Scavenger Hunt from Life #172: Oct 05 - Oct 17

[jmfletch]

Welcome to the Scavenger Hunts from Life. The Hunts were started in 2006 by Jamie Williams Grossman as a way to practice with prompts. Artists have come and gone while forming some lasting friendships. We hope you will join in and tune up your sketching skills. All levels and techniques are welcome. We hope you can have some good times here. You can travel the world seeing the sketches of items at hand by the artists

If you’ve participated in at least one Scavenger Hunt and have time to host one we would really appreciate it. You can sign up by posting your name on the current hosting schedule in the Art From Life forum here

https://creativespark.art/threads/scavenger-hunt-from-life-host-sign-up-list.2481/page-9

Here are the rules for the Hunt:

All everyday common items on the list must be sketched from life – not imagination or photo reference.

• Each object you draw can count for only one item on the list, no matter how many shapes/parts/colors that object contains. This was agreed on by unanimous vote among the participants.
• You may place multiple objects together in a drawing or painting, and may count these objects as separate items, but no single object can count for more than one item.
• All items posted must be numbered. Count them as you go. The first item you post will be #1 regardless of its place on the list. Do them in whatever order you wish, but count them in the order in which you sketch them, from 1 to 26.
• Do as many or as few of the items as you like. You don’t have to finish the entire list to participate. The Scavenger Hunt “week” will last for 12 days, with the next hunt starting on the 12th day.
• Please tell us your size, surface, medium, and the amount of time it took you for each sketch. We love hearing about your subjects and setups. Photos of your subjects are welcome.
• Have fun!

*** If you have some hunt sketches completed but little time to read/comment, please post your sketches anyway. Commenting is appreciated but not required.

Scavenger Hunt from Life #172: Oct 05 - Oct 17

Armchair
Bookshelf
Curtain folds
Desk lamp
Electrical outlet
Fan (table or ceiling)
Grocery bag
Hangers (in a closet)
Ice cube tray
Jacket
Kitchen sink
Laundry pile
Mug rack or coffee station
Nest (bird or insect)
Oak leaf or tree bark texture
Pinecone
Quail or quaking aspen leaf
Rock or stone with texture
Seed pod
Tree silhouette or trunk texture
Underleaf (back side of any leaf)
Vine tendrils
Wildflower
Xylem texture in bark or stump cross-section
Yellow flower or yarrow plant
Zebra butterfly or zinnia

Feel free to associate or substitute
Challenge is to have fun!

 

[jmfletch]

Tried to make a mix of indoor and outdoor items.
Fletch

 

[Jade]

Interesting list, Fletch!

#1 armchair

And #2 tree bark texture (x posted from animal and wildlife challenge thread)

 

[Jo Castillo]

Thanks, Fletch. Hope to get some real life sketching going. Looks like a good list.

 

[Pine Cone]

Fletch — Uh-oh !!!
Now I HAVE to.
Not that I haven’t tried.
And absolutely totally failed lol
But I’ll try again. And I happen to have one handy

Thank you so much for this great mix list, and always encouraging us to keep trying, keep learning, and keep having fun

 

[jmfletch]

Jade - Props for being first to post and cute drawings too.

Jo - Hers to both of us finding time to sketch more

Pine Cone - am wondering if we are both thinking of same thing?

Keep sketching and learning
Fletch

 

[AiArts]

Fletch: Thanks for the list.

Jade: Great jobs on both cute sketch. The armchair looks very comfy.

All: Hello.

PineCone: Can you sketch yourself for a pinecone ?

 

[Pine Cone]

Fletch — pine cones ???

Jade — Your literary cats are so much fun, and I love your squirrel, and the lovely texture of the tree bark 🪾

Ai — I guess I could, but I’m too shy and have only drawn I think one human in my whole life lol - but you’re right and I should probably try ???

 

[NedL]

Fletch thanks for the great list. I'll probably be late joining this one. Busy cleaning up and packing for the drive home, and smoking a nice salmon I caught on Friday. Then I'll be driving for a few days. Maybe I can sneak in a sketch somewhere along the way home.

Jade -- those are cute fun sketches!

