When Bill was in the navy, he was a machinist on board the submarine tender, U.S.S. Sperry. So when I saw this machinist’s lathe on the submarine Cavalla, I had to draw it! I remember Bill coming home from the ship with wee bits of metal shavings stuck to his uniform — going barefooted was risky! But he enjoyed the creativity involved in making repair parts for submarines, many times succeeding when his chief said it couldn’t be done!
This is the final two-page spread in the single-signature sketchbook I made of smooth Bristol paper. It records memory sketches from Battleship Texas, the Cavalla, and the very last sketch is from the only photo I remembered to take on the U.S.S. Stewart, a destroyer escort. This little book is for Bill . . .
. . . and after so many ink sketches in a row, I am So Ready to get back to watercolor!
Vicky, I look forward to each and every post you make on your artwork. You are a very talented individual.
ReplyDeleteThank you, Bev — I appreciate the encouraging word!
DeleteWow...that lathe drawing is very special. Inspirational.
ReplyDeleteWhat Bristol paper did you use? By my count you did 8 spreads in this book. Does that signature really have 8 sheets of Bristol in it? I've used Strathmore S300 bristol and like it a lot for pen and ink but I would think it would be too thick for an 8 sheet signature. Secrets?
That lathe is full of memories for us!
DeleteI sewed this book for one of the Sketchbook Revival classes, using paper from an old pad of Strathmore Smooth Bristol 300 series paper; the cover of the pad is yellow. There are 4 sheets of paper, folded down the middle and put into one signature of 8 leaves / 16 pages total.
Then I took one more sheet of Bristol, this one a heavier piece from a stack a friend of mine found in the store room of a college art class — this one is folded to make the cover. The cover is slightly wider to cover the uneven ends of the pages.