FUTURE LADY

Sometimes I found old drawings as photocopies. It is, of course, a wise way to do experiments with copies, not with originals.

In this case I scanned an old drawing (2006) and modified it with the very same scanning program, SYSTWEAK PHOTO STUDIO, which was an appendix for the scanning program itself. I have ordered these programs from Internet, with a relatively low price, and I am satisfied with them.

The red version will (I wish that it really will!) show an active, young lady - maybe slightly faceless - looking towards her future. Red background gives some energy to her.

"A Day in Wyborg" and tiny, green tomatoes!

Now is the color pen work "A Day in Wyborg" finished!

It shows a view of a city yard on the eldest area of Wyborg, Russia (actually the 2nd biggest Finnish city before WW 2).  There was no life (except the birch, growing on the wall of the left-side building) to be seen, so I decided to add a sitting girl and the front of a car (Soviet make, called LADA in western countries).

This peaceful scene will be multiplied very soon in the form of postcards.

The small, green tomatoes are from our own harvest. For some reason, very many of my friends have also got greenish ones - because the very odd summer, I think. I try to ripen them in our kitchen but they tend, in opposite, to rip before they turn to red! Very odd... X Files?

New box for drawing tools!

I have found a most practical thing from the bargain sale of local artists' shop in Jyväskylä. This wooden box actually has an easel on its upper deck and is spacious enough to store all color pencils, inks etc. needed for drawing. Painting tools would need a much bigger bag, of course, but this very box (British make)  fulfills the needs of a travelling drawer.

This is the night site for my drawing activity during wintertime: our quiet kitchen. The table stays by the window and I can watch the nearly-dark view towards the neighbors below (we live in the middle of a hillside). Traffic is almost stopped during winter nights which also helps to focus on drawing.

BLACK & WHITE RULES?

I think that I shall do some selecting and mapping of my old photos. There are so many of them, and in addition, I have saved their copies several times on my hard discs! How can I find them and delete those  which only lead to the lack of free disc space?

Sometimes, in the middle of this busy (and, honestly to say) not so nice job I can find something interesting like this one among all unimportant staff: a smoggy, quiet city morning in Jyväskylä, Finland, some 6 - 7 years ago.

My next question will be: shall I try to transfer this view on a paper/canvas or thrust on its strength as a photo? All the shades of grey should be visible in the final piece of art. Graphical style should be stored, but how? "B&W Rules"?

- I continue to think. Sometimes, however, it would be better to leave things like they are. But...?

Narrow streets in the old town of Viipuri.

After spending several days in busy St. Petersburg (over 7 million citizens) I was very pleased to stay some hours in a much older and smaller town, called Vyborg (in Finnish: Viipuri) which population is roughly 80 000.

Limited period didn't allow any drawing or painting and I therefore spent my time taking photos of old buildings. This small, beautiful and restful town has belonged to Sweden, Russia, Finland, Soviet Union and - today - to Russia again but the period in the beginning of 20th century was very intensive for Finns because Vyborg was a most international town with economical activities (2nd biggest city in Finland after our Capital city Helsinki).

Photos help to make drawings and paintings but I am looking forward to spend some time in the real sites of this town, maybe already in next autumn.

Minimalist Art with Camera

A walk in the early morning on the shore of a Finnish lake...

Sometimes it will be a better alternative to take a photo than to paint  the view?

Weekend art school by KARSKU, Karlstad, in 2004!

Summer 2004 was warm and beautiful in Karlstad, Sweden, where we lived for my job tasks in local SE / Research Centre. We found out that there were also free-time activities - Finnish Cultural Society KARSKU (Karlstadin Suomalainen Kulttuuriseura) for "sing along" and arts.

KARSKU arranged a week-end art school in the countryside, and relatively many members joined this event.

Here am I sitting with an "impressionist hat" showing a scetch of my "high level" painting. The original is situated on over 900 m level from the sea in Norway, on the wall of our friends' "water-free toilet" ("PuuCee in Finnish).

I will send best greetings to Karlstad and Oslo! I wish that we will meet on some day!