Wonders of Home- Houses around the World

Dear Friends,

It’s no secret that I love architecture. My family knows I’m obsessed with drawing tiny worlds and will always remember to take pictures whenever they visit other places in the world, or down the road. Pretty beach cottages and fancy Tudor houses, French country chateaus, and relaxed Mediterranean-style homes-they all are lovely and have so many unique features.

I wanted to be an urban sketcher, sitting at a cafe sketching the scene in front of me, but I love houses, and more importantly, I love the idea of home more than buildings on a busy street. So, the prospect of sitting outside one of these houses to sketch made me think I might end up as a concern of the neighborhood watch or the local police. Thus, I learned to snap photos and draw at home, without cause for concern from that older lady peering out of her curtains at me. Plus, another strike for my compatibility with urban sketching is that I’m not very sketchy, not only in terms of being a criminal but in the fact that I draw a bit more precisely than the average urban sketcher.

I have been a self-taught artist since the age of 5 and have developed my style of drawing. I re-learned several years ago with fancy books and still do not draw like all those said art books and best teachers say to. I draw from photographs, by fiddling with proportions, constantly erasing until I get it right, and just adapting what I see in the photo to what my hand is doing. Whatever it is, it’s part magic and several years of hard work and practice, and we call it art.

I have a large collection of photographs from all over the world, showcasing beautiful details and craftsmanship. I realized early on I could never be an architect. I have no love for super straight lines and prefer my wonkiness to any ruler or tool. A couple of years ago, I started drawing an A-Z list of different types of houses in my sketchbook. I learned so very much about all regions of the world as well as the historical timeframes of some old houses. It was fascinating, to say the least. Some of the letters in the alphabet had many, many houses while others had very few, and I had only scratched the surface in my research.

So when I felt the time was right to start the project I decided to make three panels going from sunrise to nighttime, spanning culture and countries, rather than a sampler approach with one letter and one house style. I wanted them to come together to tell a story of houses around the world in the time frame of one day. I wanted them to connect and come together to showcase HOME. It helps spread my message of drawing home, and what it means to people all around the world. In my work on Tiny Worlds I realize these are not vacation spots, where people stay for a day or two and leave, they are places where people live and work every day, share space with friends and family and enjoy a meal together. Laugh, love, and support each other. No matter if it's Paris, San Francisco, or Hawaii the purpose of "home" remains the same. A place to center your life and be yourself.

I hope this piece in my gallery puts a smile on your face:)

Love Me

To The Art