Drawing Prompt: Week 1

Prompt Theme: Kitchen Kapers

Welcome to the first week of my Term 2 Drawing Prompt series! I will post a new prompt by each Monday and I hope you will all join in and draw along with me during the week and create works to the theme suggested.

I will be using a A5 Windsor Newton 200gsm Watercolour diary for demostration works. Remember, this is a drawing series, but anything that can make a mark and take a line for a walk can be used over the nine weeks. I will make suggestions but feel free to experiment and try different mediums, paper, and techniques.

If you would like to show your works here, email me with your image and avatar name and I will put it up here with my comments. Followers of this blog are also encoraged to comment on the works. Please make sure the images you send comply with the rules. Any images should be sent by Friday, May 1. You are welcome to send earlier and I will post progressively.
There are two challenges this week - do one, do both, or combine the two! Just have fun.

Challenge 1: Looking out my kitchen window

Well, I am sure during this lock down a lot of time is being spent in the kitchen!  So lets do some drawing focused around that comforting part of the home. The first challenge is to draw the view you see from your kitchen window. I have drawn in graphite pencil with some graphite wash, but if you wish to try it in charcoal/pastel/ink or even digital format please do so.

From my kitchen window: Graphite and water soluble graphite wash. About 1 hour. I am lucky to be visited by a pair of Grey Butcherbirds every morning. They sit on the window sill and look in, sometimes tappity-tapping on the glass until I give them a feed. This drawing was done from life and a reference shot taken of the birds' visit yesterday morning.

Challenge 2: Tea Time
This one is a little trickier. You will need a brush with a fine point - I used a Dagger style brush - a teabag, preferably black tea,  a yellow ochre colour pencil and a china/pottery mug or teacup.

1. Prep: Begin by steeping the tea bag in a glass of hot water, about 4cm deep or so. Leave the bag in the glass as the stain will get progressively darker as you work. Place the cup on a white sheet of paper and get prepared to 'draw' with the brush.

Step 1: Prep

2. Draw: Dip the brush into the tea wash and start to draw the basic shape and block forms of the cup. Do not draw with a pencil first, only draw with the brush. As this is a very light wash any pencil will show through. Also, it doesn't matter if your shape isn't perfect, you can refine it as you go.

Step 2: Draw

3. Let the first dry throughly. Then draw again with the brush and wash, darkening and refining the shapes. Look for lights and darks. Ignore any pattern on the cup for the moment, concentrate only on the shape and form created by the tones.

Step 3: increase tone and refine

4. Dry again. If you need to, dry with a hair dryer but be careful not to bake the paper! Again draw with the brush and wash refining shape and tones.

Step 4

5. And now, dry completely again. With a yellow ocher pencil that is similar in hue to the tea stain, draw and refine the shapes using line, hatching and tone. If your cup has a printed pattern now lightly indicate that pattern with the pencil. I used a Staedler Karat #16 pencil.

Step 5: Pencil detail. This drawing took around 45 minutes not counting the drying time.

Well, I hope you had a bit of fun! Show me your work!