The Painted Pen

H and Hippie Cow or Highland Cow This project is part of a watercolor and ink study in letter styles and object styles beginning with that letter. Each week will focus on one letter and one object beginning with that letter in order to collect and practice various artistic styles and alphabets. As I considered letter H and what I wanted to work with in watercolor, many words beginning with H came to mind: honey bee, honeysuckle, hippo, hyena, hummingbird, Hungarian horntail, Hogwarts and Harry Potter (Yes! I’m a huge fan. In our house, we spend much time talking about the story, characters, and places. It’s an amazing story from…

  G and Green Bee-eater This project is part of a watercolor and ink study in letter styles and object styles beginning with that letter. Each week will focus on one letter and one object beginning with that letter in order to collect and practice various artistic styles and alphabets.   As I looked at letter G, I considered many possibilities: ginko, gateau, goldfinch, giraffe, gift, grasses, and of course, Groff, my last name. I could have attempted to portrait each in my family. Since I haven’t mastered faces well yet (ahem … i.e. painting them scares me) and since I couldn’t settle on one of the above words, I…

  Letter F and Fortress This project is part of a watercolor and ink study in letter styles and object styles beginning with that letter. Each week will focus on one letter and one object beginning with that letter in order to collect and practice various artistic styles and alphabets.   Letter F and fortress proved a bit of a distraction from learning watercolor and ink styles. Alphabet styles proceeded as usual, but I looked at so many fortresses, real and imaginary, that I simply wanted to paint them all. So, I painted several styles of castles and only a few styles of watercolor and ink. I took the liberty…

  E and Elephant This project is part of a watercolor and ink study in lettering styles and object styles beginning with that letter. Each week will focus on one letter and one object beginning with that letter in order to collect and practice various artistic styles and alphabets. This week, I studied the letter E and elephants. With E, I continued to work on consistency with my letters, both dip pen and watercolor with ink. The alphabets are taking shape nicely. Each week, as I draw my letters, I pull out previous letters to make sure certain traits stay true to the style. The letter E is one of…

  Letter D and Daisy This project is part of a watercolor and ink study in letter styles and object styles beginning with that letter. Each week will focus on one letter and one object beginning with that letter in order to collect and practice various artistic styles and alphabets.   Daisies. Simplicity at its best. White daisies remind me that life has peaceful beauty. Charm and elegance with minimal effort. I carried them many years ago at my wedding. The brilliant colors of gerbera daisies show off in a stunning display of liveliness and fun. Both kinds of daisies appeal to me and remind me of summer days that…

Letter C and Candelabra This project is part of a study in letter styles and object styles beginning with that letter. Each week will focus on one letter and one object beginning with that letter in order to collect and practice various artistic styles and alphabets.   Recently, I had the opportunity to accompany my son and his class on a field trip. It consisted of touring several local historical sites. I’ve lived here for 18 years (yikes! already?) and had never been inside of any of them before this trip. One of our stops, the Slifer House, a mansion built just before the Civil War, overflowed with antiques. Large…