- Irina Sztukowski - Art Journey with Watercolor

London, Great Britain - Travel With Me - Sketchbook Project

2012-01-30T11:31:00.000-08:00

The last but not least sketch for my Sketchbook Project for NY Library - the Great City of London. London has been called "The World in One City". This tells a lot! With its diverse range of people, cultures, religious with its many attractions for the tourists from over the World London breathes the history and it's calling for a visit. In my mind I am already there walking down to Hyde Park, visiting British Museum and National Gallery, peaking at Buckingham Palace, and crossing the Millennium Bridge. And sure enough, the most recognizable London's view, 150+ year-old Big Ben (on my sketch) will not be able to escape my attention when I visit this beautiful City.

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4" x 6" Watercolor Sketch on 90lb Cold Pressed Paper

Prague, Czech Republic - Travel With Me - Sketchbook Project

2012-01-22T19:00:00.000-08:00

Here is my next to last sketch for the Sketchbook Project of NY Library. On this sketch you see the Old Town Square in Prague, Capital of Czech Republic. What I liked painting here is the big clock tower with it miscellaneous-brick walls. I just can imagine how each stone is breathing the history here at the Old Town Square. The photo reference contained a lot of modern things such booths, markets, bright advertisements on this square; but I eliminated them wanting to see this historical place as it would be seen centuries ago. I did leave people though in order to give more life to this stone-man-made beauty.

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4" x 6" Watercolor Sketch on 90lb Cold Pressed Paper

Amsterdam, Holland - Travel With Me - Sketchbook Project

2012-01-21T18:57:00.000-08:00

When I am going to Holland I will definitely start with its Capital Amsterdam. Being built in early 13th century by 17th century this city became a center of world economy. The rise of merchandise, political stability, and economical success gave opportunity to a lot of artist to thrive and polish their skills. The Dutch paintings, specifically Dutch Still Life, a my favorite of that time of the world history of art. I am hoping to visit as many museums as I can to see the original still lives by many favorite artists (just name a few: Jan Brueghel the Elder , Osias Beert,Osias Beert, Clara Peeters, Jan Davidsz de Heem).

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The sketch is showing one of the historical places of Amsterdam, the church of Sint-Nicolaaskerk

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4"x 6" Watercolor Sketch on 90lb Cold Pressed paper

Munich, Germany - Travel With Me - Sketchbook Project

2012-01-20T18:15:00.000-08:00

This sketch is about Marienplatz Old Town Hall, which is located in Munich, Germany. First built in wood it was completely destroyed by fire in 1460. Between 1470 and 1480, the old town hall was rebuilt in Gothic style by Jörg von Halsbach. I thing the Gothic pointing roofs and lace knitted architecture that what invites me in visiting Europe and particularly Germany. It is amazing how in spite the hardest time for Europe in 1940s its countries were re-born practically from ashes. In this scene the beauty of the yellow flowers compete with the beauty of another kind, the man-made one.

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4"x6" Watercolor Sketch on 90lb Cold Pressed Paper

Warsaw, Poland - Travel With Me - Sketchbook Project

2012-01-19T17:20:00.000-08:00

When I am in Poland, I really would love to visit Warsaw, the city which history goes as far back as the 12th and 13th century. And when I am there it would be great to go St. Mary’s Old Church (in Polish: Kosciól Nawiedzenia Najswietszej Marii Panny). It is one of oldest buildings and one of the few surviving examples of Gothic architecture in the city, which was built in 1411. And in spite of the fact it was destroyed almost completely during World War II, it was reconstructed and brings joy to people in our days. I’ve read about this church that it became a symbol of the capital’s rebirth of post-war re-creation of the Old Town Warsaw, which was practically risen from ashes after a devastation of the war.

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4" x 6" Watercolor Sketch on 90lb Cold Pressed Paper

Vatican City - Travel With Me - Sketchbook Project

2012-01-18T17:57:00.000-08:00

During my visit to Italy I cannot miss the State of Vatican City, the smallest independent state in the world, which has a whole complex of different museums. My main goal is to observe the old frescoes in Michelangelo’s Sistine Chapel and Raphael's Rooms. I just want to see with my own eyes these 16^th century masterpieces.

