Nature Drawing 102

By the way, anyone recognize what kind of ‘duck’ was portrayed in yesterday’s drawing? I’m clueless.

ebony pencil on grey-toned rib-laid charcoal paper, 19″ x 25″ • collection of the artist $

Today’s drawing of an owl is dated March 18, 1963 — 51 years ago Monday. Since yesterday’s ‘duck’ was dated the day before – 3.17.63, a Sunday – and we had only one class per week, and “never on Sunday”, I can only assume that it was either a make-up for a class missed, or I was passing in the previous weeks assignment late. When I recently REdiscovered the sheet folded in quarters I decided it was time to dry-mount it as flat as possible for photographing and ultimately posting on this 51st anniversary of its creation. Amazing that it survived. Oh, Tempus Fugit!

Yesterday while researching Ms Edna Lawrence, my memorable teacher from RISD, in preparation for the daily dispatch, I discovered the photo at left. Despite its very low resolution which gives a rather ghosty character to Ms Lawrence’s eyes, as well as to one of her owls — not the same one I drew above however — I had to include the photo. The coincidence of Ms Lawrence, looking much as I remember her, combined with owl-life, though stuffed and not exactly the same, was too serendipitous not to include. Such memories have been evoked by the fourteen surviving drawings from Ms Lawrence’s class — of a time of innocence, expectation, fear and hope… Tomorrow, the single surviving specimen from my Freshman Foundation 2-D Design class. Wish I could say all the other pieces sold, but I’m afraid they all got passed over and trashed instead…