Ironically, I think these “placeholder” sketches are turning out to be the ones that best serve the purpose of the Weekly Sketch project. Horses are quick and easy to draw, so to make them more interesting I play around with effects like toned paper, damp brushes and so on. I’m actually developing my skills more with the horse sketches than I am with the “serious” drawings.
I dabbled in color this week.
I’ve always known juniper berries were used to flavor gin, but I never really thought of them as edible until my uncle came to visit us in Austin and we took him hiking around Mount Bonnell. It had been a rainy winter, and the juniper berries were exceptionally big and round and vibrant. My uncle got very excited and started eating them right off the trees. So I tried some. To my surprise they were sweet and tasty, although the pits were a bit piney. I am now a fan of the humble juniper!
This week’s sketch was inspired by a pic I took last weekend of Mahogany frolicking in her paddock. The photo itself isn’t very good, but it caught her in an unusual pose, so it seemed like a fun little anatomical challenge to draw.
Here’s the original photo. She has a mohawk because I shaved her mane off a few weeks ago, rather than fighting with the solid block of dried Texas clay that had melded with it.
I’m still working on the portrait of Elizabeth. It’s taking longer than I thought it would. Here is a horse.
This is the drawing I’m working on. It’s taking forEVer to get the textures right, but I like how it’s coming along so far. I’ll post the complete image when I finish it.
An Invincible Summer 