A commissioned pencil drawing is a drawing someone pays you to draw specifically for her. Found Friend asked me to draw a view out the windows of the small chapel at St. Anthony Retreat Center in Three Rivers.
First, I took photos.
Second, I did 2 sketches to see if either one fit her vision.
Found Friend chose A.
Tomorrow I’ll show the beginning of the commissioned pencil drawing.
Coloring books will be available again on July 1, 2016. You may order, but it will involve a wait.
“Commissioned Pencil Drawing” is a straightforward title for a nice story of friendship and inspiration.
I have a friend from summer camp when we were in grade school. We cannot remember the summer we met. We lost touch. She and my older sister became friends as adults.
Last summer I was reading one of my favorite blogs, Happier by Gretchen Rubin. Love her writing, her podcast, her way of thinking. . . for some reason that particular post was so interesting to me that I took time to read the comments. I recognized the married name of my old friend in one of the comments! Her name was clickable, so I followed links, found a picture and recognized her! She had her own blog and a contact button, so I emailed her and she REMEMBERED ME!
But wait. It gets weirder. Would you believe that is the only time she has EVER commented on a national blog?? And it was the only time I have ever taken the time to read the comments on Gretchen’s blog?
We now have a great email correspondence and have gotten together several times. She is a fabulous human, a deep thinker, a thoughtful and kind person, and a Major Blessing in my life. To protect her privacy, I will call her “Found Friend”.
What does this have to do with a commissioned pencil drawing?
Found Friend spent a bit of time at St. Anthony Retreat Center in Three Rivers several years ago, and was struck by a view out the windows of one of the chapels. When she visited me this spring, we went there and sat inside that chapel so she could show me the view because she wanted to commission me to draw that view in pencil.
She insisted that we conduct business in my normal way, no special friend discounts or freebies. This always feels weird to me, but I remember something a wise friend told me years ago: “If your friends won’t do business with you, who will?”
Here are a few photos I took that day.
Tomorrow I will show you the 2 sketches I did for my Found Friend to consider and choose.
Coloring books will be available again on July 1, 2016. You may order, but it will involve a wait.
What is it about doors that is so attractive? In this pencil drawing, it is the light and shadow.
Does this look like a cabin to you?
What is a cabin? A little home in the mountains, but it can be a big fancy-pants home in the mountains too. (Ask my sister-in-law who lives in Tahoe!) But is any home in the mountains a cabin?
So many questions. That’s how I am wired. That’s how I learn, think, make decisions, and roll.
This looks like a cabin because there is firewood piled by the door. Did you notice that?
You can get a copy of The Cabins of Wilsonia here: The Cabins of Wilsonia.
I love to teach people how to draw.
Every Tuesday afternoon, people come to the Courthouse Gallery in Exeter for lessons. Four people for an hour at a time, each one working at his own pace on his own drawing. (Yes, I know it is acceptable to say “they” as a singular pronoun now, but I cannot. Can not.)
Sometimes I demonstrate some drawing techniques to a group. Two weeks ago I did this for the Tulare Palette Club, a delightful and attentive group. I sort of talked a little bit too long. They were gracious, but told me to shut up at 9:05. It was very fun.
And occasionally someone makes an appointment and comes to my studio for a private lesson. This is also great fun. I find out why she wants to learn to draw and tailor the information to her specific needs.
Equal opportunity here: “his” in the 2nd paragraph, “she” and “her” in the previous. No “they”. However, the Theys used to live up the road from me. Had a sign in their front yard – said “The Theys”.
I am not making this up.
And I don’t make up stuff when I teach people to draw. I help them all learn, and we all have a great time.
Are you interested?
Here is a sample to whet your appetite:
This pencil drawing is “Bandit” by Jennifer Logan. She has been taking lessons from me for about 3 years.
You can learn more here: Lessons.
A man cave? A Dude Den? a tool shed? guest quarters (so they won’t be inclined to overstay)?
Even after four years of visiting Wilsonia while working on The Cabins of Wilsonia, there are still many unsolved mysteries.
Get your copy here to learn about (or at least just look at) many mysterious buildings in Wilsonia: The Cabins of Wilsonia
Sometimes the backsides of cabins were more interesting to me than the fronts. There are porches, fire rings, sheds, and little paths (in the mountains we tend to refer to paths as “trails”) leading from neighbor to neighbor.
Mountain communities like Wilsonia tend to be very neighborly.
To learn more, you can order your copy of The Cabins of Wilsonia here.
Many of the Wilsonia cabins were difficult to see because cedar trees were in the way.
This was one of those cabins. No problema (a little Spanish lingo for you). I just drew it from the back side.
It is in the book The Cabins of Wilsonia, available for $80 on this link: The Cabins of Wilsonia
Porches, decks, balconies. . . all those outdoor living spaces are very important to all cabins, including Wilsonia cabins.
This one was very charming and it was for sale during the project. A friend bought the cabin, so her daughter secretly bought the drawing for her. Then, the mom secretly bought the drawing of her daughter’s cabin for her!
I was caught in a web of cabin gift giving secrets. It was tricky, but I don’t think I spilled any beans.
This four year project, The Cabins of Wilsonia, had many benefits, and one of them was rekindled and new friendships.
A Wilsonia cabin that sits on a corner got me confused. It looks like this as seen from one lane:
And this is how it looks when you go around the corner:
Are you confused? It took me awhile to figure out this is the same cabin. My excuse is that I had to learn 212 cabins. By the time I finished the book The Cabins of Wilsonia, there were 214 cabins. But, after 4 years, my confusion lessened.
This Wilsonia cabin kept me confused for a long time. The cabin sits on a corner of 2 roads. On one road, it looks very rustic. On the other, it looks like this.
You can see this drawing and one of the other side in The Cabins of Wilsonia, available for sale here.
The book was a huge project. Confusion was a regular occurrence as I worked through how to depict a cabin community with 212 cabins.