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4" x 6" Watercolor Sketch on 90lb Cold Pressed Paper

Siena, Italy - Travel With Me - Sketchbook Project

2012-01-17T18:05:00.000-08:00

Italia! Italia! I always wanted to go there. And my desire doubled if not tripled when last Summer I started learning about Medieval and Renaissance art in my Art History class. Italy became the center of art and culture many centuries ago. Artists from different countries went to learn art in Italy from old masters. Throughout the times the history was well preserved there. And I believe that unlike some of other European cities Italian ones keep their charm and remain untouched by civilization with its concrete-glass-high scrapers; or, at least I want to believe. I've also heard that Italian people are very nice. My friend lived in Italy for several years and when she came to Russia she said that the character of Russian people, their charisma reminded her Italian character a lot.

When I am in Italy, my first destination will be most likely Florence, Rome, and Venice. But if time and money permits I would love to visit Siena (you see on the sketch and will understand me why) and Positano. And wherever I go I want to paint, take tons of pictures, visit museums and churches and of course to see the original art in person. My sister and I even started learn Italian together. She is more advanced in this language than I am; yet I’ve recently learned one but very good phrase: Anno nuovo vita nuova! (which means New Year New Life!) There is something in this sentence very inspiring and promising, isn’t it!? :)

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4"x6" Watercolor Sketch on 90lb Cold Pressed Paper

Stockholm, Sweden - Travel With Me - Sketchbook Project

2012-01-16T18:27:00.000-08:00

I traveled to Stockholm by Silja Line cruise from Helsinki. Only one night on the ship and you are in the most beautiful city of Sweden. Besides old downtown with its narrow streets and gorgeous King’s Palace; there are plenty of things to do for a historian as well as for a modern tourist who likes to shop in the old part of the town. Although, I was not denying shopping, one a very quiet and isolated area remained my favorite part of Stockholm. It is a well preserved historical place Skansen which is located on the small island of Djurgården not far away from the downtown. When you are there you practically fly in times and experience the old days Sweden with the countryside, old town quarter, small parks and gardens. You can feel, be, see the old village with its routines and tribal rules. And if you are lucky you can even witness how is the glassblower is making old style vases in the glass shop.

The sketch that you see is of my other favorite place where I happened to bring the group of tourists that I used to bring from Saint Petersburg. It is Stockholm City Hall (Stadshus) ; for some reason its tall part always reminded me Venice Bell Tower although I have not been to Italy yet.

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4"x6" Watercolor Sketch on 90lb Cold Pressed Paper

Helsinki, Finland - Travel With Me - Sketchbook Project

2012-01-15T16:21:00.000-08:00

I’ve used to go to Finland at least 5-7 times a year and visited Helsinki if not 20 then probably close to 20 times back in 90s. The reason was that I have shared two jobs at a Travel Company. One of them was a Marketing Manager and another was a tour guide. And because Marketing duties did not allow me to leave the country for a long period of time, 2-3 days trips to Finland suited me well. It took only a few hours to get to Helsinki by bus from Saint Petersburg (not counting hours of standing at the customs and checking luggage and papers of relatively big group of tourists). When my job of bringing my group to the City Tour and accommodating them to the hotel was done, I loved to walk to the pier, visit farmers market or Museum of Modern Art. And I came many times to the beautiful square and listened to music at this Lutheran Cathedral. I loved going to Helsinki, even it was intense work. I still found time for myself while my tourist were running around the city and shopping. Finland those days seemed to me cleaner and calmer than busy 6 million-people Saint Petersburg

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4"x6" Watercolor Sketch on 90lb Cold Pressed Paper

Barcelona, Spain - Travel With Me - Sketchbook Project

2012-01-14T10:29:00.001-08:00

Spain is the country that woke up my love to the color. Being born in the North of Russia, in the city that has half year winter, and another half cloudy skies and gray weather; and when the Sun is literally shining only around 30 days in whole year (except the cold winter days with below 30 Celsius when you don’t want to show up your nose out of the door); in Spain I was welcomed by a warm sea, sunny days, friendly people, hot music, and absolutely stunning architecture. I thought nothing can impress me after leaving in the great City of Saint Petersburg. When I visited Barcelona and saw future Gaudi’s inspiration Cathedral of the Holy Cross and Saint Eulalia, it reminded me a sand castle made by a genius Giant. Looking fragile but meantime timelessly strong and eternal the Cathedral of Barcelona captivated my attention for a long time. I found myself in between time zones when I stopped keeping track on what was happening around and remained looking at the piece of art, centimeter by centimeter, exploring its beauty.

