This little guy lives in my studio on the window sill in a shell. I give him a bath (a soak in cool water) once a week and that’s all the care he needs. What a perfect pet, huh!? (Btw, most people call this spidery plant an ‘air plant’ because they don’t need soil. They grow up in trees in the tropics.)
This is a values study for the watercolor class I am taking–use the full spectrum of grays to black in a painting. He’s also EDM # 257 Draw a houseplant. The pot below is also a values study for my class. I am finding these studies in gray help me understand the shapes of my subjects better, and hopefully will guide me when moving on to color.



This blog is about my journey as a botanical artist--what I am learning, what inspires me and what I am currently drawing or painting. My desire is to continually hone my skills to better express my wonder and gratitude for the beauty of the creation around me in the Pacific Northwest (USA).
These are fantastic! Such great control of the medium… something I’d love to learn someday. I’ve always liked water color, the only thing is that it takes time to dry, and you always need water to clean your brush…. that’s why I pick the medium that’s available anywhere anytime…pencil. But I definitely need to learn how to diversify.
What a strange plant – it is like a creature, emerging from that shell. And I like your rendition very much- the monotone suits it.
These are both really great! I haven’t done strict value work in a long time, but it really is helpful. That’s another thing to add to my list! nancy
These are beautifully done! I like your houseplant – looks like one I might even be able to grow 🙂 And the little jar with your tools is exquisite!
Well done! I really should be doing these myself. I had never heard of an air plant and at first thought it was some sort of sea anemone. Your tonal studies are very successful!
nice sktechs, how u did that effect on draws?
good job
Such beauty in simplicity – they are complete works in themselves.
Nicely done. Your values look really great.
I like that little hermit-crab-plant! A girl I know grows them in decorative gourds that she paints.
Janene, these are wonderful exercises. Cute story about the plant. It’s nice that you are taking a value study class. Those are hard to find because mostly everyone wants to paint with COLOR, but so worth studying. Bravo!
-Krista
http://www.kristameister.com
I like these B/W pictures, and the two flowers from another post. And for your studio pet, perfect…
Mari