This is my 3rd sketch with pen from nature in the campus of Missouri State University, USA Oct 06, 2013.
After attending the first Sunday Service in a Chinese Church in the campus Sunday noon, Oct 6, I tried to go back home by walk -- I remembered the road on the Taxi in the morning and I guessed that I should be able to go back home via going cross the campus.
However, when I went by a building names CARRINGTON HALL, by the stone of Marshall Gordon Plaza, I was attracted by some leaves of banana with the green and purple colors. I had seen many green leaves of banana, but I have never seen this kind of colors yet. Especially, I enjoyed their feature in the wind. The leaves were so soft and the branches were so hard, the shapes of their shaking in the wind were so beautiful and so good to see. So that I could not help stopping my step to take pictures and videos for them and I did want to paint them indeed.
However, it was cloudy and the wind was strong, I felt quite cold when I was standing out of the door and I was a little bit worrying that I would have a cold in case I stayed in the so cold weather for at least two hours – the training of Chinese National Academy of Arts and Chinese Center Academy of Fine Arts has given me a strong idea, to paint every sketch as paint a formal painting. So, now, when I sketch outdoor, I worked as I did in the classroom, treat every line seriously and the time to think in my mind was often longer than I painted on the paper. Anyway, I did not really want to miss the so beautiful view in the wind. In case there was no the wind, there would no the charm to attracted me at that time. :- )
Even though I could paint according to the photos and the videos, the feeling was totally different from painting face to the true plants. :- )
So, after hesitating for a while, I sat on the step of the gate of the building and painted for more than 2 hours.
Even though the result was that I had a serious cold in the night and used more about 2 big boxes of tissue, and I did not satisfy some places in the painting yet, my heart was singing when I looked at my new sketch with many tissue in my hands... :-)
How do you think of this sketch? Do you enjoy it?
If you have any questions, comments or suggestions, welcome to write to shirley@ebridge.cn,you can also publish your opinions on Message Board . :-)
--Shirley Yiping ZhangOct 13, 2013
