River landscape with directional pencil lines.

I'm creating a drawing a day for a year, just for the art of it.

Today's is a landscape where I have been careful to keep the pencil lines all going one way and then broken my rule on top.

Butterfly with square textured effect.

I'm creating a drawing a day for a year, just for the art of it.

Today's is a butterfly. Farfalla in Italian.

Chameleon.

I'm creating a drawing a day for a year, just for the art of it.

Today's is a chamaeleon, thank you mum for the subject.

Château Allure du Lac, hiding.

I'm creating a drawing a day for a year, just for the art of it.

Today's is the château Allure du Lac.

My mum says "The château hides, that's it's thing" she should know, she's been here a month painting.

I've included some photographs of the château.

Mermaid

I'm creating a drawing a day for a year, just for the art of it.

Today's is a mermaid. Continuing yesterday's fantasy art theme.

She's a little inspired by a whale shark.

Butterfly in ink

I'm creating a drawing a day for a year, just for the art of it.

Today's is a butterfly.

Pink blossom, more of it!

I'm creating a drawing a day for a year, just for the art of it. Today's is pink blossom. Please forgive me I drew some before but it's so lovely.

Irises

I'm creating a drawing a day for a year, just for the art of it.
Today's are irises.

Bird. Raptor? Bird of prey?

I'm creating a drawing a day for a year, just for the art of it.

Today's is a bird, no doubt someone will tell me what kind. I love birds but I was scared of being labeled a bird watcher as a teen-ager so I didn't listen when my dad taught me all about them. I was seldom a sullen teenager, but you have to draw the line somewhere.

Jumbled boats on the south coast of England.

I'm creating a drawing a day for a year, just for the art of it.

Today's is a jumble of boats on the south coast, UK.

I've done this with my caran d'ache, watersoluable pencils, my dad gave me when I was about 12, they are beloved, and some inktense pencils my dad recommend a few years back. He's really good at the technical aspects of art and always keeps me straight on materials.

Also I can't recommend enough giving kids usable materials, if you can't cut out with the scissors, then giving them to your kid is a way to teach them that they "can't do art."

Apples on brown paper, mixed media.

I'm creating a drawing a day for a year, just for the art of it.

Today's are some apples with pen, watersoluable pencils and markers.

I used to think still lifes of fruit and such were not really proper subjects for artists, just for practice, like playing scales on the piano. When I was about ninteen the Tate got together a vast collection of Cezanne's work and I went up to London to see it, I will never forget standing in front of Cezanne's Apples and Oranges, rooted to the earth and elated all at once, no art book does it justice - they are the most alive and appley apples in the cosmos! The beautiful reality of really caught on canvas.

If I just once give another human the kind of lift that I buzzed on all that day with some peace of mine, l have lived a worthwhile life.

Anyway, here are my apples, I'm not going to compare them unfavourably with Cezanne's work - if I started down that read I would quit drawing by the end of the day!

Nile Felucca

I'm creating a drawing a day for the art of it.

Nile felucca

These graceful little boats with their asymmetrical sails litter the Nile's banks, competing for space with house boats and hotel balconies.

I took one from Luxor to Banana island, it seemed like easy sailing over very smooth water but the men who sail these boats must know the strange currents in such a big, shifting river.

They make you tea on board, with a tiny gas stove, in a shot glass and medicinally sweet!

Out on the more than a mile wide river it's cool, the only cool outdoor place I experienced in Egypt. When you get to Banana island it's hot again. But as the island is thickly forested with banana trees, it's a shadowy hot unknown on the banks of the Nile, which are cultivated or bare but not thick with trees usually.

You get tiny bananas to eat, a hand span long and sweet, really sweet!

Egypt is a treasure, I loved it, and despite any Egyptology you may have studied, I challenge you to stand under the columns of the template at Karnak and not believe aliens helped build it!

smile emoticon

Spring blossom

I'm creating a drawing a day for the art of it.

I got excited about spring today and created this.

Tulips, flowers, red pink and green.

I'm creating a drawing a day, just for the art of it!

Today's is tulips.

Blue bird drawing 64

I'm creating a drawing a day for a year, to make myself and others happy. Today it's a blue bird.

Tulip

Tulip (my favourite flower) in water soluble pencil and tipex.

From Dragons to Dragonflies.

A drawing a day, why am I doing it?

I'm a planner, I have my whole year, and indeed my whole life worked out on paper (I often have to alter the small stuff but the big stuff stays) yet I decided to do the drawing a day idea on impulse! I'm finding out WHILE I am doing it WHY I am doing it!

It's not for commercial gain, I haven't worked out how to make it pay out money, but it does seem to be paying off.

• It makes me draw and then I feel good.
• It puts something solely for me in my day of nappies, a lot of laundry, and school runs.
• Many of my friends seem to be following the results with enjoyment.
• If I really keep it up all year my drawing is bound to improve.
• I was inspired by Dominic Roberts doing it and some other artists I know have been inspired by me.
• It adds a little to the general level of light in the world, something on your computer that is not bad news. X

Thank you, Kirsteen

You may have noticed I didn't start this on the first of January, so I'm catching up so here are four drawings!