs, saying one o’clock, this is a stubborn one, try again, two o’clock and some of the little parachutes float off on the breeze to distant fields. The child puffs again three o’clock and in this way joy is spread far and wide.

A little help from a friend.

A lover may blow the seeds to carry a host of heart-felt wishes to a distant loved one. My wish is when you read this you recall those Dandelion days.

Spreading happiness.

The Dandelion is a joy and grows all over the world. I read it is a native to Eurasia, botanical name Taraxacum, family Asteraceae, It has grown in Eurasia for thirty thousand years.

Mary Poppins using an umbrella I gave her.

Why do some judgemental people call it a weed? They get all upset because they cannot go with the flow of nature. The right attitude is to not be so judgemental and appreciate all the free gifts of nature

Ball point on serviette, waiting for lunch in café.

I am not saying you should not have favourites and do some selective gardening. Only do not let it become a chore. I am not afraid of hard work; I could lie down beside it and go to sleep. Cultivated flowers are beautiful, still we should also appreciate the free gifts.

Escapees hiding in the wild clover.

Be observant consider all the Dandelions attributes. Bright yellow flower heads with hundreds of florets, then those superbly designed seed heads are to be appreciated. The glorious green leaves.

Bees love me.

Dandelion is a corruption of the French name Dent de Lion meaning Lions tooth. Dandelion lions are more than eye candy; they are a food full of vitamins and minerals. The ground up root makes a caffeine free coffee and their leaves are nourishing, they can be blanched to take away the sharp taste, and the flowers are used in wine.

A perfect design.

What are your thoughts on Dandelions?

Van Gogh was Sun flowers, I am crazy about Dandelions.

Do you see them as invasive weeds?

Sorry I love them.

There are many pleasures in this wonderful world, earthing out barefoot in a field of Dandelions, counting your blessings, making a thousand wishes and blowing those seeds of joy to the wind. To land on someone in need of kindness, these are real pleasure.

They blow me away, as they say.

We are shaped by our thoughts, we become as we think. When the mind is pure, joy flows like a mountain stream, bubbling with exuberant enthusiasm. Stress is not the heavy traffic, the barking dog or challenging work. Stress is our thoughts about them.

Two varieties are like Pauline and love to travel.

 Lisa these sketches are to show drawing is fun and can fill a few minutes of spare time. I thought they made this post appropriate for Time out for art. 

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Reflection on windows.

Thailand memory.

Reflecting on Windows

Old glass to match foliage.

 

Keeping a dairy was necessary when I was promoted from playing the game I loved, to being in charge. A fun way of earning a living became a responsibility. Maybe it was for the best, because walking around up on the steel, where the birds perch, is a young man’s job. I did not like writing a diary and reports; I had to have a dictionary in one hand and a pen in the other. It turned out it was not a bad thing, as my vocabulary increased and my English improved. Keeping a diary became a habit.

First sketch of window inspiration. .

When I travelled I had a record, as this was my personal diary, I did not have to use a dictionary and could do a few drawings instead of words. Pictures really are worth a lot of words. I entered all kinds of ideas and notes, anything that took my fancy as entertaining, worthwhile or wise.

Carried further ink and a splash of colour.

When waiting for transport, or any occasion when time was dragging, out would come my diary, or whatever was at hand, and I would draw something. This drawing was a habit I formed that has now been replaced by the digital camera habit. I still have many of these diaries now, or as I have come to call them “Jack’s Jottings”.

Pastel on brown paper bag.

Going through the archives of “Jack’s Jottings” I found these sketches. I thought them suitable for the “Lingering look at  windows” and timeout for art challenges. The window with the old glass and the curtains blowing was drawn in a little place Pauline and I shared at Stradbroke Island. The other window drawings were done in Roma Street backpackers in Brisbane. The drawings bring it all back, not much of a view, but that was the challenge, to make something of it. When you draw you notice things you would normally over look. I noticed those reflections in the high rise building. Then the imagination went into top gear. Ever since drawing those reflections I have been hooked on reflections, noticing them everywhere. Nature is the best artist.

The camera gets in on the act, to see how it actually looks.

For me doing art work is only a way to pass the time and make me more aware of the wondrous beauty all around me.

Concentrating on reflections.

Playing with reflections.

