Hen

Yep, another hen.....  There's something really great about the steely eyes of a rooster or hen, surrounded by the blazing comb and wattle, and the pop of the colorful and feathers.  I've done a couple other sketches of hens or roosters, and enjoy exploring their beauty.

In my last post, I spoke of my goal to send out a doodled envelope to a group of friends from my youth that had significant impact on my life. This week's post goes out to a second fellow (pictured below).  Matt and his good wife have created a friendship with us that surpasses mere friendship.  Do you have anyone in your life that are friends, but must have somehow really been family in the grand scheme of things, despite no blood relations?  These two have consistently been people with whom we feel we can be at ease, at home, loved, without pretense, and just enjoy one another.
I did a hen for them because of the hen's ability to gather in their loved ones and provide safety for the little ones.  Matt and Marlene have ever been the "gatherer's" for our little group of friends, and I'm grateful for the glue that they have been for us and that they continue to welcome us in.

This envelope was done with gouache, pen and ink, acrylic and a spot of prismacolor.

Trout

Normally, I only knock out one envelope per week.  At least, that is my goal.  But, since today is a holiday and I am not at work, why not do another?  This envelope will go out soon to an individual who has been silently, and without fanfare, helping our family in multiple ways for a long time.  A great example of work, service and kindness, and to top it off, he loves to fish (hence the trout themed envelope).  This one is done in gouache, pen and ink and acrylic.

After looking at previous posts, I've realized that there are a handful of fish related entries...I guess I'm a fish guy as well as an insect guy.  You can see others here, here, here and here.