I have scantily clad women as wallpaper on my PC.  I tell myself that they are for figure drawing practice.  I have over 2000 of them.  Tonight, my manequin assumed the provocative pose that was on my monitor.  I tried to capture it in Rose Art watercolors.  He’s a naughty manequin.

Also, tonight’s EDM challenge was to draw something I am thankful for.  This one was tough considering the parameters I’ve placed on myself for this challenge.  I thought of my family, but how do I represent my whole family on a page that’s 3.5″x5″?  I thought about my home, my health, my job…  The problem is that “What I’m thankful for” isn’t a thing, but an abstract idea.  No, what I’m most thankful for is Time.  Time to do the things I love.  Time to work.  Time to myself.  But most importantly, I’m thankful for the time that I get to spend with friends and family.  My time with my loved ones is limited, and I cherish every second of it.  God speed, Mike, rest in peace.

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EDM 43: Draw something you’re thankful for

Chickasha, Oklahoma had a large military presence during WWII.  The local airport was a major fighter pilot school.  What we now use as our county fairgrounds was a P.O.W. camp.  There was also a huge hospital for injured soldiers and P.O.W.s. Grady Memorial Hospital is still there, but it is nowhere near as big.  Most of where that hospital and it’s supporting barracks were is the local high school.  One of the few things left is this water tower.  It has been converted into a storage/meeting place for the local Boy Scout Chapter.  Today’s EDM challenge was to draw a landmark of my city.  I chose this one.

Today, I took my brush pen and sketchbook out to Starbucks for a coffee.  This is kind of a big deal because the nearest Starbucks is 40 miles away.  It was a nice ride on the bike though, and very good coffee.  I’m not sure it was FOUR-DOLLARS good, but it was pleasant to sip while playing in my book.  I haven’t been concerning myself with colors lately.  Mostly, because I’m bored with all the black and brown coats.  I am so ready for spring!

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EDM 42: Draw a landmark of your city

The 39th EDM challenge was to draw at a museum.  I had to postpone it because it happened to fall on a Thursday evening.  Today, Saturday, I loaded up Girl2* and my beautiful young bride and we trekked off to the Sam Noble Oklahoma Museum of Natural History.  As soon as you walk through the doors, there is a saurapod poking his head out of his display and looking at you.  That’s when the sqealing started.  The poor child was so excited that only dogs and dolphins could understand what she was saying.  There would be a stream of incoherent high pitched syllables followed by shrieking laughter before she would run off to the next exhibit.  I spent about 20 minutes coaxing this Saurophaganax maximus into my sketchbook so that I could bring him home.  He’s my Thing-a-day.

For tonight’s EDM challenge, draw at a museum, I present Eryops megacephalus.  A resident of the the lower permian age, around 295 million years ago.  Also, I give you a very large dragonfly.

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EDM 39: Draw at a museum

*Edit: I must have had Gilr1 on my mind when I original listed her as the child I took to the museum.  It was, as Gia pointed out, Girl2 that went with us and squealed with glee.

You can always tell which of these I like better.  I almost always put it on top!  Tonight, the EDM challenge was to draw something with folds.  I have my motorcycle gloves lying on the dining room table, which my bride finds to be terribly disquieting.  Especially this month.  Seems between the EDM challenges and the Thing-a-day, I’m not putting away my art gear quite as thoroughly as I should.  She did quietly remind me that “til death do you part” doesn’t have to be as far away as it sounds.

Speaking of Thing-a-day, tonight’s proved to be more of a challenge.  We went to Barnes & Noble with the intent of me sketching while the wife and girl2 had story time.  What ended up happening was the two adults trading off a three year old as she ran from aisle to aisle.  She *LOVES* the bookstore.  Get ’em hooked young!

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EDM 41: Draw something with folds

Tonight, it was important to play in the blues.  I call this “Boys Don’t Cry”.  I think I will have to revisit this much larger with bolder colors.  Probably not watercolor next time.

Kimberly watercolor pencils, waterbrush, memory brush pen black, on canson watercolor paper 90#.

Tonight’s EDM was to draw my toothbrush.  The biggest challenge for me here is shading the bristles and still distinguishing the shadows between them.  Again, I desparately wanted to reach for the colors!  Those of you following along will notice that I skipped EDM 39 and jumped straight to 40.  That’s because 39 is “Draw at a museum”.  I am 40 miles or two days from an open museum.  So I will do that one on Saturday when one of the local museums opens.

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EDM 40: Draw your toothbrush