Sketchcrawl 10-16-10 at the Phoenix Zoo, and the after party

A day at the zoo for a sketching marathon = lotsa fun!  I haven't been to the zoo since I was a kid, and had a blast.  I met up with a local group I belong to called Sketchydoodle, and we all hung out and sketched together representing the Phoenix group for the worldwide SketchCrawl.  Above is just a few of us crawlers.  

Here are some of my watercolor sketches from the day, in order completed:

 First sketch.  A handsome and curious little turkey vulture preening his feathers, watching us sketchers and enjoying the attention.

Depressed rhino with his snout in the mud.

One horned gazelle basking in the sun and being a perfect still model.

 Pink squawky Flamingos fluffing their feathers, establishing the pecking order.

Following the zoo was the after party, purple themed with wine and chocolate.  What fun!  One of the group members hosted a party at their house and hired a model, Crystal, who is a burlesque/fire/belly dancer.  Those gals make for great models, with those flamboyant costumes and artful makeup.  I decided to keep it simple and did an ok job. . . considering that I had a few glasses of wine!  What do you think? 

Cactus Monday: Desert Watercolor

I did a quick piece today in my new Moleskine watercolor sketchbook, just for Cactus Monday.  I never really work in watercolors, but love this new technique that I've been seeing for quick and easy portable color rendering.   Not to mention, the book and supplies fit nicely in my purse, yay!  It makes me want to carry my sketchbook everywhere I go, like I did when I was a kid.  This is a scene from the Desert Botanical Garden, featuring that very special cactus, a Saguaro. . . a few barrel cacti, ocotillo, rocks and a mountain view.  Many more watercolors to come! 

IF: Transportation

I couldn't resist illustrating a cute little hot air balloon for this weeks theme.

This is what blogging is all about.

Beautiful and talented lady Deborah Mori over at Life without Novocaine and I met for breakfast this morning while I was in her town of San Diego. 

I can't even express how wonderful it was to finally meet a friend that I have been conversing with and really getting to know these past few years.  We have laughed together, cried, sent packages, cheered each other on and celebrated each others' successes.  It's really amazing how people all over the world can connect with like-minded others and develop meaningful friendships over the internet.  She is one of those special ladies that I really admire, and have gotten to know.  Deborah, it was so nice to meet you finally!  

Well look what I got myself into!

After what seems like a long absence from my last post, I decided to take on a big project to make up for it.  Yes that's right, I signed up for the 2011 Sketchbook Project and got my sketchbook in the mail today.  Excited!!!  All boxes have been unpacked, furniture has been re-arranged a billion times in the new house and now I am ready to get back into my creative routine. 

So what is this Sketchbook Project you ask?  It is described to be like a concert tour but with sketchbooks.  My little sketchbook along with thousands of others, will make it's way around the country for all to see.  It will have a barcode on the back so I can track how many times it has been viewed.  After the tour, it will arrive to it's permanent home at the Brooklyn Art Library in NY.  Which makes me happy, because I have a good friend in Brooklyn who can check it out whenever the mood strikes.  Keep an eye on her for me Bridgette!

Each sketchbook has a theme, and I chose "Adhere to Me".  I'm not quite sure exactly how I will execute the theme, but you can count on  things being adhered with adhesives.  Maybe a cut and paste is in order of all of my archived sketch books throughout the years.  Maybe some collages.  Maybe a little of both.  Will it tell a story?  I don't know.  We shall see how it evolves!