untitled ~ acrylic paint, pan and oil pastels, charcoal and colored pencils and watercolors in 'daily book', 3 1/2" x 5"

it's been so long!  it's not easy to narrow things down, sum them up!  

pen, pencil, watercolors, colored pencil in pocket 'hand book'

i'll start with what i've been doing a lot of in my 'daily book', which is drawing/painting imaginary  flowers,

pen, pencil, watercolors, colored pencil in pocket 'hand book'

and these people. 

pencil and colored pencil in pocket 'hand book'

i call them 'simple people' because there isn't much to them, but still, a few lines can convey a lot.

drawing and painting at home have taken a back seat to wandering, though.

it seems like a lifetime ago that i walked day after day on south facing ridges so i could smell the flowers on these bushes.  i'd love it if someone could ID them for me - i have no idea what they're called!  they smell like cinnamon buns with vanilla icing on top, and i will do just about anything to be out walking amongst them.

weeks - and many fragrant flowers - later, i'm entranced with a small patch of mountain lady's slippers.   this is the first time i've seen them here, and i visit them almost every day.  they smell like baby powder...

 

i've drawn on a lot of cans, sticks, and rocks, and left them behind...

for all of them i used a mechanical pencil and prismacolor colored pencils.

i've also been taking a small watercolor set with me and painting what i see.   first i draw with pencil without erasing;  if i don't like a line, i draw another i like better.  and then i paint it without being too particular about accuracy.   that way it stays fun, and i've loved doing it.

the arrow is pointing to the little watercolor book drying in the sun, and my watercolor set is in front of the chair, but what i wanted to show you is the chair.   it's made by REI, and it's called a 'flex lite' chair.  it weighs 1 lb. 12 oz., and it's super duper!!   if you're interested in a lightweight hiking/camping chair, check it out...

one more thing...   i took the table out of my tiny art room and made it into a place where i can sit and draw/paint/read.  it came to me one day that i've *never* liked sitting at a table to work, so why did i have a table in my art room?!  crazy...   i really love it the way it is now.

seen this morning - a gold beetle!  whoa!  

 nature...

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 “The artist is a receptacle for emotions that come from all over the place; from the sky, from the earth, from a scrap of paper, from a passing shape, from a spider’s web.” 

~ Pablo Picasso (via tumblr)