Gouache portrait of artist Matthew Cook, and serratus study
A watercolor and gouache anatomy study of the serratus muscles, and of artist Matthew Cook.
sketchbook
Pencil sketch of John Buckley
A pencil portrait of my youngest son, John, in his Gi, awaiting a match.
Martin Shannon gulfcoast bookjacket sketches
Two watercolor sketch ideas for Dad’s bookjacket, but–while I like the feel–this wasn’t a good fit for the book content. Too tropical, too Robinson Crusoe.
Watercolor sketch of artist Ken Sheldon
A watercolor portrait of artist Ken Sheldon. I particularly noticed the cast pink shadow behind his ear, translucent from the strong light.
Watercolor sketch of analyst Mackenzie
A watercolor portrait of analyst Mackenzie Hine. This was a very fortunate little sketch and not a bad likeness, either.
Sketchbook with Rubens study, portrait of Tess and Sam
A sketchbook page with a colored pencil study after Ruben’s Head of a Young Man (1601), a watercolor of Tess and a pencil of Sam B. These are the last pages of a huge Moleskine watercolor sketchbook that I could never love, the paper being of indifferent surface texture and an awkward, utilitarian A3/11×17. On […]
St. John and demoness
Pencil sketch of St. John the Baptist from the Nelson Atkins collection, and an anguished demon, sketches for a plaster bust.
Pencil sketch of witch and demon
Wash and pencil busts of a sorrowful–or perhaps anguished–witch and demon.
Chalk and watercolor sketch of Christ the Pantocreator
A red chalk and watercolor sketch of the Jewish concept of the cosmos, juxtaposed with Christ as Pantocreator, after Cranach’s Christ from the Last Judgement, on view in Kansas City at the Nelson Atkins.
Gouache study of Francesco Bassano’s Adoration Of The Magi
A gouache and ink study of Francesco Bassano’s Adoration of the Magi
H&R Block Artspace Flatfile show – Club no. 01
A small #gouache #painting I have in this years’ KCAI H&R Block Artspace #flatfile show, Club no. 01. With this work, I am revisiting a theme from 25 years ago, where I created #sculptural #lathe turned wooden clubs from recycled red #oak in all shapes, sizes and colors.
2018 Kansas City Flatfile show
I’ll have a few pieces in this year’s KCAI H&R Block Artspace #flatfile show, including this #paper #sculpture #modello, The Card Players no. 2.
Sketchbook gouache studies for The Card Players
A page of pencil and gouache studies and sketches for The Card Players, after Bruegel’s The Peasants’ Brawl.
Protection and Detection Chemical Warfare talk at the National WWI Museum
A sobering overview of the historical usage of chemical weapons usage during WWI, the Iraq wars, and the recent chemical atrocities by Syria and Russia. With former Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff and retired General Richard Myers, Dr. Tom Sack, President and CEO of MRIGlobal, and Dr. Ron Trewyn, the National Bio and Agro-defense […]
Study of Head of Buddha, Nelson Atkins Museum
Pencil study of the sandstone Head of Buddha (584 AD) from the collection of the Nelson Atkins Museum:This sandstone Buddha head originally resided in Cave Eight of the Tianlongshan Buddhist caves in Shanxi province. It is dateable to 584 A.D. by the stele outside the Cave Eight entrance. Cave Eight is approximately 14 feet on a […]
Drawing of Elephant Hunter sculpture, by Malvina Hoffman
Pencil study of The Elephant Hunter sculpture (1927), by Malvina Hoffman. This was one of the most striking pieces from the current retrospective of Hoffman’s work at the Cedar Rapids Museum of Art. If you are in Iowa, I recommend taking time to visit this exhibition.Like her mentors Borglum and Rodin, Hoffman gravitated toward interpreting the […]
Sketchbook page with St. Anthony and The Black Magus
A sketchbook page showing gouache drawings after Teniers (Temption of St. Anthony) and Pieter Aertsen (Adoration of the Magi – Presentation in the Temple). Here I am trying to figure out color and composition for my current paintings.