There is no end to where this could take me.

Into fantasy land.

Tell me is this abstract art?

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The art of enjoyment.

 The art of enjoyment.

Rosny Cottage front view.

 

I avoid work yet I have got a lot done. I rarely ever toiled doing something I do not want to do. I have played all my life. As boy I enjoyed helping my mother on our poultry farm. It was a pleasure feeding the fouls. Chickens are a joy to look after. On cold nights our chickens were kept warmed by the heat of an oil lamp. It was nice and warm in the brooder shed and Mum let me sleep in there so I could stop those fluffy yellow chickens from huddling and crushing up too close to keep warm.

 

Rosny Cottage as sketched no enhancement.

I was not all that happy about school education. I only did seven years interrupted by as many excuses as I could find. I liked the social side of school as I was the biggest boy in my class consequently I never experienced any bullying.

Back view and a seat to use while drawing.

My first steady job was in a bakery that was a nice job the smell of bread baking is one of my favourite smells.  Up early you never miss a sun rise, and that is a good habit to get into, baking completed you have plenty of daylight left to play.

Back view artistic licence taken with stone wall.

Then I found a livelihood I loved and Rigging became my game. Before the safety regulations, now carried to extremes, spoiling a challenging job. When a man could climb around on the steel without being unencumbered by a safety belt and ride the crane hook I enjoyed being a dare-devil now the young have to do things that endanger others to get their buzz.

Photo of sketch no enhancement.

What I am getting around to saying is, “Find something you like doing and you never have to work for a living.” Rigging was my game out in the fresh air getting good exercise and some excitement and being paid to do it. When I becoming an overseer I enjoyed passing on easy safe ways to get the job done. I held classes on wet down time days, making them into productive days.

Some P C help.

Art, if you can call what I do art, is just another game I playing with the things available at hand, in the now absorbed in art. Let me show you the fun I had with my drawing, for me it is all learning.

Sketched with 4B and 8B.

I learn to be more observant trying to record what is before me with a simple sketch pad and pencils. You can use all the range if you like. From H being hard to B black softer and darker to B 8 there is no end to how you can play and learn. I play with whatever is at hand.

Flowers enhanced.

Without a printer I used my camera to convert my sketch to the computer. Now the fun starts it needs a bit of contrast, Photoshop is used.

Then why not have a game with the other tools available, learn what these graphic designers use to make their advertising look irresistible.

Added enhancement, same drawing.

Explore more with the yellow and green highlighter pencils could give my flower a lift, may be?

Colour added with high lighters.

Now that prompts me to head further into unknown territory. Why not, what is life for but to try to puzzle out, appreciate and enjoy.

Photoshop fun my art all done..

     Thanks Lisa for the opportunity to offer some ideas for Time out for art.

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Timeout for art.

Brisbane

The significance of drawing.

A morning with my son James.

Why is a picture worth a thousand words? The first cave drawings were done by the indigenous people of Australia. The importance of man discovering drawing allowed ideas to be passed on to future generations. The Egyptians then discovered hieroglyphics, picture writing and the Chinese developed abstract picture characters. This allowed information to span across the obstacle of time. A giant step was made in human knowledge. Allowing vast stores of information to accumulate, triumphing over the barrier of time.

Church

This has made possible the technology we have today. From cave drawing to letters, the pin hole camera to moving pictures. Need I go on; you only have to look at your P.C. as an example. Although it is not obvious, those primitive drawings were responsible for the visual wonders we have today.

Church

The written word in book form is being overtaken by the technology of today. We are becoming more reliant on pictures for our information. There is a danger in the ease of this visual excitement, we can become lazy.  Sitting back and becoming what is termed couch potato, vegetables planted in the T.V. garden, vegetating. Letting multinational corporations brain-wash and lead us to believe whatever is in their vested interests. It could be to coercing us to buy something we do not need and possibly cannot afford, or frighten us into increasing our armaments.

The Paw Paw leaves are a nice shape.

Be aware a picture may be worth hundreds of thousands of dollars to the mercenary few who control our media. To those few mercenary people I would like to say contentment cannot be found in material things. It is a poor man who needs position or possessions to be happy. Pleasures are fleeting and like a mirage can never satisfy our thirst.

I had a onlookers while drawing this one.

