Beetle Tracks

Near our house on the dog walking route, we have a wide patch of incredibly fine dust. It's so soft and light your tennis shoes sink in a few inches every step, and if you don't walk slowly and ducklike, your shoes fill with dirt immediately. We also have a healthy population of various beetly bugs. Here is a survey of some of their different tracks left during the night. These range from half an inch wide to about two inches wide. They are really quite fascinating in their diversity, density, and busyness.

Bugs and Blooms

A small painting. I was trying to not be so controlled and tight as I am in my ink work. It is a Goliath beetle.

And in unrelated news, the Sansevierias (aka Mother in Law's Tongue) is blooming. It is incredibly smelly and can be smelled three rooms away. I kind of like the smell, but it is a bit overpowering. Some people's never bloom. We must be providing the perfect level of neglect. And if you can see those beads of liquid, I've learned recently from the font that is all knowledge called the internet that this phenomenon is called guttation. And also that this plant is toxic to cats. We no longer have a cat, but this plant had nothing to do with it.

Five of Cups

I'm not sure whether I have the stamina to do the entire deck, but here is one (selected randomly from a shuffled pile.)

Five of Cups

The Five of Cups: Loss and bereavement, but not all is gone. There is still some hope, as represented by two cups that are not spilled out. Not sure if this means bad news is in store for me personally.

Inspiration comes loosely from the Rider-Waite Tarot, below. You can read about the full meaning here.

Third Instar

More progress on this one. Still have quite a ways to go. I need to get a wide format scanner. There is a lip around the perimeter of the glass on this regular size scanner that prevents the art from sitting directly on the glass when I use the 11x14" paper block. I think it leaves a slightly fuzzy out-of-focus look.

Robot Beetle

I needed to make up some samples to help advertise the Stamp Making Class that I am teaching this summer to kids.  I figure the beer bottles and other things I've been recently carving are not really age appropriate.  The younger kids will certainly have a share of different techniques we will practice, but the older kids will get to have even more fun by carving their own stamps.

Draw something, carve it, print it!

So, if you've got bored yet creative kids this summer in the Tri-Cities, you might want to check out the gallery's schedule of kid workshops.

Second Instar

I posted a pencil draft of this knot ring a while ago. I did the first round of ink work this weekend.  I'm not sure yet how the remaining areas will be filled in, or even if the four corners will be the same. Final dimensions will be a rectangle of about the width and height of the diamond shape you see. I hadn't drawn any beetles lately and I missed them.  It may be hard to see the two big leaves - one has eggs on it, the other has been chewed.  I'm mulling about themes of circles and cycles.

Other recent ink finishes...I'm planning on adding some color yet still to the serpent.