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4"x6" Watercolor Sketch on 90lb Cold Pressed Paper

Karnak Temple, Luxor, Egypt - Travel With Me - Sketchbook Project

2012-01-13T17:29:00.000-08:00

I went to Egypt with my son and my mom back in 1998. My son was only 9 years old and when we went to visit Karnak Temple and all adults were ah-&-oh looking at this thousands-years old wonder, my son decided to play Peek-a-boo with his Grandma. I found it funny how kids don't really care about the history, they always find something to have fun with. My mom on another hand was so excited that she, the engineer with 20 years career behind her shoulders, wrote a long poem about that day. I found gorgeous panorama where you can feel your are right there and feel yourself so small and young compare to the history. Here it is, courtesy of http://www.panoramas.dk/fullscreen7/f22-karnak-egypt.html

And here are some interesting facts about Karnak Temple:

The major difference between the Karnak Temple and many of the other sites in Egypt is how long the temple took to develop, as well as how long it was used. The construction of the temple started during the 16th century B.C. About 30 pharaohs gave a contribution to the buildings, which enabled it to reach a diversity, complexity, and size that isn’t seen anywhere else in the world. There aren’t many unique individual features of Karnak, but the number and size of the features is amazing.( from (http://famouswonders.com))

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4"x6" Watercolor Sketch on 90lb Cold Pressed Paper

San Francisco, California - Travel With Me - Sketchbook Project

2012-01-12T20:33:00.000-08:00

Here is the place where I live now; or no-no, not right next to the Golden Gate Bridge; but just an hour drive from it, the beautiful San Francisco Bay Area. My husband and I love to come here some weekends and just walk along the bridge, feeling like tourists and getting some exercise. It is fun to walk to the middle of the bridge and look down. If you lucky you can see dolphins or sea lions below. Sure enough you should choose the weather with no fog; otherwise, you will only see the visitors that are walking next to you..

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4"x6" Watercolor Sketch on 90lb Cold Pressed Paper

Paris, France - Travel With Me - Sketchbook Project

2012-01-11T20:28:00.001-08:00

As the second piece for my Sketchbook Project I chose a very recognizable subject matter. It is hard to believe that so many people (painters, poets, architects) thought in 1900s that this was a soar on the surface of Paris. I previously posted a few interesting facts about Eiffel Tower here. I've been to Paris twice with 12 years break in between. But each time I went there I still found something amazing for myself. Besides its obviously touristic atmosphere it somehow makes you feel wanting to visit it again and again. And I will certainly make sure I take tons of pictures when I come back to Paris one more time. The Eiffel Tower is fun; but my favorite places in Paris still are Musée d'Orsay and Musée Rodin with its gorgeous garden.

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4"x6" Watercolor on 90lb Cold Pressed Paper

Saint Petersburg, Russia - Travel With Me - Sketchbook Project

2012-01-10T19:05:00.000-08:00

This year I am participating in The Sketchbook Project 2012 World Tour and I chose the theme Travel With Me. The book has only 14 pages and it will have 14 of my original watercolor sketches. I decided to place seven countries that I've visited or lived in; and, other seven will be the countries and places that I dream to visit.

And what is the better choice to start with if not my home country that I've been for 32 years of my life, Russia, Saint Petersburg. The sketch that you see is about Blood Cathedral (

The Church of Our Savior on the Spilled Blood)

, an amazing piece of architecture that was built in early 1900s. I lived 10 minutes walk from this church but was able to visit it only in the late 90s as it was closed for restoration for more than 30 years. The building is decorated with tiny pieces of mosaics, gold, blue, terracotta. Each inch is worth looking at and admire.

This is the first sketch for my book. Thirteen more to come.