Today we have too many wondrous distractions to divert us from our arts, crafts and the enjoyment and pleasure in living closer to nature. We are taught we need many, must have, things to be accepted into society. Most of these things are unnecessary, desires not needs. We should carefully consider our options also balance our time and activities.

Typical Queensland house.

The significance of drawing is the enjoyment and what we learn from participating. Practice by following good examples and you will improve. To become good at any endeavour you decide on takes commitment and practice.

Cygnet Hotel with Pauline.

Some Ideas and drawings for Lisa’s sketching post. 

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Timeout for art. Week 2

The art lover.

Doodle Landscape.

In drawing as in life we learn from our mistakes. Mistakes are often made when we fail to clearly see things as they are. Look carefully at all the angles look at the negative and the positive shapes; compare the way things relate to one another. Notice these things in drawing and life. Cameras capturing life in a moment, you reflect on the result later. When sketching you are fully absorbed in the now observing the detail. You are trying to capture what you personally see and feel about the subject. There is no room for outside thoughts and distractions. This is an experience like meditation you are totally focused on the subject. Photography can help you notice things and also be interesting. With drawing you have artistic license, a quality a camera lacks.

While waiting for meal, Restaurant Muscian, ballpoint on menu.

When traveling, while I wait for transport or meals, sketching is a way to pass the time. A few scribbled words can be added and you have a record of your journey. It is a better way of helping you recall your travels and liven up your diary. I think I first started doing this on a trip to Thailand. If I do not have a sketch pad I draw on whatever is available. But if you do not keep your sketches in order it is not long before they go astray.  Sketches saved in a pad, though not works of art, I find are like Tony Buzan’s Mind Maps.

Inspirational Doodle Birds.

Photography is good, but it lacks the satisfaction you get when sketching.

I bought a digital camera and it is so easy to take photos with automatic settings and the computer is better than a well equipped dark room. This is cost-effective and comparatively easy. Consequently my interested in learning digital photography like the computer became almost an addiction. I am spoiled with too many wonderful things and new tempting advancements coming on the market every day. I must remind myself these things are not necessities; I can always pick up a pencil and sketch.

Looking for love. penile.

I enjoy trying to keep up with the new technology, but no one can master, or afford all that is on offer. If the cost becomes a problem, I will be back to the sketch pad and pencils. We do not need all the latest tempting things advertised on TV. Material things do not bring lasting happiness. Because they need maintenance and become obsolete, breakdown, wear out and are expensive. A sketch pad and pencils is affordable and less hassle.

If uninspired it can still be a ‘Amazing Doodle.’

Some things we need and some things we just want.

Making decisions in life and drawing you look at the angles and the negative and the positive.  These are decision not to be made without comparing how one thing relates to another. You also need to learn from role-models. In life it is someone honorable you learn from. In art it is all those renowned people whose work we see in art galleries and books. There are libraries full of books on good examples in art and life. Drawing leads us to an expanding education. Not only using books, we now have our PC and all it has to offer like Google and Wikipedia.

My ugg boot resting on a stoneware pot.

Perspective, your view-point, the tone of things, the contrast, the flow the movement, the medium and the composition are all involved. The world of art starts with drawing and what a wonderful world to explore. It is not a matter of how talented you are it is what you learn when you try to do anything. Appreciation, and understanding come only from doing it, practice brings perfection.

Thailand diary.

This is how I have fun with art and learn from it. Now I am furthering my learning with Lisa of designs and destinatioun.

 

 

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Time out for art.

A lone wee waif.

This is my answer to your challenge, Time out for art thanks Lisa Zeebra.

He looks sad but he is full of mischief. I just lack the talent to make him look happy. Maybe trying to get him to stay still made him sad. If he would have just sat still I think I could have put a smile on his face. I was tempted to put a cartoon smile on his face but that is not the challenge, a cartoon smile is too easy.

I got him to stay still by eating a biscuit and he sat there looking so mournful. You would think he was starving, dogs make you guilty every mouthful you take with their pleading look.

This drawing reminds me of a poem I knew as a child. ‘A loan wee waif of tawny brown. Adrift in the roar of a headless town. That begs as plain as tongue can sue. “Oh mister please may I follow you.” ‘I do not know who wrote it or any more lines. Maybe some one can jog my memory?

 

 

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