A bit of a blog slump owing to the depressing effects of weeks of gales, greyness and rain. Valley bottom fever has been upon me. This year more than ever I want to spend more time working outside but so far the weather has made it very hard to exchange the warm comfort of home for a perch in the cold mud, with all my materials flapping around in the wind. I did get out a few times though, with the aim of using only india ink with pens or brushes made from natural materials found on site.
For this quick sketch of Windsor Road terrace through the still wintery trees I mainly used a short length of hollow stem from an unidentifiable (to me) plant, possibly that invader Himalayan Balsam. For the finer lines it was a rather flimsy, narrow reed. Later, at home a quick wash of dilute ink for more contrast, applied with a conventional brush.
