Tag Archives: Kerry McFall

Sentinel

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“Sentinel”, by Kerry McFall, mixed media

At Baskett Slough, about 10 miles west of Salem, there’s not much going on this time of year… at least not in the middle of the day.  The geese were all evidently invited to lunch on the river, leaving the bare fields quiet and cold.  But we provided a bit of excitement for this yellow-rumped warbler last Sunday, giving him the opportunity to remind us to stay on the path, and to show off his stunning new yellow plumage.

As with most portraits, I didn’t quite the mouth right… or in this case, beak.

Gentle Reminder

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"Goodnight Moon", acrylic, by Kerry McFall

I painted this from a sketch I made in one of my life drawing sessions at Battersea Art Centre in London. I donated it to a local fundraiser for Breast Cancer Awareness.  I hope the nudity doesn’t offend anyone, but how can you be aware of your breasts if you don’t look at them?  Now, go stand in front of your mirror and do your self check.  Thanks.

Tooth of the Lion

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dandelion sketch

"Coming Soon to a Garden Near You", mixed media sketch by Kerry McFall

Much-maligned, nutritious, and gorgeous, the weeds are beginning to smile up from the soggy lawns in Corvallis.  Dandelions are the brightest: petals like a yellow mane, toothy points on the leaves, and I love that little cushion right in the middle of the blossom.  I spent many hours dissecting dandelions as a little girl, sitting cross-legged on my grandmother’s lawn caught up in the sweet scent, amazed by the “milk” that appeared on the stems after picking… and the minute my mother saw my sticky hands, I spent many minutes scrubbing away the dandelion goo.  Simple pleasures.

My New Favorite Color

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sketch of lichen

"Windfall Lichen", mixed media by Kerry McFall

The heavy snows last week brought a good-size limb hurtling into the back yard from the neighbor’s giant fir.  When I went to see the damage, I had to pull the sharp end out of the mushy ground, where it looked like it had been driven in by a pile driver… yikes.  The moral: don’t stand under trees during heavy snowfall.

I counted at least five different types of lichen, and one type of moss, growing on the limb.  Such gorgeous colors when you look closely!  And serendipity had a hand in the palette because I had just found my new favorite color among the colored pencils in the OSU Bookstore art department on the same day: Pale Sage by Prismacolor.  Perfect!

Interested in a print, or an embellished fabric print?  Buy Now!

We Thought Winter Was Over…

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March Snow, mixed media sketch by Kerry McFall

Obviously, winter had one last blast to blow at us, which is very strange for March in Oregon’s Willamette Valley.  But Snow Days are always a good time to slow down, and this one gave me a chance to add a Buy Now page to my website – if you’d like a print of any sketches, you can pay with PayPal – check it out.  Coming soon – an Etsy site with my sketches on greeting cards, and mixed-media paintings for sale!

Sheep Smiles

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sketches of sheep

"Sheep Smiles", colored pencil by Kerry McFall

The OSU Sheep Barns are literally a five minute drive up the hill from downtown Corvallis, so I’m not sure why it’s been at least 10 years since we ventured up there.  But the spirit moved us this weekend, so we treated ourselves to watching the wonders and terrors of nature at work.

The layout is a little different than it was years back – fences keep you way back, and there are lots of signs about germ transmission, and hand-washing stations… but the smell of sheep poop still pervades the cold damp air, and there’s plenty of bleating and baaing.  The lambing season is upon us, so it’s a popular outing for families with small children.  I’m convinced that lambs receive random signals from outer space which send them leaping and jumping for no apparent reason, surprising even themselves from the look of it.  “Gamboling” is just the perfect word for that.  The mother sheep look a bit dazed, but the shape of their mouths makes it look like they are smiling!

The pregnant ewes, some of them literally wider than they are high, even seem to smile… maybe they spike their hay up there, because it sure looks miserable to me.  Ah, sweet mystery of life – what a convoluted process, this birthing and dying!

A Question of Purple

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Purple Finch on bird feeder

"Purple Finch", mixed media by Kerry McFall

Many thanks to Schmidt’s Garden Center for granting me permission to work from their photographs!  This little seed-cruncher was featured in their most recent online newsletter, and I fell in love with the patterns in his feathers.  Their newsletter always has bright photos and interesting discussion, a pleasant break from a world full of less uplifting news.

I’ve always wondered about who decided to call this bird a Purple Finch.  In my opinion, it’s not purple at all.  It’s pink.  There might be a few purple shadows, but this guy is definitely pink – and yes, I did get carried away just a little with the color intensity, but I’m not striving for reality, just that zing I always get when a flash of color flies past.  The Cornell Lab of Ornithology web site says, “The Purple Finch is the bird that Roger Tory Peterson famously described as a “sparrow dipped in raspberry juice.” “  Right on!

Searching for Spring

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sketch of helleborus

"Helleborus Orientalis", mixed media by Kerry McFall

My up-the-street neighbor’s sidewalk border is a gorgeous mish-mash of last autumn’s brown leaves, a stump covered with fungus, and deep purply-red helleborus orientalis.  At least I think that’s what it is – unlike the few crocus in my own border, it is not shyly peeking out with the baby slugs.  It’s just Out There, waving in the wind, defying the spring snows, clearly saying, “Here I am if you’re looking for spring!”  Thank goodness, we’re all ready for some color!

I’ve been heads down busy with a school artist in residence quilt project, finishing the last of my Call and Response pieces for the “unveiling” coming up on Sunday, trying to keep up with the Art Journal class I was taking from Lauren Ohlgren, and of course, work.  So it was nice for a few hours this afternoon to put it all aside and simply sit at the dining table and sketch and paint.  I didn’t even notice that Sparky had jumped on the table and was lapping up the lavender-tinted water where I cleaned my brushes… goofy cat.  I guess she’s ready for some color, too!

Sushi

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sketch of sushi plate

"Sushi", mixed media sketch by Kerry McFall

I don’t really care for sushi, but I admire the way it is often presented: fresh bright colors, lots of salmon pinks, avocado greens, soft sticky rice.  And the shine of the sauces makes me want to stick my finger in the little puddles – raw fish leaves me cold, but I love those salty-sweet sauces!  Speaking of shine, I need to find a better solution than this for adding highlights “after the fact” – I’ve never had much luck with masking fluid, but maybe I need to go buy a new bottle.  That Chinese white watercolor that was handy just doesn’t make the highlight look as liquid and lovely as I had hoped.

Leaning more…?

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"Redwood Components", by Kerry McFall, mixed media - digital image

One of the big trees in the park across the street seems a bit out of kilter lately – the left side branches droop while the right side reaches skyward, and although I think it has always listed a bit to the south, it seems more pronounced.  I wandered over there a few days ago and picked up bits and pieces of bark, scaly needles, and cones while I talked to my neighbor about my suspicions that it wasn’t as healthy as it could be…

But leaning or not, the cones are beautiful.  They look like rosettes if you regard them point blank.  The old ones – last year’s? – are swollen to twice the size of the newer cones, black with moisture, rich with moss.  My sketch is an exercise in turning the shapes into graphic representations – the motion of drawing the needles became like a decorative embroidery stitch, which I really like.  The little border cones would make nice decoration for… well, who knows?  So I fiddled with it a bit in Photoshop, added some triangles, used the Texturize tool to add more of a fabric look… and voila, fodder for a fabric design perhaps?