Burke Museum Masks

I'd planned to draw dinosaur bones but the clutter of artifacts downstairs was more my thing. A work order was called in to fix the lights in the display case that went out every few minutes, making the glass reflect only me and Donna and the room behind us, providing an extra challenge not unlike trying to draw the other side of a street through busy traffic. I'll be going back on free Thursdays to draw often. There's a lot of tempting busy-ness to capture.

Seahawks and skulls at the Burke

Starting off the day I intended to draw the mask that inspired our beloved Hawks logo (that logo is oft repeated in my household by my 9 year old son.) What I saw at the museum was so much more than just an icon. This three dimensional transformation mask once gave a performer three personalities and the heads to go along with them. The way the beak opens to reveal the human face and the devilish second head still haunts me.  

Drawing the people in the lobby was like trying to capture a moving vehicle but the terror bird grounded the center the whole way through.

I was inspired to post tonight by Jane, Kate and Tina's message about the Urban Sketcher manifesto. We sketch to capture our interest and share our view of the world but most of all because we love to draw. If there's one thing I learned last week at the Burke it is that you can sketch a city street, a room, an artefact or a bowl of fruit. The important thing is to get out there and do it.