Artistic License

Recently I joked about receiving a “license to create” from Cheap Joe’s Art Stuff. I have this sticker posted on … More

A Rose Is a Rose Is a Rose

In Sacred Emily, written in 1913, Gertrude Stein says that “Rose is a rose is a rose is a rose.” She’s … More

I love idioms. You know, those little phrases that work their way into the language whether they make any sense … More

“Today we’re going to draw a squid…” That was how a recent Sketchbook Nation project began. A squid. Great. Uh, … More

It’s all right to like what we draw. This has been one of the hardest lessons I’ve had to learn … More

Lon Chaney, born in 1883, was known as “the man of a thousand faces”. A star in vaudeville, he went … More

On the first day of creation, light came into the world. Nothing is more important for an artist than light. … More

I’ve already told my husband not to worry if he finds drawings of naked men. I’d noticed that odd look … More

“What is it?” Those are the three little words no artist ever wants to hear, especially one who’s still relatively … More

Every morning when my husband gets to work, he gives me a call. We usually talk about the day he has … More

Maybe you’ve heard those words before. “Disillusionment always precedes enlightenment.” I’ve heard them a lot, and often they come from … More

Being a self-taught student of art offers many challenges, not the least of which is knowing how to assess my … More

Some things never change. I tried drawing a wolf last summer — I wrote about it in Hard Things — and … More

I’ve never been a patient person. When I want something, I want it now — a fact that Amazon Prime … More

Ever since I began learning to draw last June, I’ve been wondering when I would become a “real” artist. I … More

Yesterday I agonized over perspective and my struggle to accurately depict buildings and architectural elements. This isn’t a new thing … More

Oh, my goodness, but do I have a headache! I’ve just been through a grueling lesson on perspective, and while … More

Simplify. That word has been one of my life’s mottos — if a single word can be a motto, that … More

When I first began drawing, I had flowers on my mind. In looking back over the years, it seems many … More

Earlier today I read a blog post from Artist Daily. It was about a class where students spent 20 weeks on … More