Sketching the Year of the Dog

Taking a slow boat to China here sketching the Year of the Dog but better late than never as they say! A visit to our local Chinese started this off, I love fortune cookies so I started with the unopened package, which was then opened and consumed, yummy! 

The Chinese Emperor's Warrior came next, I was fortunate to see the figures in Edinburgh in 1985, they are on their way back to the UK this year, so if you get the chance, go and see them (without breaking any parts off please!). The details, faces and armour were amazing, every figure different; facial features, hairdos and clothing, as if an army had been turned to stone. 

As it is the year of the dog, there had to be a dog, I'm not good at animals and having had various bits of my anatomy bitten by dogs, I'm wary of them, especially when their owners say ''he/she only wants to play” but this is Spike, a lovely, friendly English Bulldog who belongs to my daughter’s friend. We went for long pleasurable walks with Spike who has now emigrated to South America, I hope he wouldn’t be too disappointed with his pawtrait. 

My family love Chinese food, stir fry, done in our wok was always a great favourite, eaten of course with chopsticks; for some reason I learned to eat with them as a child, practicing with my cornflakes. Chinese textiles are beautiful, I was given a red pair of Chinese pjs at the age of 8 and wanted to wear them all the time, couldn’t believe that something as sumptuous as that would be worn for bed. 

So if you are a “dog” (not being rude) what does this year have in store ? Well how about harmony, peace and goodwill! That sounds great, you should be wearing your lucky colours of red, purple and green and be surrounding yourself with orchids. I definitely do not have green fingers, (or thumbs as they say in Germany) but I have had some luck with orchids, probably because I forget to water them and generally ignore them, which seems to do them good, this one is at least 6 years old. 

Chinese red lacquer is another fave, you can see the lock on my Chinese box, I'm always wittering on about how observant you have to be as an artist and had never noticed that the lock is in the shape of a wild boar! 

Having been born in 1965, I always thought I was a snake but the Chinese New Year coming as it does not at the beginning of our years, I actually discovered to my surprise that I was a dragon! When I expressed my amazement in discovering this my husband sniggered and said he could have told me that without me looking it up!  Hence the dragon! 

The page was sketched in pencil, watercolour and watercolour pencil, take a peek in close up, and whatever your Chinese birthsign, have a great Year of the Dog