I’m in a sort of in-between phase. It’s a pretty good place to be. I have no markets for a month, and am just about to start making new products for the Holiday season. Today I went shopping for plain shirts to print on, and ordered new business cards. Yesterday, however, I produced a few drawings…..of …
Dakshina Chitra (a post I should have written long ago)
“What was your favorite part of the trip to Chennai?” I asked my six year old. “Dakshina Chitra” She replied without even blinking first. I’m not surprised, it really is a wonderful place. Dakshina Chitra is a heritage center just outside Chennai, on the way to the beautiful beach town of Mahabalipuram. According to my …
Ink and Courage
When I was 19 years old, I convinced my parents that I was mature enough to travel around Northwestern India on my own. I obviously possessed greater powers of courage and persuasion then.
My idea was to travel around with a sketchbook and camera, and produce an amazing portfolio of work that would help me to get into an Art college of my choice.
It worked.
While on this trip, I often ran out of art materials in places where there were no stores that sold them, so I improvised. I painted with spices such as turmeric and chilli, and used old pieces of fabric and packaging to draw on. But my favorite of these ad hoc materials by far was a stick from a neem tree that I had carved to a point. I happily filled sketchbooks with big, drippy ink drawings, and actually had a period of mourning when the stick finally broke, exhausted by my furious scribbling.
Many years later, I would range around woodlands like a crazed yeti, collecting sticks and branches for my students to dip into ink and draw with at school.
I have recently rediscovered the joys of drawing with ink. It is really so much fun.
It is hard not to relax when you draw with ink, because you have less control over the sorts of marks you produce, every line has an unexpected beauty to it. Try it.
Loosen up lady!
A blog about drawing and un-drawing…. I have produced some pretty uptight drawings, and now I’m going to have to unravel them a bit. One of the things I like most about henna, or mehndi, is the fluid way in which it is drawn. Henna artists don’t really plan out their designs in advance, they …
Funny Signs
The Mysore Zoo is impressive in so many ways. It has a huge and varied collection of animals, some so rare and exotic that it seems quite unbelievable that you are looking at them. Some of the highlights of our visit were a white tiger, an albino peacock, a Tapir, and (much to my daughter’s …
Keeping the Ball Rolling
Greetings from Chennai, India. I was supposed to write a post a week ago about my upcoming trip, but I didn’t manage to. I was supposed to write a post a few days ago saying good bye, but I didn’t manage to. During the past week or so,I have been totally immersed in the mammoth …
Ink, Tea and Emergen-C
I just thought I would pop into the Blogosphere to say a quick hello. I have kept my head down, and my fingers inky over the last few days. A war is still waging in my kitchen between the dishes and the printing equipment, and it is starting to get messy. It has been another …
Making a creative connection
What a great morning. I just had a pow-wow with a good buddy and local designer, who runs a ‘kitchen table’ business like me, making fabulous T-shirts for kids, in the middle of mayhem. I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again, there is nothing like a good critique. My work suffers when I spend …
The Kiss of Life
Last Friday during my Big Cleaning Frenzy, I came across an old project drooping in a corner feeling sorry for itself. I’ll tell you more about this precious discovery a little bit later… First I want to talk about unfinished projects. They take up a lot of space, but they can be a good thing. …
Listomania!
I wasn’t sure what to write about today, then a fellow blogger that I’ve been following told me about a website that I would be sure to like: http://www.listography.com …check it out. Yes!! I love to make lists. Lists make me feel in control of my life, and help me through what I …