Georgian Bread.

It was small place on Neptune Ave where we use to buy hot long bread and "hachapuri" (flat bread with cheese inside) made in clay oven/tandoori (but with different name). On the way home half of the freshly baked bread from the brown paper bag was eaten, shared. So delicious. Now it turned into a small restaurant with Georgian cuisine. Sometimes they sell "kupati", sort of like Italian sausages but with roughly chopped meat and amazing herbs and spices.

2 compositions.

Did another little rendering in watercolor in Delta sketchbook by Stillman and Birn. I was right leaving Stillman and Birn sketchbooks for color, it is not only takes washes like strong watercolor paper, but supports the color intensity. I used my old set "Winsor & Newton" 24 colors. And sprayed set with water, listening to Cathy Johnson advice, it revived paints.
I found this tiny spray bottles for a dollar in some pharmacy, like Duane Rid or CVS,  travel kit, it is smaller then Holbein and works fine, I keep it handy on the table.

This one colorful but maybe too simplistic in composition. I may need to do something else. It is pretty exaggerated. I may do the Wall behind or silhouette of the city. I was trying to depict pure emotion.

Central Park.

Central Park, right in the middle of Manhattan, a little piece of nature for exhausted stressed New Yorkers to stare on the reflection in the water, to unwind, to calm down and may be, to dream.
Me too. Was hoping that anxiety will let go, but, when the process is over, this piece of paper with ink does nothing. I used ink and Kuretake on Winsor and Newton paper.
A little bit of serotonin will be helpful.

Green car.

Old green car. Pretty shocking to meet on the street such a beauty. I used ink and Kuretake and a little bit of white pen.

Shabbat.

I have so many ideas for compositions, but limited time, that many shrivel without ever being sketched and fading in my memory. This time I decided to do a little experiment, even, thought, I am not fully prepared.
The idea of getting together, following ancient tradition, putting aside all worries and labors, freeing your mind and open it to embrace the spiritual presence in your life is very appealing to me.
It is so hard to look at yourself and your place in the world in everyday routine life.  And whatever is expected from you, do you really want it?
Anyway, I used ink and Kuretake pens on Fabriano Artistico paper.

Celebration.

Celebration. In orthodox Jewish communities men and women dance separately. It is for the sake of modesty and devotion to their wives.  I tried to emphasize the energy and emotion by being attentive to the rhythm of heads and hands.
 I used ink and Kuretake pens on Fabriano Artistico.

On the roof top.

On the roof top. Was thinking of importance of tonal values. How color secondary, how it won't work without base. I used watercolor paper, I got in Dick Blick, some sort of Fabriano, it was too thin for my intense washes. Gotta research thicker papers with similar grain.

Green limes.

I finally stopped adding little touches to Green  limes and decide to consider it done. Even I still see, how it could be improved. I tried to show how time is flying by, how momentarily our impressions are, how hard to live in a moment and be present fully. Little pixels of the drawing start flying away, some contours getting weak and uncertain, soon the whole happy green cooking event will become distant memory.
We did green lime syrup.
I used ink and Kuretake. I aded new ink, Noodler's Rome Burning.

This summer.

The hat. Ink and Kuretake.

Red car.

This little red car grabbed my attention on one of the streets in Brooklyn. May be this happy red, may be pretty boring background, may be my thirst for textures, may be all of that contributed to completing this ink drawing despite the horrible heat, at list 104 F in the shadow, with my AC broken. And my fingers and furniture stained by this bloody red. And paper didn't cooperate, Arches Rough Torchon, sand off my brushes. I used ink and Kuretake and few drops of Liquitex paint.

Trip.

This unfinished breakfast with cherries was sitting on my table for a while till it felt right to share thoughts and feelings about my daughter's trip to Israel. Little strips of paper with dates and plans like the ones what people use for prays and wishes, they folding and place between stones of the Western Wall. It is a centuries-old tradition. I sent mine too.
I used ink and Inktense pencils, but finished up with few Kuretake brush pens.

ChipShop.

I added color and sharpen up some tonal values. I used ink and Kuretake on Fabriano Artistico.
This British pub located in Park Slope, in Brooklyn, with walls decorated in royal, Beetles and punk rock of 80's memorabilia, with HP sauce on the shelves, with authentic english food was pretty interesting. And Haddock fish was delicious. So it was fun to eat, drink beer and sketch.

Old auto.

Old auto on the street of New York. I used ink and Kuretake.

Guilty pleasure.

One of our Saturday's breakfasts, iced coffee and bagels, brought up in almost pajamas from favorite local place, early morning and almost Mediterranean light. Light, playing huge part in orchestrating the whole morning adventure of eating outside, above the ocean.
I really like this paper, Fabriano Artistico, pretty thin, but so vulnerable under the ink. I used ink and Kuretake.

Still sketching.

Still working on this sketch.  Can't get involved with anything else much, till complete the study. Can't find my Lamy Safari after move. :( It had nice ink in.

Cup of tea.

Highlighted by the sun and deepened by shadow,  lemony and strong (English Breakfast tea, unexpectedly very good, I usually prefer Earl Grey) turned my day into a day of Cup of Tea, everything else faded and this is the only memory left. I guess, many unpleasant moments were forcefully erased, I cannot allow myself to be affected by people who I can't take seriously enough.
I am trying to cherish and enjoy relationships, thoughts, books, what makes my life happier.
I used ink and Kuretake on Fabriano Artistico.

Street scene in Brooklyn.

I found this old piece of paper and was happy to dig into ink again, even my brain is still in rotation about how to finish changes I started.
Something really attractive in that symbiosis of machinery and people. I used ink, Kuretake and Lamy Safari pen.

Bareburger.

With all my running around and decision making I have little time for drawing and being alone and it makes me anxious. May be because my father, being my single parent, after my mother death when I was 8 month old, (grandmother, who came to help to raise me still held a grandmother's role) made lots of decisions for me for majority of my life (old world postulates), also being an aspiring artist in a family of lawyers was a tremendous failure and contribute to my weakness in making decisions.
But anyhow I manage to finish this drawing of Bareburger, nailing that wonderful day, when we drove to Park Slope and got this delicious burgers from tall and interesting looking girl with accent (for some reason I thought she is from Brazil), she was tan and pink polo shirt was such a pretty color splash on a deep brownish background of the restaurant. Mine was bison burger.
I used ink and Kuretake on some vintage piece of paper.

Asparagus.

Little mess on the table and amazing grilled asparagus in ink and Kuretake. Colorful splashes, almost firework of ink indicates my happiness and delight, it was the best asparagus ever. I put bunch of seasonings on it: Turkish, Japanese, Georgian Khmeli Suneli, cumin, barberry, paprika, turmeric, grated cheese, oil and soy sauce and we grilled it for a few minutes on our new device Griddler.

Children.

I was deeply shocked by shooting of innocent small children in Connecticut. This the end of the world for their families, scars for life for their siblings and classmates, wound in the heart for everyone who consider themselves human. This is the first page in Gamma sketchbook, which I intended for happy sketch in a Subway with ink and Kuretake, but instead it took my tears and grief about 27 lives taken so violently.  How scary to live in the world where we can't protect our children?