A few drawings of the lovely Lynn. I’ve been enjoying several days in the museums of Washington DC with the Dalvero Academy, preceded by a few days of drawing in our Brooklyn studio. A great way to start the New Year!

This silk painting, “Garden of Eden” was one I did for the United Nations World Food Summit. It represents first fruits, abundance, growth and peace – perfect sentiments to greet the new year with. Here’s to a new year – 2012 – full of new projects, new drawings, and new life. Happy 2012!

Happy holidays, everyone. And best wishes for 2012!

I will be interviewed live today, Wednesday November 23, on the program, “Creative Mojo with Mark Lipinski.” We’ll be talking about creativity in general, and our Studio 1482 book in particular: One Drawing A Day: A 6-Week Course Exploring Creativity with Illustration and Mixed Media.

Looking forward to the interview, hope you’ll tune in! It will also be available as a podcast after today.

The program airs on Toginet radio from 3 – 5pm EST today: http://toginet.com/shows/creativemojo

Review for One Drawing A Day: A 6-Week Course Exploring Creativity with Illustration and Mixed Media:

“Beginning and experienced artists alike will find that this highly accessible book can boost motivation, strengthen discipline, or even jump-start creativity during a block.”– Library Journal, Oct. 2011  

The Studio 1482 One Drawing A Day book is out, and I’m very proud of the finished creation. It features the work of myself and the other 7 members of Studio 1482. I selected work from out One Drawing a Day blog that I thought would be perfect to inspire readers, and then wrote an exercise that would be an extension of that illustration that they could do themselves. That’s the way to be influenced by art – not by copying, but by taking it as a point of departure!

How this book came about: Mary Ann Hall, my now-editor at Quarry Books, contacted me and asked if I would like to write a how-to art book, based on the drawings posted on our Studio 1482 blog, One Drawing A Day. She thought that if one drawing every day worked for myself and the other members of the studio, it could work for everyone. I agreed, but wanted to make sure this was not a how-to technique book, but  a how-to creativity book. I wanted a book that would inspire people to create art through playing and experimenting, getting their hands dirty, seeing what they could come up with, and retaining their individuality. This is how I teach, not by showing students how I do something, but by putting them into situations where they are forced to let go of pre-conceived ideas and simply do something, anything, to fill up the page and bring it back to the critique. Give students questions, not answers – that was Plato’s philosophy and it’s a good one, that teaches young people to think for themselves. Once I can see what they do naturally, only then will I start to guide them and work with them on moving it forward and out into the world. The world needs more individuality and creativity, not a bunch of clones. Least of all, in art!

“Boost motivation and strengthen discipline” – I like that! I’m very happy with the first review of our first Studio 1482 book, and I hope you’ll all go out and get a copy to check it out for yourself.

The book is available now at bookstores, or online. (Here’s an Amazon link.)  Would love to hear feedback from any of you…

I want to extend my gratitude not only to Mary Ann Hall at Quarry Books, but to my Studio 1482 family that entrusted me with their art. Marg, Michele, Eddie, Dom, Greg, Despina and Kati – thanks guys, I hope you are all as happy with this book as I am! 

Yesterday afternoon was clear and cool and the perfect day to go downtown and make some drawings of the march to support the Wall Street occupiers. The marchers met in front of the courthouse and walked down to City Hall to show their support for the activists who are occupying Wall Street, representing the 99% – that is, the 99% who have no access to the majority of wealth in the US.

There were so many people on line to get in line…it was a pretty impressive turnout. Marching bands, even, although they were small, added to the parade-like atmosphere. There were union groups represented as well. I saw teachers, nurses, iron workers, students, musicians, etc., etc. A great cross-section of New Yorkers. One guy told me that he just left his job at Wall Street a few months ago. “I’m very popular with the reporters,” he quipped.

The guy with the drum was singing a song about Ronald Reagan. I couldn’t make out all of the lyrics, there was some sarcastic remarks about ‘trickle down’ in there though. The other guy was just standing around with a big sign. He seemed a bit lost, although earnest. I heard a lot of conversation among the people who swarmed by me. Several people talking about the good old days when City College was free. (It really was a great system that educated my parents and their generation.) Also heard a woman say she was there because her Mom was out of work. Lots of people complaining about the housing bubble and who is to be held accountable for that fiasco?

Once the parade started moving it went by fairly quickly. Lots of police and police helicopters in the air, but the day was quite peaceful. I saw one person (bottom right of drawing above) wearing a mask like the ones the recent protestors in Spain were wearing. Funny because I was making that comparison mentally even before I saw her.

