Sketch a Day - Day 31

Happy End-of-January Day! Otherwise known as, One-Month-Closer-to-Spring Day. 

Sea Tangle

Sketch a Day - Day 30

After the craziness that was this morning - tornadoes, sirens, power outtage - I thought we could do with a little calm. (This is a small piece of a soon-to-be-collection. Stay tuned...)

Calm

Sketch a Day - Day 29

Perhaps a little wrapping paper design in Pantone's 2013 Color of the Year?

Pantone Wrap

Sketch a Day - Day 28

Exploring some new sketching styles - these inspired by a bit of old matchbook cover art. 

Trees

Sketch a Day - Day 27

If you donate $5, IHOP gives you something to doodle on. :)

Sketch a Day - Day 26

Blooms and Butterflies in Tangerine and Tomato

Blooms and Butterflies in Periwinkle and Tangerine

Sketch a Day - Day 25

So, I guess this is turning into 'Pattern a Day'...

Citrus Petals

Sketch a Day - Day 24

A little abstract painting experiment for your Thursday evening - inspired by Alexander Calder.

Free Form

Sketch a Day - Day 23

A very special birthday wish for my favorite little man:

Sketch a Day - Day 22

(How is it already the 22nd of January???)

Alien Floral 1

Alien Floral 2

Sketch a Day - Day 21

Lollypop Floral

Sketch a Day - Day 20

A little 'red', 'white' and 'blue' in honor of the inauguration festivities.

Earth Mashup

Sketch a Day - Day 19 and an Exhibit Trip

A few months ago, I happened to catch a documentary on KET featuring Gray Henry. At the time I wasn't familiar with her, or her work, but I was intrigued by the subject matter: Virginia Gray Henry Blakemore has spent her life immersed in interfaith relations. She has lived an international life with residences in the Middle East and here in Louisville and has studied with some of the world's most gifted religious. The more I watched, the more fascinated I became.

Last week a story by Insider Louisville caught my eye: Ms. Henry would be displaying her collection of Middle Eastern textiles, jewelry and artifacts at the Hite Art Institute at (my alma mater) the University of Louisville. Called “Culture and Spirituality in the Traditional Arts of North Africa, the Middle East and Central Asia”, I immediately made plans to attend.

I've always had a fascination with Middle Eastern religions, architecture and the culture in general. And this exhibit did not disappoint. Rich textiles hung from the walls, beautifully decorated tunics hung from the ceiling and the amazingly intricate jewels... It was eye-candy for sure. 

I managed to snap two shots with my iPhone, but felt awkward doing it - the gallery seemed to exude reverence. So, instead I pulled out my trusty sketchbook and let my pen take the 'pictures'. I was completely fascinated by intricacies of the metalwork, the colors, the stitching... oh the stitching. 

Here's a few rough sketches:

If you're interested in watching the documentary on Ms. Henry, KET's website shows it's next airing as 4pm on January 23rd.

Sketch a Day - Day 18

I've been working with logo design and playing through several possibilities. I loved the idea of a hand-drawn logo, but nothing looked quite right. I did keep coming back to this little dotted lemon shape, though. It's made an appearance in several of my patterns, so I thought it fitting to use it here. Although unintentional, the placement of the shapes sort of forms a loose 'k'. 

Sketch a Day - Day 17

A little warm and colorful citrus.

Citrus Line

Sketch a Day - Day 16

Sketch a Day - Day 15

Took one of my sketches from Day 3 and turned it into a placement pattern. 

 A Dandy Quote

Sketch a Day - Day 14

Perhaps it's the frigid temps in the Ohio Valley, but I needed to try something a little more floral... 

Vines and Flowers

Sketch a Day - Day 13

Not only am I early in my posting... I've got several.

I'm fascinated by the fact that just adding a little color changes the feel so greatly.

Sketch a Day - Day 12

Floral Border

Sketch a Day - Day 11

Indian Petals

Sketch a Day - Day 10

Inspired by Indian blockprints...

Sketch a Day - Day 9

Sketch a Day - Day 8

As an upholsterer I think about interiors... A LOT. Here's my first take on a rug.

Forest

Block Prints

If you're reading this blog, you're probably aware of Pinterest, aka Wonderful-Image-Overload. Such a great place to find inspiration.

Via Pinterest

I've long been a fan of block prints from India. So intricate. So beautiful. And hand carved. Amazing. The blocks are often as interesting, or even more so, than the great fabric patterns they provide. 

One of my favorite American block carvers is a very creative gal named Katherine Watson. She creates wonderful Indian inspired prints, cards and such. It'd be worth your while to check out here work. 

Via Pinterest

If you've never tried block carving I highly recommend it. For me, it's always been very therapeutic. But be warned and learn from my past mistakes: the blades are super sharp!

Here's a little tutorial I found to get you started on your own cards, prints, or the like: http://papernstitchblog.com/2011/02/24/learn-how-to-block-print/ 


Happy carving!

--kd

Sketch a Day - Day 7

Really bad iPhone pic, but you get the gist.

Sketch a Day - Day 6

Floating Lillies

Sketch a Day - Day 5

I've become smitten with this simple shape I created.

Sea Lemons

Sketch a Day - Day 4

Rosie Rose

Rose sketch created in early November. Pattern created today. It's like magic. :)

Sketch a Day - Day 3

Day 3 is a little late. Blame it on my attendance of the premiere of Downton Abbey S3 with 200 of my closest friends last evening. :) Yes, it was awesome. 

Many thanks to my fabulous friend, L for scoring us the tickets. 

Sketch a Day- Day 2

Abstract Flower

Sketch a Day - Day 1

Striped Flight

Hope everyone has a safe and happy new year!