Rubber rubber rubber rubber.....

I've Just finished sculpting my latest piece and am in the process of making a mold.

It was so hot during the final stages of sculpting that the clay was like butter - impossible to work with. I had to keep the sculpture in the refrigerator overnight and for long periods in between working. It didn't leave much room for food, but who needs food when you are sculpting?

And...Finished!

Next I started the rubber mold. Because of all the undercuts and internal spaces this is easily the most complicated mold I've ever made.

The blue tint is the first layer of rubber thinned out to pick up detail

Next I changed the color and thickened the rubber for quicker application and started to apply the shim lines

relics

During recent construction Providence has completely re-organized its downtown to 95 interface. If the change is for better or for worse remains to be seen. In the mean time, while construction wraps up, the town is left in the awkward phase of demolishing the leftovers and cleaning up the mess, resulting in some interesting structures left hanging around. This sight made me think of Rome and all it's endless ruins around every corner.

This is take 2 of the same torn down overpass, from the opposite side.

The Cape

On a recent to Cape Cod to visit Eleanor's parents, we took a mid day sojourn and drove to a remote walking path. The views were alien, but inspiring and the beaming shadeless sun was a great motivator to finish these sketches with haste. Next time I am bringing a giant safari hat.

Just down the street

Just down the street a bit from my home are a couple of gas stations. One of them is where I buy my gas. The other is, due to their messier attitude about arranging objects in their parking lot, where I draw sometimes. My best guess to the name of the station is Pack Energy Auto Gas repair. Seems unlikely though...

Alas old blue subaru, Ill miss you

Luckily this is not a drawing of my old blue subaru legacy station wagon. On a trip down to NJ to visit family I stopped along the way to get my old blue subaru repaired before I got it reinspected. It cost a good bit, as it aways does. The added expense of replacing the windshield because of the tiny crack didnt help, but everything got done. While I waited for the car, I set out to use my time wisely and didnt have to walk very far to find this lovely still life.

Quick update: My car passed inspection with ease but I ended up selling it after having some problems with it. And by some problems, I mean all problems. Now I drive a little Scion! I dont regret the time I spent with old blue Subaru, but they were trying times. I hope he is having a good life with his new owner.

Itay in June 2010

In the summer of 2010 I was lucky enough to travel to Italy and stay for over a month. In that time I visited Rome, Florence, Venice, Urbino, Pesaro, Sarnano, Naples, Sienna and a few other quick stops along the way. My time there was too lovely to describe in words, but luckily I had my sketchbook along with me and drew almost all day every day. You can see more images from my trip as well as other sketches, sculptures, and paintings at my webpage www.jessethompsonart.com/artpage/italy_sketch.html

Below are some drawings from rome

This first drawing is from the Park just across from the Termini Train station in Rome. It is the first drawing I made while waiting for Eleanor to arrive. We booked separate tickets and arrived in Rome at different times. I got there just ahead of her by about 4 hours which gave me some time to wander jaw dropped and amazed. This drawing got cut just a bit short of finished when Eleanor arrived so we could hug. More from Rome below

The landlord of the apartment I rent here in Providence is Italian and she arraganed for me to visit and stay with her family in her home town of Pesaro. I stayed for 4 days in Pesaro and since most of the people I met on my trip were tourists as well, I was very happy to talk socialize and eat with a real Italian family (not that my own Italian family here in the states isn't real enough for me...) Luckily they also invited me to stay in a guest house they owned in a small and very old town called Sarnano where very few people spoke any english at all. I did more drawing than anywhere else in Italy.

Sorry for the splotchy upper half of the composition here. I was trying to be fancy with watercolors and it turned out decidedly unfancy. My advice: never try to be fancy. Bottom part is ok though...

The last 11 nights of my trip were spent in Florence. I would gladly spend so many more nights there. I was looking at so much art and having such a good time I didnt get nearly enough drawing done to satisfy me. Below is just a few from there

Last night in Florence watching the world cup at a pub just across the street from my hostel.

Paintings featured in NO TEARS online magazine

This month i was lucky enough to have my paintings featured in the latest issue of NO TEARS magazine entitled Lost Paradise. Good Neighbors was even chosen for the cover! Other Featured artists are Morgan Craig, Alnis Stakle, Louise Thomas, Sejma Prodanovic, Bianca Van Baast, Michelle Valenton, Aquil Copier, Maja Obradovic, and Melissa Steckbauer. Thanks to the crew at NO TEARS and thanks to the other artists. I am honored to be among such excellent artwork!

Visit No Tears magazine online here http://www.notearsmagazine.com

or here to download the magazine

http://www.notearsmagazine.com/ufiles/1249562532_No_Tears_Magazine_Lost%20_Paradise.pdf

NO TEARS magazine is a submission driven art & illustration magazine. Every 2- 3 months artists and designers present themselves in the magazine, featuring work that is of high quality but little known amongst a wider audience. It is a colorfoul mix of illustrations, street art, and photography, with a wide variety of angles, themes and styles. NO TEARS sees itself as a platform for promoting worldwide contemporary art and encouraging networking with it.