This is true even though as a kid I stepped into a yellow jacket nest and was stung over 60 times. Inside my mouth, in my ears. I was wearing shorts so you can imagine all the VERY uncomfortable areas the bees managed to bite me. Still, I love bees and the work they do. As fall begins to crisp up the air and color our leaves we say ‘goodbye’ these hard working insects. As I watched a fat and focused bumblebee diligently working on the last blooms of my flower pot I was inspired to create this art.
After using an ink spray for the background, I pencil sketched in the bee. At this moment I realize somehow my tube of black paint is missing. I am not one to lose things! But after searching every corner I had to accept the tube had ‘walked away’. Even though my father in law swears things “can’t just get up and walk away” it is the only logical explanation. What to do? I under painted the bee with an acrylic Prussian blue, the yellow areas with an ochre. Then I used a burnt umber and a yellow on top. The wings were a very light titan buff. After drying I took a thick, soft pencil and outlined the bee and detailed the wings. Some highlights with the titan buff, softened with my finger and the ‘sketch of the day’ was completed.
Winter is my favorite time of year so it is a bittersweet goodbye to the busy bees of the season. But before I know it, I’ll be planting the cosmos they love so much.