 

[Pine Cone]

1 - “tree silhouette or trunk texture” - distant tree

— virtual sketch
— sketched from inside my mobile studio
— freehand

— Procreate app
— Apple pencil

— My Re-Learning to Draw Program - Phase 2 (single objects or small scenes)

I tried an experiment to include both aspects of Fletch’s prompt in the same sketch. So I tried to portray both the trunk and the silhouette. Although it doesn’t quite work, it was fun to goof around with both ideas, and it was a lovely day, with the leaves of this tree shining in the breeze, so I was grateful for the opportunity

 

[Pine Cone]

Ned — Safe journeys, and have fun along the way

 

[Jade]

PineCone - cute tree and it sounds relaxing too I'm glad you liked the and
Thanks Ned, enjoy your smoked salmon!
Thanks Ai and Fletch and also for a great list!

 

[AiArts]

Ned: Safe drive home. Wahoo... smoking salmon.

 

[Joan T]

Fletch, thanks for the list.

Jade, your armchair and tree bark made me smile.

Ned, drive safely!

Pine Cone, go for it! I don’t think there are any pine trees around here in Venice. Will have to keep my eyes open. I like the way you did the tree and the branches.

Hi to everyone!

From the living room here.
1 - curtains folds - Procreate
2 - book shelf
3 - armchair

 

[AiArts]

Joan: Gorgeous bookshelf, window view, and classical vintage armchair... the composition is super !!!

PineCone: Fantastic treetrunk

 

[Joan T]

Don’t know where my comments went.

Fletch, thanks for the new list.

Great to see posts from so many of you.

Sketched inside the living room here.

1 - arm chair - Procreate
2 - curtains folds
3 - bookshelf
View attachment 51168

 

[jmfletch]

Pine Cone - I was thinking a self portrait. . The bark is simply amazing.

Ned - wishing you a safe trip and maybe a little time to join us.

Joan - neat digi! Both times.

Keep sketching and learning
Fletch

 

[Pine Cone]

Thank you Jade, Joan, Ai, and Fletch. It was a lot of fun

Joan — Love your cheerful living area with its great view of the wonderful city of Venice

————————-

Fletch — I’ve been trying for so long to sketch a pine cone, that I’ve become a little obsessed. That’s why I responded the way I did I’ve tried and tried, and can’t even begin to sketch an actual pine cone. It’s frustrating, but I really want to keep trying.

(A self portrait didn’t occur to me until Ai mentioned it - so I’ll think about it, but I’ve got to keep trying with the real pine cone I have too )

Oh, and I meant to say that since you are hosting, I plan to do all my sketches for this event on my iPad with Procreate, as a way of thanking you for talking me into getting them back in 2016. Thank you, thank you, thank you so very much

 

[Pine Cone]

2 - “kitchen sink” - star trails

associations:

…… kitchen sink
……… cooking
………… roasting marshmallows
…………… campfire
……………… fiery heat
………………… sun
…………………… star
……………………… star trails

— virtual sketch
— iPad Pro and Apple pencil
— Procreate app

— freehand……. I never use the Procreate feature that straigtens lines, or rounds out circles for the artist. Also, I never use the grid overlay that Procreate offers. However, those are valid artistic tools, and I don’t wish to discourage their use.

— My Re-Learning to Draw Program - review of Phase 1
(lines, circles, and ellipses)

——————————

tl;dr (too long, don’t read)

When I saw this issue of “Astronomy Now” magazine, I discovered that it was the last issue edited by my favorite science writer, Keith Cooper He has been editor of the magazine for probably two decades or so.

I’m heartbroken but he’ll still be out there writing. He has a Substack, and has written for “Space.com” among many others. But it’s his writing in “Astronomy Now” that has most enriched my life over so many years.

This is a sketch of the open magazine (see photos of the magazine below the sketch). I tried to sketch part of the title image from one of Mr. Cooper’s articles in this last issue edited by him I needed practice with ellipses, and this certainly gave me that, but really, I just wanted to acknowledge Mr. Cooper’s engaging writing. He will be missed in these pages

—————————

FWIW, Here is how you can do long exposure photographs of star trails (as the earth rotates beneath the stars above)………

Star Trails Photography Guide (2025) + Step by Step Tutorial!

 

[Robin Gillis]

Hi—— i am so covered with RL -sketching will be a welcome break- great seeing everyone’s work and comments…thanks alot and let’s keep sketching

Fletch ..the list is a good plant, all in the immediate surroundings…..here’s to everyone getting to sketch ..thanks