Pencil portraits of boy, young woman, mother
Old pencil sketch from 1995, City Union Mission. An african-american mother, her daughter and son. #sketchbook #lifedrawing #flesh #portrait #portraits #pencil #imagodei #fromlife #africanamerican
Pencil drawing of a young man, 1994
Old pencil sketch from 1995, City Union Mission. An african-american young man. Having rediscovered this from my sketchbooks many times over the last 20 years, I consider this one of the finest drawings I’ve ever made. #sketchbook #lifedrawing #flesh #portrait #portraits #pencil #imagodei #fromlife #africanamerican
Woman fixing daughter’s hair
#Pencil #drawing from 1992 of a mother #braiding her daughter’s hair, from City Union Mission.
St. Joseph State Park, Florida beach watercolor
#morning #watercolor and #pencil of the superlative #gulf #beach at St. Joseph State Park in #florida
Watercolor sketch of crabapple, western red cedar trees
2016 #Watercolor #sketch looking north at Evangel Presbyterian during #Presbytery break. #crabapple, #westernredcedar
Self portrait, 1992
Going through an old #sketchbook I found this #selfportrait #drawing from 1992 at #KCAI.
Sketch menu from Jarochos in Armourdale
#watercolor #sketch of Chef Falcon’s seafood choices at @Jarochos in Armourdale, Kansas.
Peter Kuper sketch from KCAI talk
#sketch #portrait made in the dark of the #PeterKuper talk last night at #KCAI. He was an engaging speaker; clearly a real pro working on his own terms. I enjoyed his talk very much.
White Sands National Monument, New Mexico
Another odd but wonderful moonscape gem of the National Park System. Don’t miss Eddie’s Burritos in nearby Alamagordo, along with the hidden treasure of Oliver Reed State Park.
Balmorhea State Park
A watercolor sketch, done with feet-in-pool. My family absolutely loved this place, everything about it: the fish, the snakes, the facilities, the nearby town, the surrounding mountains, the oasis-like nature of the park. Loved it.
Pencil sketch of Kollwitz self portrait etching
An inadequate sketch after Kollwitz’ disturbingly penetrating self portrait etching, shown during the Nelson Atkins show World War I and the Rise of Modernism.
Gedyamin Grubba pipe organ Bach concert
A sketch of Polish organist, composer, and conductor Gedyamin Grubba playing Bach on Southminster’s Casavant pipe organ.
Chef carries the Devil on his head
A sketch study for Bruta The Witch, showing the protagonist metaphorically carrying the Devil on his head.
Atalanta’s foot, hand of Yoga Narashima
Two studies of sculpture at the Nelson Atkins Museum of Art. The left is of the foot of Atalanta from Mosca’s Atalanta and Meleager with the Calydonian Boar, ca. 1564-1565. The right is from the 12c. Indian Yoga-Narashimha.
Christ and the Demoniac
Here is a ballpoint pen and ink wash illustration from Mark 5, the account of Christ healing the Gerasene demoniac.
Abstracted figure observing light 1
A small watercolor study of an idealized man looking at early light through a partially open window.
Red Crow Brewing Patio
A quick india ink and watercolor sketch of Bill Burns and Curt Mauk enjoying a beer on the patio of Red Crow Brewing, in Stillwell, KS.
Four figures watercolor study
I was looking at and thinking of Witold Wojtkiewicz (1879-1909) and his painting, Christ and the Children, when I was painting this small study for a larger work I have planned, Four Figures.
Drawing of Burgomaster portrait after Borch masterpiece
I was able to make this little drawing of the Burgomaster on the spot from ter Borch’s painting while visiting the Nelson Atkins’ recent exhibition, Reflecting Class in the Age of Rembrandt and Vermeer.
Plein air watercolor of Fort DeSoto beach
As I improve as a plein air painter, I one of the things I have begun to better “see” is color, like the late afternoon sun casting royal blue shadows in the white sand of the beach of Fort DeSoto Park, a county park just south of Tampa. Prettier than most state parks we’ve camped in, Fort DeSoto offers beautiful, palm-treed campsites […]
Camping pro tips sketch
Here are some notes our family made on the return road trip home from our last camping trip to the southwest. We visited Palo Duro Canyon in north Texas, Oliver Reed State Park in New Mexico, Balmorhea State Park and Abilene State Park in Texas.
Bust of Emperor Caracalla, Cedar Rapids Museum of Art
45-minute sketch in pencil. Not as fine as the bust of the same brute in the Nelson-Atkins Museum collection, but still a treat to draw.