Conference speaker (10-05-13)

I really enjoy working on caricatures and to draw out the odd elements in a plain face (in this case, the rigid pose, the small eyes and the felt-like hair).

A not-so-good portrait (09-16-13)

This is what happens when I draw with my arm outstretched, rather than bring the sketchbook closer to me: the results are distorted and look almost caricatural.

What shoes to choose? (09-13-13)

Since the store group I belong to has had a 180 days' safety record, we get to choose a pair of Keen shoes. A difficult decision to make!

And now, for something different... (07-24-13)

Here is an image that I created, reworked in Photoshop CS4. To not get too specific in details, this image was part of a large event board, with text underneath. I erased the text, copied the upper border, reversed it, reduced its size and added it to the bottom of the image, carefully erasing the text underneath.

Hawthorne Bridge and the Blues Festival (07-04-13)

We went to the Waterfront Blues Festival planning to end the 4th of July with a concert by MarchFourth Marching Band followed by fireworks.

Major chaos! The crowd at the waterfront was so dense we barely were able to find a place to sit; Valérie and Patrick were forced to go someplace far from us. Not to be picky here, but although we were relatively close to the stage, it was difficult to hear the concert, to the point that I felt distanced and inattentive, When it was time for the fireworks, we realized the stage was blocking our view of most fireworks save those that were high up in the air...

There was no room to move or do anything, so I pulled my sketchbook out and worked on this watercolor of the Hawthorne Bridge.

Stained Glass Window (04-21-13)

Valérie came up to Portland to sing in a fundraiser concert for the Oregon State Choir at First Presbyterian Church downtown. We sat upstairs at the balcony level and I had a close view of the beautiful workmanship in the interior woodwork (how different from the stone interiors of cathedrals in Europe!). Rather than draw the singers during the concert, this time I painted the south rosetta window.