koukla carolyn

Trip Preparations, 5×7 sketchbook, 2008

We got back from India last Sunday, but I was so jetlagged and screwed up timewise that I didn’t manage to do much of anything except go to work every day. I didn’t do much sketching at all on my trip, partially because we were in a car most of the time or shopping in malls where it wasn’t feasible to sit and draw. I need to get better at quick sketches! I did manage to do a few sketches though. This first sketch is from before we left—it is all the gifts we bought lined up and ready to put into the suitcase. All the shopping for gifts took a whole day in and of itself!

View From our Hotel in Kolkata, mini sketchbook, 2008

This sketch is part of the view from our first hotel room in Kolkata. We only stayed there one night because it wasn’t the cleanest place, but there was a nice view from our room of a pond with beautiful waterfowl and foliage. I absolutely love these trees with orange flowers, but I don’t know what kind of tree it is. One of the things I love about India is the incredible variety of plant life. If I spent more time there, I would love to document the plants through a series of botanical drawings.

Indian vase, mini sketchbook, 2008

This is a sketch of a small vase belonging to my sister-in-law. I was really tired and sleepy that day and I wanted to draw something small.

Kitchen sketch, mini sketchbook, 2008

This is a sketch of my sister-in-law’s kitchen. In India, kitchens are for food preparation only, and they are pretty small. People have small propane cooktops where they prepare their food and they have very small fridges as they buy their food fresh daily and don’t eat leftovers too much.

Indian Flower, 5×7 sketchbook, 2008

I drew this while visiting Dhanbad, which is about 5 hours from Kolkata. Some friends got me a bouquet of flowers and I sketched one of them in the hotel room before going to bed. I slept very late while in India because I usually took a nap in the afternoon. The time was 9.5 hours ahead of EST. It got dark around 6 PM because India does not have daylight savings time. It gets so hot during the day and people usually do a lot at night because it is a lot cooler. Even dinner is late—around 9 PM.

Suitcases and Shopping Bags, mini sketchbook, 2008

I drew this one night before going to bed when I was in our hotel room in Kolkata. We did a lot of shopping and this is a sketch of our empty suitcase with all our shopping bags and backpacks strewn about. I got a lot of clothes when we were in India—women there were very well dressed.

Kenilworth facade, 5×7 sketchbook, 2008

I drew this view from my parent’s hotel room one afternoon. It is part of the facade of the hotel where we stayed in—the Kenilworth. Most buildings in Kolkata are from the Victorian era and they would be beautiful if they were restored and maintained. Our hotel was one of the buildings that were in good shape. This is the last sketch I made before going home. I hope you liked reading a little about my trip!

Pansies, watercolor (4×6), 2008

This is a small watercolor painting that I made last weekend. It was tough to do, especially being so small. I painted it from a photo of a planter near the entrance of my apartment complex. One good thing I like about the place I live is that it has nice landscaping and they really maintain it well. Right now I am getting a bit stressed out about my upcoming trip. The preparations have been the most stressful part because I am afraid that I’ll forget something. I hope to have a lot of amazing drawings when I get back though!

I took full advantage of the tulips while they were out. Now, most of the petals have blown away thanks to a lot of wind and rain. I am most proud of the top drawing, which is the largest (9×12) and which I drew from life. It was a little chilly outside and the wind was blowing around a lot, but I think the drawing came out really nice. Click on each image to view at full size.

Waterlilies, tombow brush pens (4×6), 2008

Happy Mother’s Day!

This is a marker sketch that I did on a blank greeting card for a friend’s baby shower. They passed it around the room and all the ladies gawked at it. I haven’t been that flattered in a long time.

I’ve been thinking a lot about the progress I’ve made this year so far. It really is extraordinary considering that I didn’t do any artwork for almost a year and I’m working 40 hours a week which I haven’t done in ages. I think the time constraints actually push me to get busy sometimes. There are only a few weeks before my big trip so I think I’ll use the time to be more productive with my artwork. I actually have a few pieces that I need to finish and I want them to be really high quality as they are gifts for some important people.

Flower Pitcher, pen and ink (10×7), 2008

For the past week I have made absolutely no artwork. I pulled a few muscles in my wrist and my leg and thought I should baby myself for awhile. I stopped working out, studying Bengali and doing artwork. I am just starting to get out of my funk and I have a lot of things to do before my big trip in a few weeks.

This is the last major thing I did a few weeks ago. It is impressive I have to say, because it is HUGE compared to what I normally do. I didn’t want to leave it half done, so I pushed myself and I was happy I did.

Banana Bunch, pitt pen and colored pencil, 2008

Flower Sketch, sanguine pitt pens, 2008

These are a few sketches that I’ve done after work. These days Jeet goes to his martial arts class and I have time alone to putter around the house. I’ve wasted quite a few of these nights by watching tv when I could be drawing, but these are some of the things that I accomplished.

Magnolia, watercolor and ink (7.5” x 4.5”), 2008

This is based on a photo I took of the magnolia tree in front of my apartment building. I spent a Sunday afternoon working on it and I am happy with how delicate the flowers look. Now that it is spring, I am excited about getting outside more and drawing nature.

Nesting Cups, watercolor (10×7), 2008

Lately, I have been trying to improve my skills by choosing subjects that are more challenging. This painting was a real challenge for me but I am especially proud the way it came out, even though there are things I would change about it if I were to do it again. I like the way the background came out and the inside of the top cup. The hardest part were all the elipses.

Spring Drive, Watercolor (5×7), 2008

This is a watercolor that I did for my aunt, based on this photo: Blue Ridge Parkway on Flickr. I wanted to do another landscape based on the Blue Ridge Parkway but I didn’t have any more good photos that I took myself. I did change it around a bit, by adding more shadows and making the road a dirt road instead of asphalt. I also made things more green in the painting. I am pleased with the overall piece and I want to do more landscapes like this in the future.

This week I failed miserably at my art goals, mostly because I was just dead tired when I came home from work every day. My job is not physically taxing, but it certainly is mentally exhausting. This week I am going to try to do small sketches when I come home from work. I think one of the reasons why I put it off this week is because I didn’t have enough time to get involved in a big finished piece. I think I will just do small things so I at least get going on something.

Imaginary Landscape (5×7), Tombow brush pens and pitt pens in landscape colors, 2008

I’ve been doing landscapes lately and I’m in the middle of another one at the moment. I go through phases but I find that when I’m doing a piece of art for another person, landscapes are universally appealing. This drawing was a birthday card for my father and the piece I’m working on now is a commission for a person I’ve never even met. I hope he likes landscapes.