Sketches from Scotland

Joel and I recently returned from spending 3 weeks in Scotland. We saw many castles, mazes, big houses, puffins, weird and awesome landscapes, glens, highlands, rode horses, experienced volatile weather and rain. So. Much. Rain. Which is not at all conducive to outdoor sketching! Prior to our departure Joel and I had said we were going to sketch on this trip like it was our job; every other day. But due to rain, generally cold weather and midges (biting insects) we only managed half a dozen sketches! It was difficult to get a two-hour window without any of the aforementioned things to sit down and sketch.

I love how moody the landscape is in Scotland. I took many reference photos which you might see popping up in my work later on this year.

Here’s what we came up with:

scotland1_web

Doune Castle, where Monty Python & the Holy Grail and scenes from Outlander were filmed. A nice example of a restored 13th-century castle.

scotland2_web

Random house, just outside Pitlochrie.

scotland3_web

Urquhart Castle overlooking Loch Ness. I’d say skip this one if you’re not into ruins crawling with tourists. We were told not to sit on the grass here…which did not please me.

 

scotland4_web

Lovely Tudor building in Peebles, in the Borders.

scotland5_web

The kitchen at Glaschoille House, in the Knoydart Peninsula. We were waiting to go back to the mainland after two days on horseback and had an hour to kill. Midges prevented me from sketching outdoors so here is the one and only indoor plein air sketch!

 

 

 

Rhiannon

In preparation for mine and Joel’s trip to Wales this spring, I have be re-reading the Mabinogion (collection of Welsh folktales). I’ve always been inspired by Celtic mythology to create my illustrations, so I’m hoping that a trip to the actual place will add another layer of inspiration to my work.

This is Rhiannon on her white horse when she is first glimpsed by Pwyll.
rhiannon_2015_web

Foxhounds

 

 

Here are a bunch of new pieces. I went through a couple weeks lately where I needed to flex the compositional muscles. Don’t get me wrong, I enjoy drawing for Papillon Press cards but it’s also nice to get some actual backgrounds in some illustrations.

foxhounds_web springshowers_web motherhood_web

More birds

Every now and then (okay, pretty much every year) family members request a piece of art from me. Aren’t they lucky? A quick and easy way for me to that is to paint studies of birds because guess what? I like birds. Here are a few in watercolour and ink:

bird_baltimoreoriole_web

Baltimore Oriole

bird_grandpic_web

Pileated Woodpecker

bird_motheater_web

Common Kingfisher