As the parade wound down I planted myself on the edge of City Hall Park to get some of the people marching by. Even saw one of my students from Pratt! It was a great day and I was glad I was able to sneak a few hours out of all my obligations to get down there and draw. I’ve heard criticism leveled at this whole event, saying there is no strong issue that is being protested. But that’s the beauty of it – it’s just people getting out and letting the government know that they are not happy with the status quo. Isn’t that what democracy is all about?

I have such a back log of drawing and writing to post on this blog I don’t know where to start! So rather than go back to last summer’s trip to Spain, I’ll start with my most recent adventure and work my way back. With a few current posts along the way.

Just last month, Neil and I honeymooned in the Turks & Caicos islands – such a beautiful, romantic spot. We went snorkeling and Neil brought me a tablet used by divers to make notes underwater. Instead of making notes, I drew the fish.This first effort is a bit rough – the current was throwing me off. I aimed for one part of the tablet and somehow the pencil landed in another.

Here I am starting to get the hang of it. What beautiful scenery and fish to draw! The fish were actually interested in what I was doing. Maybe they thought I had a new kind of food for them? Or perhaps they are art appreciators. All I know is that there were an awful lot of yellow snappers heading my way (wasn’t too crazy about that) and then there was a small school of blue angel fish that were circling my legs while I drew. Now THAT I liked. : )

Here is a drawing on the back side of the tablet – Dive Provo was the shop we bought them from. It was really great fun to do this. I would like to figure out how to do some color drawing underwater, the colors in the waters off Grace Bay were magnificent.

On one of our snorkeling excursions, Neil and I met Max, a PhD candidate who had an underwater camera with him. He snapped this shot of me in action – thanks Max!

Only ten years ago – a lifetime, really – two planes crashed into the World Trade Center in New York City and  changed the lives of everyone who lived there. The events of September 11, 2001 have had a profound effect upon the United States and by extension, world events. But I will always remember the effect that day had on my fellow New Yorkers. Some of us had great personal sacrifices to endure, others were affected in less heartbreaking ways. But we were all changed by the day.

When the Dutch built a fort in New Amsterdam, they chose the southern tip of what is now Manhattan for it’s strategic location, easily defended. We who live in Manhattan have always felt that same feeling of safety and protection on our little island. Even now, some criticize Mayor Bloomberg for having been overly cautious with safety measures during Hurricane Irene. We have faith that our tall buildings and iron fortresses can’t be breached.

But on that beautiful sunny morning in September, our confidence in our city was shattered. The twin towers – those landmarks by which every lost New Yorker could orient themselves – had fallen, and with them, our spirit. But I am proud of my city and how she has fought her way back. I can’t wait to see the completion of the new tower at the trade center site that will reach up to the sky with hope and confidence. And I also look forward to visit the memorial to the fallen and take a moment to remember all those beautiful people we lost that day.

The drawing above was made the morning of September 11th, 2001, on lower Fifth Avenue in Manhattan. My fellow New Yorkers trying to believe what their eyes and ears were telling them.

Posted by Veronica Lawlor.

Visit September 11th Words and Pictures to purchase the memorial book of drawings from 9/11. A portion of the proceeds is donated to the New York Firefighters Burn Center Foundation in honor of Carl Bedigian.

I’ve just received my advance copy of One Drawing A Day: A 6-Week Course Exploring Creativity With Illustration and Mixed Media and I’m very excited about it! The book features my work and the work of the other seven illustrators of Studio 1482. It also reprints the text from their original posts and adds exercises that I’ve written that the reader can do, taking the artwork as a point of departure.

Mary Ann Hall at Quarry Books has been terrific, she saw the potential in our One Drawing A Day blog and made the book happen – thanks, Mary Ann!

The book won’t be available in stores until October, but you can pre-order it on Amazon or Barnes & Noble. Can’t wait until it’s out!

At the end of June, Jon Gerberg, a reporter I met while drawing the Egyptian Solidarity rally (see post HERE) came with two colleagues and interviewed me for the Brooklyn Independent Television program, “Caught in the Act.” The show profiles artists who live or work in Brooklyn. It was great fun to have them all in the studio and following me on the streets of Brooklyn to draw! One thing they did that I enjoyed, Jon would point to someone walking down the street and say, “draw him!” and then I would draw the person while they filmed them. Kind of like, “change! change! change!” that my teacher would yell out when I was a student in drawing class. Thank you to Jon, Judy and Norm for a great job with the interview, below:

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Clip provided by: Brooklyn Independent Television, a community media program of BRIC Arts | Media | Bklyn. http://www.bricartsmedia.org/bit.