Ink on canvas

When my niece moved into a new house near the water, I wanted to give her a painting or drawing as a house warming gift. She has a view from her kitchen window and her balcony to the Intracoastal Waterway which widens into Wrightsville Sound a few miles North. I decided on a pair of seahorses and immediately started sketching. I was already planning a trip and I wanted something that I could carry on the plane, but I also wanted to take advantage of her high ceilings (something large). I decided to use canvas, so I could roll it for travel.

After trying a few things on the canvas, I pulled out a bottle of India Ink and a nib calligraphy pen (the thin line nib) and started drawing. The nobby surface of the canvas catches the tip and the effect is smooth with interruptions. Dotting (pointillism) looks great. Q-tips make larger, softer dots. My daughter (my greatest fan) urged me on, saying the style was both awesome and unique and that I should continue exploring this artform. I sketched on newsprint until I was happy with the size and shape and then lightly sketched an outlines onto long thin canvas and started inking, using brown ink.

I was very proud to present the completed pair of seahorse drawings to my niece. They were tall, but thin, so I was rolled the canvas and slipped them into a mailing tube, cut down to fit in a suitcase. I was prepared to take them to a framer and have them matted with a linen mat and framed for her, but she wanted them wrapped on stretcher frames like a painting. I didn't leave much extra canvas for wrapping, but a good framer can work magic. The result has lots of contrast and the varied line quality is interesting.

I've been drawing on canvas ever since and Cole's idea to wrap on stretcher frames has allowed me to present a completed product, ready for hanging and I have even sold a few drawings at a local coffee shop and on etsy.

Acrylics and watercolors seep into pieces as the mood strikes and I've switched to pens, Micron and then lately Koh-I-Noor Rapidiograph because the nib pen was just too inconsistent and after a while started trying my patience.