November 8, 2006

Blast from the past

Sorry, so damn busy again today, it looks like I may be working late and into my lunch hour too...

So...here's a short post to keep my commitment to post daily. But if a picture is worth a thousand words, maybe this isn't such a short post, right?



I drew this when I was 18 as an exchange student...gift for my host parents for Christmas, since I was poor and had nothing else to give except homemade gifts! I used color pencils, borrowed from my 12 year old host sister, and paper from a sketch pad. I found a little image of a famous painting in a magazine, I don't know who did the original painting, but the image I copied from was only about 2" x 1.5".

The funny thing about it: note the weird black thing on the peach in the foreground to the right of the knife. I thought that it was a dried up stem thingie like what you find on tomatoes, but after I gifted it to my host parents, we looked at the magazine and used a magnifying glass and discovered that the "thing" should have been a BUG! I drew it like the top of a tomato. Sheece. It's a good conversation piece, though, and they assured me they mention that funny mistake whenever someone comments on the drawing. It hangs over their dining table, and has for 16 years since I was there.

I miss Austria! My host family, the beauty, the trains, the food, the people.

8 comments:

Cele said...

what a beautiful story and drawing.

Janet Kincaid said...

Wow! I love this drawing. Reminds me of an exhibit of trompe o'leil I saw at the National Gallery of Art here in D.C. several years ago. You are incredibly talented, SML! What a gift! (I'd proudly hang your work in my house. Oh wait! That's right! I'm going to in six months or so. Well, in my parent's house. But still....)

Freckle Face Girl said...

What a great gift! You are an amazing artist. I love the picture!

Sister Mary Lisa said...

Thanks, guys! Even if I draw funny squiggly things that don't belong!

Janet, thanks for commissioning me! Makes my day!!!

Anonymous said...

Your drawings are better than my writings. So there. ;)

Christy said...

absolutely amazing! I love it!

I love Austria, too. I lived in southwestern Germany, but we used to road trip to Salzburg from time to time. I loved everything about it!

Genilimaa said...

Wow, you're an artist! (Tell me you're keeping it up..?)

I wonder though who's reflection we see in the glass, the photographer..?

Sister Mary Lisa said...

Gen, the photographer is my host brother who took the picture and sent it to me recently.

:) Thanks! I draw portraits mostly right now...somehow I have a hard time doing art when that's all I'd love to do all day. (besides blog)