Drawings

New work, done as part of my graduate studies. I have been thinking about trees a lot, easy to do when you live up here.

When I was finding myself again last summer, I went to visit my friends in Novato, CA. I spent hours walking the dry California hills above their house, delighting in the isolation, the views, nature above giant tracts of humanity. I also delighted in the trees. Weird, oddly shaped trees, trees I was not familiar with. These trees make me think of European myths and about dryads and tree entities, beings being trapped in trees or becoming trees, trees becoming people. Some of their forms are so surreal they look like mythical beings. Some of them just Feel powerful.

Inspired greatly by Larry Thomas, I began some larger drawings on good paper. It feels great to be drawing “seriously” again.

This first image “Lost and Found” (top) is supposed to be non-representational, though I began with source photography. I fought the image of the bird that kept reemerging until, finally, I realized it needed to be there. This piece is charcoal and pastel on Stonehenge paper, 22×30″ in size.

The second piece, “California Trees” (middle) is from a very complicated image, vast patterns of branches. I remember at the time thinking about the patterns of light and shadow as a language spoken by nature. Also charcoal and pastel on Stonehenge, 22×30″ in size.

“Offering” (bottom) is a looser quicker image, influenced by the joy of a new paintbrush (Liquitex Freestyle Paddle brush = too cool!) The immediacy of ink and concentrated watercolor and a springy brush gave me freedom. I did not draw this out ahead of time. The focal point of the lighter branch resembles a dryad, she and her tree. This was not intentional but fits. “Offering” is on Rives BFK, 22×30″ in size.

Each of these drawings are available unframed for $100 each.

Dawn