koukla carolyn

Red Ink Rose, red gel ink and prismacolor, 2008

This is an experimental drawing that I did for my husband on a blank greeting card for our 8 month “monthiversary.” I did it from a reference photo on WetCanvas because I didn’t have any fresh flowers at the time.

Dried Rose Petals, Prismacolor colored pencil on kraft paper, 2008

In these two sketches, I drew the same rose in different stages of decay. The graphite drawing is of the rose when it was completely dried out, but still intact. I drew it in about an hour one day after work. After I tried to move it slightly, the entire rose fell apart in my hand and I ended up drawing the petals scattered on my drafting table. I tried to focus on giving the drawing a 3D effect and I am happy with it. I also think the tinted paper adds quite a bit and I have never used colored pencil on this paper before.

Rose Sketch, tombow brush marker, 2008

Inked Roses, black pitt pens and Prismacolor colored pencil, 2008

Here are some more rose drawings that I’ve done in the past few weeks. I really like the marker one and I’m thinking of doing more marker sketches in the near future. The ink drawing looks way too Victorian for me but by the time I realized this, I was too far gone in the drawing to justify quitting. I added some colored pencil to the roses in an effort to improve it but this just made it look like a hand colored black and white photo—even more Victorian! I did one more rose drawing (which I will write about soon) before I had to throw them away.

Ruggles sketch, ballpoint on kraft paper, 2007

Ruggles on Chair, watercolor and colored pencil, 2008

I did these two versions of Ruggles a few months ago from a photo I found while cleaning out my parent’s attic. I am going to do drawings from all the photos I found and maybe compile some sort of collection of all my Ruggles related drawings and paintings. Now that he is gone, I wish I had spent more time drawing him when I had the chance. I really do miss Ruggles and I can’t wait until my parents get another dog. I won’t be able to get a dog for a few years and my parents getting one is the closest thing available to me having one.

I still haven’t been doing any artwork and I miss it so badly. My big exam is on Monday and I have the day off of work so I think I will spend Monday afternoon getting back into my artwork. I can’t wait until I can come home from work and do my own thing instead of studying for hours on end. Working full time has been a real adjustment for me because over the past year I have gotten used to doing whatever I wanted with no real demands on my time. Overall though, I think that working is just what I need right now.

Rose Corsage (5×7), watercolor and colored pencil, 2008

I did this a few weeks ago from a photo of my mom’s corsage in my wedding. I did change the colors around a bit by making the background and the ribbon blue, but I really do like how it came out. The one thing I don’t like is that I taped one of the borders crooked and the piece isn’t completely square. I haven’t been doing any artwork whatsoever for a few weeks as I’ve been studying for an important exam. I take it in one more week so after that I should get back to my old routine, I hope.

Apple Still Life, Neocolor II crayons in 10×7 watercolor sketchbook, 2008

These are my offerings for EDM 24: draw a piece of fruit, and 91: draw an apple. I really tried to capture the shadows and reflected light in these sketches. I’ve begun to really like my kraft paper sketchbook and I’m surprised I have never gotten one before. I think working on tinted paper definitely adds a new dimension to drawing. In the above piece, I used my Neocolor II watersoluble crayons. About a year ago I bought a tin of 15 but I only used it once or twice. I really haven’t gotten the hang of it yet honestly. I felt like I spent most of my time scrubbing out the crayon marks with my brush and the wax congealed into little puddles that I wasn’t happy with. This medium will definitely take more practice for me to get really comfortable with.

Apple sketch, Prismacolor colored pencil on kraft paper, 2008

Tangerine sketch, Prismacolor colored pencil on kraft paper, 2008

Bananas Under Shrink Wrap, Black Pitt Pen and colored pencil, 2008

These are my contributions for the recent wrapped in plastic challenge. This was a very interesting and challenging challenge for me. Lately I’ve been intrigued with doing multiple drawings of the same subject/theme. I am more fond of the banana sketch because I like the black and white drawing with the simple yellow colored pencil. I could have gone crazy and done all kinds of shading, but I like the sort of cartoonish quality of this sketch. I tried to just suggest the plastic by doing a few lines and I think it worked out well. I didn’t put so much forethought into the other sketch. I had these taffies sitting on my counter for awhile and I just grabbed them and did the sketch.

I’ve been feeling better since getting my wisdom teeth extracted, although I’m still on a liquified diet. I can’t wait to be able to eat a real meal with lots of chewing involved!

Salt Water Taffies in Baggie, Sanguine Pitt Pens, 2008

Penguin Tealight, pen and colored pencil, 2007

Gerber daisy. Watercolor and colored pencil (5×7).

The wedding was on Saturday and it was amazing. We were blessed with wonderful weather and it wasn’t too hot either. The ceremony was short and sweet and everyone thought it was perfect. The venue was scenic and it had a lot of charm. The food was awesome and the flowers were gorgeous (more flower pictures and paintings to come). I had a gummy smile worth a million bucks—or so everyone tells me.

The next morning we all went to Cracker Barrel for brunch and then Jeet and I left for Williamstown, MA to see a beautiful Monet exhibit at The Clark. We didn’t see the whole museum but we definitiely want to come back for more. Then we went to The Red Lion Inn in Stockbridge, MA and stayed in a beautiful suite complete with clawfoot tub and champagne. The next day we went to the outlets in Lee, MA and drove home to Connecticut. It was a wonderful time.