Sudbury Superstack (Ducting)

Sudbury: Copper Cliff

Yes, lifedrawing too.

Wiping February off the Calendar

The Green Man is a Celtic being, and right now, all I want is warmth in the sun and birdsong, and whatever else the Green Man has to offer.

Just spent three weeks with a cold and a first-ever ear infection; and now, bronchitis. Can't even drag myself to studio.

I agree with that artist/philosopher who said creativity is 99% perspiration and 1% inspiration. Honestly, being "in the mood" or "waiting for the muses" or anything that assumes some magical cloak is just a load of crap. It's about working at it, and doing it often. Sometimes good stuff happens, sometimes it doesn't. I've waited long enough for the muses, and the muses got tired of excuses.

And I'm tired of germs, viruses, bacteria or whatever the hell is getting in the way of my path to the studio. So I'm going to glare at Green Man in the meantime.

Clay play: Green Man

Sudbury: Inco

One perky, one not

Real woman tummy: Clay figurine

Sketchbook: Generic Headframe

Carp Road; Ottawa Ontario

Tile: Rock Bolting

Cobalt: McKinley-Darrough

Random Gatherings

A bright white blank piece of paper terrifies me, especially when it's the first page of a new sketchbook. By the time I get to the end, though, the binding has broken, it's at least an inch thicker, and each "new" page has remnants of previous paints, coffee, inks, wax, varnish. The only thing really embarrassing is the dates from first to last - this particular sketchbook was started in 2002.

Might as well stick in whatever's left on the table and start fresh.

Sketchbook: Last page, last scraps

Hoist Rooms and Cages

Never take an elevator for granted. Not even the one at the Empire State Building, which everyone who has visited New York City has done or should do (although once is enough). The CN Tower offers speed AND a panaroamic view on the way up.

The "cage" (elevator for humans) is a very stripped down version, lacking all the architectural detail and comfort, buffers, and whatever else public high-speed elevators have to make the ride comfortable. The other major difference is that most of the tall building elevators are only going up around 1,000 ft or so. These cages are going down 4,000 feet or so, and they're somewhat open. Like you can see the shaft walls.

Miners on shift line up like sardines to maximize the space, 5 one way, 5 the other, and so on until it's full. One bell from the hoist room, and before you have a chance to catch your breath and any other internal organs you may have left on the surface, you're already down a few thousand feet to the first working level.

Hoist

Sketchbook: Iran

Montreal: Architectural Details

Noranda recovery

Noranda recovery, originally uploaded by Industrial art.

Technical Notes

These Sharpie sketches may be somewhat lacking in liveliness, but they're important to me as a learning tool. What attaches to what, how and why? Drawing carefully involves close observation, and deduction, since I'm working from photos I took in 1990.

Bad drawings often get the "experimental rescue" treatments, some of which include the scented candle drip. This one has stains from the previous page's overdone varnish, and bits of candle wax at the sides.

Noranda: Acid recovery plant?

Hot wax and scratch 'n' sniff...

If you use Paint Shop Pro, there's a hot wax filter you can use - I'm not sure whether Photoshop has one or not. I'm facing a bad drawing and there's a candle burning. I remember a project in my art-teacher book suggesting unifying a collage with a wax coating.

Encaustic looks pretty cool, she thinks, pouring the candle all over the bad drawing. Blow dryer gets rid of some of it. And now my sketchbook smells like a gift shop.

Not that Eau du Smelter is a big seller....and proof positive that sometimes a bad drawing just can't be rescued.

Scratch n' sniff smelter.

Noranda: Smelter

Two seasons in Canada: Winter and Under Construction

There's something wrong with Hello and uploading pictures. I'm not good at sorting this stuff out, so please bear with me until I get that problem solved. And today, just when I think I've invented scratch 'n' sniff smelter drawings.


Thanks, and in the words of Jed Clampett,

"y'all come back now, ya heah?"