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4"x6" Watercolor on 90lb Cold Pressed Paper

Chocolate Lab - Cocoa's Christmas

2011-12-16T18:15:00.000-08:00

This was a commission painting that my client ordered for a friend. The dog's name is Cocoa. As you see she was just interrupted from exploring a new neighbor in the green scarf. Cocoa realized that Christmas is right around the corner when she was dressed in red outfit and the room was filled with jingle bells. What a wonderful time! Merry Christmas!!

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8"x10" Winsor&Newton Watercolor on 140 Arches Cold Pressed Paper

Girl's Portrait Study Final Phase

2011-12-11T13:20:00.001-08:00

The Girl's portrait is completed. I've defined hair, worked on eyes and lips. And at the final stage looked at the anything that needs to be fixed.

What did I learn?

- The shadow side of the face lit by the Sun needs to be painted darker than you think when mixing the paint. And even it looks exaggerated when it is wet it will dry lighter.

- The time to finish is the time when the artist thinks it is done. I could work on this portrait until the year end; but, it was time to stop. Sometimes it is hard to do so.

- Red hair requires pretty much all colors but Red: I used all shades of gold, which are yellow, transparent orange, burned sienna, green.

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I had a lot of fun painting this portrait, learned a lot, and now it is even a little sad it is done. But I need to move forward :)

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24"X18" Winsor&Newton Watercolor on 140 Cold Pressed paper

Girl's Portrait Study Phase V

2011-12-09T15:43:00.001-08:00

This time I am identifying the body parts; but, not finishing them completely. Everything is touched and everything is needed perfection at this stage (ears, nose, eyes, lips) . I would call this period the most unsatisfying as I really want it to be completed but know that it is impossible to see unity unless you work on whole face at once. At least my Girl now gets more character, doesn't she? :)

Girl's Portrait Study Phase IV

2011-12-08T06:46:00.001-08:00

Today is definitely a Hair Day (good or bad? you decide).. I've added some gold in my girl's hair. Even she is a Blond now she is positively going to be a Cute Red Head. I've used wet-on -wet technique thinking that later I can touch the hair with the small (dry-on-wet) brush in order to define them. I know some artists that do not focus on defining hair and it does look great with the accent on the face and eyes, but for this portrait I think I will stick to my usual technique.

Girl's Portrait Study Phase III

2011-12-07T07:18:00.001-08:00

I've worked on the dress pattern trying to frame the face, but not to overdo. At this stage I've only placed two washes on the girls face to distinguish the shadow side and part that's on the sun. There are more washes to the face to come as more contrast is needed. The common practice shows that when painting a sunny day you would have a difference 40% between shade and sunny side. So I have to remember to exaggerate the shadow side when painting(plus remembering that watercolors dry at least 30% lighter).

The first touch of girl's hair shows the Blond; but I will need to work towards the Redish Blond to match the model's personality.

Girl's Portrait Study Phase II

2011-12-06T05:50:00.001-08:00

I've added a few shades of red into the cold purple to make it warmer and made the bottom of the painting more intense to settle down the future portrait. Can't wait to start working on baby's face. The background is pretty much done (unless I will want to insert an object or two.. we shell see)... It looks a little dark now as the girls face is not yet touched.

Girl's Portrait Study Phase I

2011-12-05T10:35:00.001-08:00

I have not painted kids on the large format paper. This is my first try on 18"x24". I've met the girl this Fall at one party. The sun was shining just right and the parents were so kind to let me taking my future photo-reference that I've jumped to the opportunity. The girls personality is just amazing. Like a lot of Red Heads she was shining from inside. Shy at the beginning, she revealed her smart and talkative nature after the first half an hour of the party; and, became the main subject of admiration. The same moment when I took her photo she was sitting herself comfortably in the huge chair and all of a sudden she heard the dogs barking nearby; she was not scared, no, instead she was curious if this dog can jump over the fence that she can see it. What a Cutie!

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After the drawing I've started the painting by covering the main area of the portrait with Masking Fluid around the edges and the middle of the portrait with the cut out paper. I've started the painting with the wash of yellow and alizarin crimson slowly moving to a darker (ultramarine blue and violet) colors. The reason I've chosen these colors for the background is that the girl has rainbow-flowery dress and I thought it would be nice to include the colors of her dress into the background wash.

