Kate Ristau's Blog, page 27
June 16, 2018
That’s done anyway: Drawing Dragons Day 166
Oh, this dragon. I finished it, but it was not all joy and flowers and smiles and giggles and cute cute cute. What is up with it’s disproportionality? And where is it’s torso and stomach?
These are questions for which I have no answers.
Maybe I just need to read it’s book.
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June 15, 2018
Horde: Drawing Dragons Day 165
I’m still working on yesterday’s dragon. She is equal parts beautiful and terrible (and not in a menacing way; more deflated if anything).
In the reference, she was adorning or guarding a giant piece of vaguely Celtic jewelry.
But that would not be in my horde.
As anyone could guess, my horde is full of books.
Keep creating,
Kate
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June 14, 2018
Almost: Drawing Dragons Day 164
The problem with me using a really complex reference for my drawing is that I’m not that complex yet. The proportions go wacky, and everything looks just the slightest bit…off.
So, today.
Mom got me this amazing Dragon Art book. It is literally all the perfect. In case you were wondering where the perfect went.
I had grandiose dreams of drawing this:
But instead, so far, I have drawn this:
It is just so delightfully ALMOST, isn’t it?
Keep creating,
Kate
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Truths: Drawing Dragons Day 163
Tonight, the words of Ursula K. Le Guin washed back over me at the Literary Arts tribute to her life and work.
Photo by Lia Holland“Dragons are one of the truths of us,” she said.
This line sticks with me, even now…especially now.
As we stand on the bright and brilliant edge of revolution, we look down at what our bodies have become: all hardened scales and leathery necks. We open our mouths to speak gently, but our voices flood from between our teeth.
We are the revolution, as Le Guin said. We are brilliant and bright and beautiful dragons. We cling to each other with claws not made for fighting but made for protecting, for holding close. We are part of a whole, as the words on her gravestone say. We don’t need anger because we have truth. And our truth is this: we are Dragons.
And even as we fade, we lift our wings, we fly.
We are dragons.
Thank you for the reminder, Ursula. May the winds be calm and your wings be light.
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June 13, 2018
Giving up: Drawing Dragons Day 162
I gave up today, and did that thing I always used to do. When things started to not work out, I let them loose, gave up and gave in.
It started when my pencil broke. I got grand ideas. I have been drawing for a while now. I could just try a quick thing in ink.
Nope.
We had one arm one wing dragonIt started with the face, and then spiraled from there.
Really, less spiraling, and more free-falling.
Keep creating,
Kate
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June 11, 2018
You: Drawing Dragons Day 161
I was thinking about you this weekend as I watched Wonder play his last baseball game of the season.
I’m pretty sure you would have hated it.
It was raining. It was cold. It was, quite honestly, very boring, unless you intensely care for this kid as much as we do.
And you did. You cared for him just like that.
If you were in town, you’d have come to his game. Drank a caffeine-free Diet Coke, and complained about how ridiculously cold it was.
You collected umbrellas, but I think it’s because you hated the rain. You’d rather be inside with a book or a movie or really, anything, as long as it was inside.
It’s these times I miss you.
When I’m doing something, and so clearly enjoying it when no reasonable person should. You weren’t sentimental. You’d call me crazy and sit beside me, giving me that same look that you gave him when he begged you to come outside one more time and finish the snowman with the snow that was so clearly ice and not packing-good; you humored him.
You humored me.
But it was more than that.
All those years, you looked at me with this not-so-subtle look of, girl, you are crazy I can’t believe you are gonna do that but if you really are, you got to do it in style, here’s an umbrella.
There’s more rain without you here.
And I feel like I don’t know as much as I did. 
From this reference.
Keep creating,
Kate
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June 10, 2018
Lips: Drawing Dragons Day 160
Hey lips. How’s it goin having lips? Pretty good? Yeah? Looks like it is. With the lips and all. Lips.
Lips.
Those aren’t lips. Those are guns, huh? Nice swirlies though. You got that down.
Keep creating,
Kate
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June 9, 2018
Easy go the days: Drawing Dragons Day 159
Some days are filled with quiet joy and a deep rumbling underneath of possibility.
Yes, I have an idea for a book.
It’s been simmering, shaking, nudging, bothering, and now it just NEEDS. It WANTS. It WILL.
My friend Robert gave me ideas for last revisions of Clockbreakers 2, but after that, the world won’t be able to find me outside of this story. It just feels so right.
But you may find me playing baseball or eating ice cream cones or spending these easy days with Wonder.
Summer is just around the bend.
Finished dragon from this reference.
Keep creating,
Kate
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Continuing: drawing Dragons Day 158
Continuing on, here’s a dragon from this reference.
Easy go the days. Happy edge of summer.
Keep creating,
Kate
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June 7, 2018
Shell: Drawing Dragons Day 157
Bob is away, and I am sitting on the orange couch, eating a brownie and drawing a dragon. This one’s just coming out of its shell, while at the moment, I’m crawling back into mine. Sometimes, we need to close our eyes, to rest, and to eat brownies.
Here’s the start of a dragon from this reference. I can’t wait to see how it breaks through.
Keep creating,
Kate
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