"The Garden"

…Oil tinted Ink Sketch

Many—if not most— of the Cotners in my lineage are good gardeners, some were outright farmers. I’m currently growing a container garden of herbs, tomatoes, various squash, peppers, radishes and okra and they are doing excellent. There’s nothing like eating fresh, home-grown items directly from your own garden. No wonder then that many of my art subjects are of the vegetable and flower variety.

I completed this little sketch called “The Garden” in 1989. It began as a simple pencil sketch, a mindless little doodle one afternoon, on a sheet of computer paper. I transferred it to a heavier grade paper, mounted it on hardboard, and used my Rapidograph pens to ink it. I then gave it two coats of Liquin to seal it. After the sealant thoroughly dried, I used thinned, transparent oils to color it. This technique allows for a permanent, wonderful and rich contrast between the inked subject and the oil color.