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The composition that I've chosen is also very unusual for me. The girls portrait is moved to the far right when I left almost a half of the painting for a background. I've done it intentionally to emphasize the feeling of sun and wind and make the viewer wonder what is there? what this girl sees? I believe this composition gives more space for imagination.

Christmas Angel

2011-11-28T17:11:00.000-08:00

A little Christmas Angel spreads his wings ready to go on our Christmas Tree. My sister and I are decorating it this year. When we were kids we could not even imagine to have an Angel as a decoration. Soviet Union times prohibited all sort of things that imply religion. Even Santa was called Father Frost in order to avoid any religious meanings.

But we did make wishes on the New Year eve. The deal was to make as many wishes as you can while clock strikes 12. I had one wish per second. And now, in the Holiday Spirit I really wish for pretty much one thing (besides World Peace and Health for my Family and Friends and myself of course). I wish that my right arm would never fail and my eyes will be strong and sharp to paint more art.

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8"x10" Winsor & Newton Watercolor on 140 Cold Pressed Fabriano

Photo Reference - Masha Batkova

Cherries - Aquabord Study

2011-11-18T06:13:00.000-08:00

One more study of Aquabord. I love the texture, but it is not easy to paint on this surface; yet the decorative effect wins the prize and I think this small thick square boards will make a very good affordable gift for the art collectors that do not want to spend a fortune but still want to make a unique gifts to their friends and family. I especially love how it looks on the easel. More pictures are here

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5"x5" Winsor & Newton Watercolors on Aquabord 1/8 thick

Nude Pear

2011-11-16T15:19:00.001-08:00

Don't you think that each pear is different and each of them has its own personality? When you look at the pear you would never say Mister, right? People refer to these fruits as Ladies all the time. Even woman shape is called a Pear Shape one. In fact, in Russian language pears carry a feminine name.

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When I looked at this Miss Green Beauty I've noticed the obvious nudity. She was shy but proud of her curves. It was impossible not to paint her.

I've challenged myself using a watercolor board again. Lots of water, lots of dabbing, but the needed effect was reached; and, I am happy about it. The advantage of the board is that you can place it on a wall or on easel without framing. The board is 2-3 mm thick, which gives the painting durability and decorative feeling. Also, the rough surface of the board brings some interesting character to the painting texture.

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And here is the small tour into the Pear History:

Pears are one of the world's oldest cultivated and beloved fruits. In 5,000 B.C., Feng Li, a Chinese diplomat, abandoned his responsibilities when he became consumed by grafting peaches, almonds, persimmons, pears and apples as a commercial venture. In The Odyssey, the Greek poet laureate Homer lauds pears as a "gift of the gods." Pomona, goddess of fruit, was a cherished member of the Roman Pantheon and Roman farmers documented extensive pear growing and grafting techniques. Thanks to their versatility and long storage life, pears were a valuable and much-desired commodity among the trading routes of the ancient world. Evident in the works of Renaissance Masters, pears have long been an elegant still-life muse for artists. In the 17th century a great flourishing of modern pear variety cultivation began taking place in Europe. And in popular culture, the pear tree was immortalized alongside a partridge in the 18th-century Christmas carol, The Twelve Days of Christmas.

Early colonists brought the first pear trees to America's eastern settlements where they thrived until crop blights proved too severe to sustain widespread cultivation. Fortunately, the pear trees brought west to Oregon and Washington by pioneers in the 1800's thrived in the unique agricultural conditions found in the Pacific Northwest. Today's Northwest pear varieties are the same or similar to those first cultivated in France and Belgium where they were prized for their delicate flavor, buttery texture, and long storage life. (ref: http://usapears.org)

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5"x5" Winsor & Newton Watercolor on Watercolor Board by Aquabord

Curious Eyes

2011-11-16T07:00:00.001-08:00

It is amazing how two curious eyes can make us happy and smile. My client found me on Etsy and purchased this Sniffer for her mom in Canada. I painted this dog from memory, I don't know his name or where he lives. I don't even know if it is HE or SHE. But I am very happy that these two curious eyes and one wet sniffer will make happy one old sweet lady in a different country :)

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3 1/2" x 3 1/2" Watercolor on Paper