Sketching through life

"Do you want to see how to draw a box? I'll show you."

My dad picked up the pencil and drew a square on a piece of paper. I watched as he connected diagonal lines to mimick a 3D box. From that very early lesson, my mind was settled that drawing was what I wanted to do.

My mom would often take my brothers, sister and me to a large public library located in Exton, PA, where I would pick out books about animals and attempt to draw from the photos and illustrations displayed inside. This and many outdoors experiences led to continued drawings of animals and birds, even during and after design school.

Bird illustration in watercolor of a wren standing on a cactus plant

Cactus Wren. Watercolor class project. 2003.

Illustration class project. Watercolor and Color Pencil. 2003.

In 2006 I began working in the wall coverings industry as a digital graphic artist. I later worked in textile design before switching to another role. During much of the last decade in the commercial art world, I no longer produced much regarding personal artwork. However, that has begun to change, inspired by some commissioned work and also from the experience of parenting a young boy who also enjoys animals, dinosaurs, and all things outdoors.

Commissioned illustration. Watercolor and digital media. 2016.

A sticky note dino sketch for my son. 2017.

River trout for my dad. Watercolor. 2017.

In the weeks to come, I will post more pictures and describe more experiences as I continue this journey of learning to make better art and design while interacting with the world around.

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How to draw - step by step process drawing a cow in pencil and ink

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Penn's Sketchbook

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