Trees

Here are a few tree studies for Vivian Blackburn's tree challenge.

These black oaks are ungainly, with little foliage and often a lot of stringy moss at the top. Not a particularly attractive tree, but I do like watching them sway back and forth wildly on stormy days. (Watercolor with graphite)



There are a lot of these in Oregon...



I'm not sure what these trees are, but I love the greyish/blue color.

The best part of summer...

There's a lot that's wonderful about summer, but having garden flowers available for these simple little arrangements is at the top of my list.

A cup

A (very vicarious) trip to France

My daughter is in France for the next five weeks learning about the cuisine of Gascony. She reports six hour lunches, a lot of duck entrees and appetizers, the freshest food she's ever tasted, dinners at 10 p.m., homemade aperitifs, and $6 bottles of excellent wine. She's fallen in love with it all. And I get to enjoy it vicariously via the internet and Skype (a clearer phone connection than I get locally.)

She's staying in this 18th century farmhouse:




Near the town of Nerac:



And enjoying food like this (cured foie gras stuffed duck breast):

A Mountain of boulders...

In preparation for building a rock retaining wall, a mountain of boulders were dumped in our driveway last week. I've sketched two of them.

(Pigma Micron/watercolor on Niggedden paper)

Ruined by plastic...

It's not my decision, but my preference? - Mow it, leave it in the sun to dry, bale it, load in a truck and store it in a big barn, without plastic covers.

And here's the version I want to paint...



UPDATE: What do I know...obviously nothing about farming. Thanks to Gwendolyn who provided a link in the comment section to Wikipedia and information about what's inside those plastic bags:
"For animals that eat silage, a Bale wrapper may be used to seal a round bale completely and trigger the fermentation process. It is a technique used as a money-saving process by producers who do not have access to a silo, and for producing silage that is transported to other locations. However, a silo is still a preferred method for making silage.[10] In very damp climates, it is a legitimate alternative to drying hay completely and when processed properly, the natural fermentation process prevents mold and rot. Round bale silage is also sometimes called "haylage," and is seen more commonly in Europe than in either the USA or Australia. However, hay stored in this fashion must remain completely sealed in plastic, as any holes or tears can stop the preservation properties of fermentation and lead to spoilage.[11]"

Mmmmmmmm....

There is something deeply satisfying about creating a journal. It's full of potential, almost a book...



I made this journal, with Japanese stab binding, in a class which ended yesterday. I didn't select my most beautiful paper for the first book, because I figured I would screw it up, but I'm pleased with the way the handmade Japanese paper looks.

On the inside, I used three different papers: a soft Italian printmaking paper called Magnani; Niggedden (Roz Stendahl's favorite paper) and 90 lb. Arches watercolor paper.

I've taken two book making classes in the past few months. In the first class I learned to make simple pamphlet and folding books, which I found equally satisfying.

A few hours very well spent...