Sapa Inca, Emperor!

An unremarkable dog.

This little chap came to me by way of a commission. He was short-legged and bright of eye with curly ears. I asked his owner to tell me something of his background and this is his story.

He was found, as a tiny puppy, on the walking trail between Cuzco and Macchu Picchu, in Peru. The man who found him on the trail picked him up and brought him back to the United States, where he gave the puppy to the daughter of a friend. Macome, for that was the puppy’s name, grew up beside a Springer Spaniel and became outgoing, bouncy and very, very friendly. But, in the looks department, he wasn’t going to win any prizes. So when I started drawing him and wanted to make him special, I suddenly saw’ him for who he really was and was excited to draw him in his birthplace. I did a lot of research about the stray dogs in Cuzco and a few of them looked like Macome, but most were just typical strays – all well fed however, because the people of Cuzco feed them and regard them as their neighbors. Then I found out that when Macchu Picchu was inhabited, there were royal lineages and the king was known as ‘Sapa Inca’ or the King of Inca. So, needless to say, I bestowed the title on this Peruvian transplant and now, despite his diminutive size and plain looks, he is the King of the Inca. A unremarkable, but rather special dog.

Water Dog

I always feel a connection with the animal I am sketching, but this beautiful girl was different. I felt as if I knew her well, though we have never met. I think it happened when I was drawing her eye. She had that faraway stare and was relaxed but alert. She had been swimming and was waiting for her human to take her home. As soon as her eye was drawn, I knew this dog as well as I know my own. It’s very odd how that happens from time to time. She is leaving to join her owner tomorrow and I shall miss her. But then I always feel a little sad when I hand over a portrait, I don’t know why.

Go away

I haven’t been to a party like that one in a very long time. Imagine: it is a hot summer’s evening and the sound of laughter reverberating round the table is intoxicating. A raucous gathering of friends are enjoying an Argentinian barbecue on the deck, laughing, drinking wine and listening to music. As the meal ends, the music gets a little louder and whatever magic has been added to the wine, each guest finds themself irresistibly drawn to the garden where we dance. We take off our shoes to feel the cool grass between our toes and we dance. We crazy dance. Moonwalk dance. Rock and roll dance. Whatever seems right dance. And every single person at that party is laughing. We are spontaneous and silly and probably slightly tipsy.  Xuxu, our ancient canine hostess,  is completely happy as she waddles her way through the feet and legs of the guests, but she doesn’t stay too long and soon wanders off to bed. I don’t remember what time that wonderful party ended, but I have a faint recollection of a policeman arriving at some point. I am sure he wanted to take his shoes and jacket off and join us on the lawn.

So, this is Xuxu. This is quick unfinished sketch of her, but the set of her head and her posture as she lay on the wooden deck was challenging and I needed to see if I could capture it. The expression on her face is explicit. “Go away, you are bothering me.”

Sorry I disturbed you, Xuxu, go back to sleep and thanks for the memory!

 

 

 

Winter winds

The northeast suffered a tremendous wind storm over the last 36 hours. Trees fell, power went out and sadly, five people died. In my neighborhood tiles were ripped off our roofs and our garbage cans were hurled all over the place. But then, last evening, as the wind was calming down a little, I looked up at the northern sky.  These colors appeared within about 30 seconds of each other. The wind was still capricious and it stole my cap, lifting it swiftly off my head and spinning it, like a frisbee, into the air. I ran to get it back, but not before I took these photographs to share. I used my phone and there are no filters, just the colors as they appeared. They were taken about 30 seconds apart and during that time the colors changed dramatically. If I had painted that, people might tell me that the sky is blue or gray, not violet pink or peachy apricot. I would have to show them these photos so they would understand.

This is her family

My two year old granddaughter drew this a week ago. It is her family. I expect her mother and father are the two figures in the top left because they have bodies and their size is important to her. The other two in the top tier may be her brother and herself, but who are the five others? What fascinates me is that a two year old is already drawing portraits. The rest of the body isn’t very interesting to her yet; it’s the faces that matter because, at this age, faces are where she obtains most of her information about life. Most of her people have smiles, but one has a turned down mouth. Is this an accident or a conscious stroke of the crayon? And whose is the little face floating at the top? It’s both a miracle and a mystery that such a very young child already has the concept of drawing a credible representation of her family, don’t you think? In fact, it proves that no matter how young or how old we are, no matter how skillful as artists, there is an innate ability in all of us to draw a portrait.