Spicy Ramen! Day 05 – #OneWeek100People 2022!
Here’s a silly self portrait of me at our local noodle house Kinton Ramen.
It’s probably my favorite self-portrait so far. Even if it doesn’t look very much like me :) I think it looks a bit like my grandfather though.
During the pandemic I started cutting my own hair. My grandmother cut his once a month, with him sitting, leaning over the kitchen sink. Same sink for the cooking, the dishes, and the portable washing machine.
I’m starting to like my hair standing up like this. I think I look more Asian.
Here’s an interesting comparison. The watercolor portrait on 90lb Strathmore Aquarius (above), painted at home, taking my time – versus a sketchbook page (below). The type of paper makes a huge difference.
On the sized (water-resistant) sketchbook paper the brushstrokes are more ‘edgy’ with sharp transitions and distinct edges. Not as much natural ‘bleed’ through the paper fiber. The same sizing that helps your sketchbook pages take paint without buckling, prevents the watercolor from blending naturally.
Aquarius is a very smooth paper physically (even less tooth than a normal cold-press), but more importantly, it’s highly absorbent. The fibers soak up a lot of water, which allows the pigment to ‘creep’ inside the paper, giving you a more ‘blended’ look.
Sadly, that’s the end of my #OneWeek100People for 2022 – but you guys can take the weekend if you want to keep pushing for your 100! I’ll be on the Facebook group commenting on your posts. If you did a project this year that you’re proud of, please post and share!
Take care and see you soon.
~Marc
Citizen Sketcher 
great work. i love how you drew the hair!
Hey Marc,
Love all your support and instruction (the no-nonsense style is so refreshing) — especially your book — and think of you as a leader. Thank you.
I’m wondering if you might consider using a platform other than Facebook to create community among your fans. Their corporate practices are deplorable, and they don’t deserve allegiance of any type. There are other games in town.
Thanks for all you do.
Kathy
On Fri, Mar 11, 2022 at 11:24 AM Citizen Sketcher wrote:
> Marc Taro Holmes posted: ” https://youtu.be/w828KsbKWHU Here’s a silly > self portrait of me at our local noodle house Kinton Ramen. It’s probably > my favorite self-portrait so far. Even if it doesn’t look very much like me > :) I think it looks a bit like my grandfather thoug” >
Hey Kathy – I do appreciate their are anti FB feelings out there. I’m still undecided on that, largely because I don’t know of a better alternative? It’s only a “for the love of it” project for me. So, for me, what I need is a one-stop-shop where I can engage with a lot of people. I find IG for instance to be quite poor when it comes to two-way exchanges. So. That’s probably the first question. What is an equivalent venue. Then – the second question is – is walking away from the biggest social media the right thing? Or is working inside FB to fix FB a better thing? Is shunning the road to change or is active engagement the road? Anyway, it’s a big question! Let me know if you have other thoughts. I admit I have not delved deep into the issues.