Showing posts with label danny gregory. Show all posts
Showing posts with label danny gregory. Show all posts

Tuesday, July 3, 2012

watercolor bed, danny gregory and success


Time you enjoy wasting, was not wasted.
John Lennon


I think i need to clean up and fill up my little watercolor set...
or get a new one. 

oh yeah, babay... :-)




A quick little watercolor i did last night.

I need to get some new sketchbooks soon too,
and i think i'll try the Moleskin sketchbooks.
I've never tried them.

Have any of you out there tried them?

I know they're a bit more expensive,
but it's money well spent to me.

I'll bark about paying $3 for broccoli
but i don't mind paying $20 for a sketchbook. 

Priorities.
:-)


I love painting things that have exaggerated darks and lights.
Like these creases in the clothes...

Although these were obviously done too quickly.


I've been re-reading a few of my Danny Gregory books.

I had forgotten how brilliant this man is.
So many important words for artists to read.

If any of you still need permission
to call yourselves artists,
read his book "the Creative License".

It'll help you find your wings.



This page is one of my favorites,
although it's one of the rare ones without any illustration.

Haven't we all struggled with this?
If we're so good, why aren't we making more money?

There are genuine artists
who never seem to be able to break through
and then there are those who paint the same thing
over and over and over
in different colors
who have no sense of discovery 
or of the importance of art in the world
but they play the part
and they walk the walk
and they talk the talk
(usually bullshit)
and they get the government grants.

I can almost hear my father's voice here...
"y'a pas de justice dans le monde"
(basically, "life isn't fair").

I always think back at Vincent Van Gogh,
who sold only one painting during his lifetime,
and they now sell for millions.

But is that what it's about?
About selling?
Was his art not art
when it didn't sell?

Why did it all of a sudden become more valuable?
It was always the same art.

Was Van Gogh considered more of an artist
because his paintings eventually reached in the millions?

Would we ever have known about him
if his art had remained unsold, in obscurity?

Is that the measuring stick we use
to determine whether one is a successful artist or not?

It's certainly not my stick.

I don't think it was Henry Miller's stick either.

Art needs no measuring sticks.

The only sticks we need
are those attached to our paintbrushes.
xoxo



Saturday, June 30, 2012

Danny Gregory

hi everyone.

No art from me today,
but I do want to share something from this man.

Danny Gregory.


I love this man's work.

He is a prolific illustrator and has published
several books and art journals.
 He reminds me that art is life.

He reminds me that drawing can be done anytime,
anywhere
with anything as a subject.


He is skilled at handwriting
and illustrating
and combining color
but more than anything
he is skilled at living.

He is skilled at observing.
At taking the time.
At sharing a day in the life...

I am grateful for people like Danny Gregory,
who give us a glimpse into their world
through art and words.

Danny reminds me that we all have a story to tell
and that we all have a different way
of looking at the world.

He reminds me that we're all ok.


He also reminds me that
there is room for everyone in this world
and that there can be such beauty
in sharing the most simple things.

The drawing of a bagel

a cup of coffee

a smile

a park bench.


His latest book is this one.
A kiss before you go -
an illustrated memoir of love and loss
(about his wife, Patti)

You can hear Danny talk about his book here.

This one will be sitting on my shelf soon.


Wishing you all a great weekend
and for my Canadian friends,
a WONDERFUL Canada day tomorrow, eh!! :-)

Tomorrow is all about fireworks and lollipops for me.
xoxo