"An Early Mycenaean Wanax at Pylos? On Genii and Sun-Disks from the Grave of the Griffin Warrior" by Sharon R. Stocker and Jack L. Davis has been published as part of the AEGIS (Aegean Interdisciplinary Studies) series through Presses Universitaires de Louvain.
 

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AJA article Ancient Eleon

I will continue drawing finds from the new excavation season just starting this week!  You can follow along on the new facebook page and website!  You can also find the grave mentioned by National Geographic, the New York Times, CNN, the Smithsonian....the list goes on and on! very excited to be a part of it!

The participants all had archaeological backgrounds being either students or Ontario archaeologists.  It was a great group to work with and each brought their own experiences to the table.

Here are just a few photos from the day!

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Following the ASOR conference I continued my trip to Wellesley College where I was invited by Dr. Bryan Burns to give a introductory workshop for first year archaeology students in the Department of Classical Studies.  It was the last day before the Thanksgiving break, and I was grateful for everyone's attendance and enthusiasm!  I think it was an excellent way to spend the last day of class before a holiday break.  There were about 15 students and in addition to the broken modern ceramics that I brought for practice, we were also able to use the departments sherd collection - a real treat for the students to be able to draw real ancient material.  

Wellesley College is a beautiful old campus surrounded by gorgeous natural landscapes and small towns (not to mention huge and beautiful old homes as well)!  It was a real treat to be invited here!  It was either pouring rain or freezing cold while I was visiting though - so I didn't get as many pictures as I would have liked!

I was also able to draw some of Greek material in the Davis Museum and Cultural Center as well.  Which may be the first time I actually used all of my tools and drew ancient material here on North American Soil!  And the laboratory space was  perfect with lots of light, several lamps, and large tables.

AND!  I also celebrated American Thanksgiving for the first time thanks to my lovely hosts, completely with centrepiece arranging :)  Amazing food, great company and above all the whole trip was an excellent experience that I hope to do again soon!

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And next I was very happily able to return to Pylos again.  This time to catch up on drawings needed of excavated material in the museum.  It got to be a little rainy and slightly cool - but living in the town of Pylos was beautiful as always.  And drawing the pottery from the site was interesting as usual!   Being here in October/November was also a great time to see what non-smmer life is like in Greece.  We were able to attend festivities for Navarino Day, a celebration of Greek independence, that included touring both a Russian and Greek war ship!

And that was all for this trip!

The director Shari Stocker and Jack Davis 

Next I ventured on to Eleon. This was my first full summer at this site and I loved it!  Working with Brendan Burke from the University of Victoria and Bryan Burns from Wellesley College and many students mostly from Canada.  It was an excellent experience with a lot of amazing material!

Me and Brendan Burke   

And my last stop was the Mitrou Archaeological Project directed by Aleydis Van de Moortel from the University of Tennessee.  This was out TENTH season!  And this year we reached over 1000 pages of drawings!  Incredible!  We also experience some strange weather, power outages and an earthauke!  So the illustration team found itself in several locations throughout the apotheke this year!

Me with fellow illustrator Marcella Rossin and architect Giuliana Bianco trying to get some light with the power out after earthquake

Using multiple profile gauges to draw large pithos

Marcella and I drawing outside again waiting for the power to come back on

Rain

Closing up shop for another year!

The Exhibit Hall, where I hope to have a booth in the future displaying my work, was packed with many incredible exhibitors including National Geographic, many great publishers, and several archaeological equipment displays.  Lots of information and enthusiastic people and students were on hand to discuss and share many aspects of Hawai'ian cutlure both ancient and modern - as well as the spectacular topograhy and geology. The Convention Hall was beautiful and a great place to connect and meet new people.

I stayed on O'ahu for an additional week and learned even more about the climate, geology, archaeology, language, and history of the island and Hawai'i in general.  i did not want to leave!  And I look forward to attending again in Austin, Texas next year

I introduced the students, and some of the faculty, to the basics of pottery illustration.  We learned about stancing, diameters and measuring techniques.  Overall I had 20 participants and fours hours of fun.  Everyone was able to draw several sherds from my selection of broken pots.  We also had some examples of ancient glass and other artifacts belonging to the department that we were able handle and discuss.

The campus at Bucknell is a gorgeous mixture of old buildings green space and some newer constructions.  Lewisburg is a small town with a lot of antiques, beautiful homes and history.  Built along the Susquehanna River, the little downtown has several  restaurants, pubs, movie theatre, and even a fantastic art store! (I admit to wandering through there a few times!)

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This one is going to be fun! Four and a half hour road trip.  New town. New people.  Can't wait!  Having been in Greece drawing in the museum just last week I really can't wait to share some tips and secrets with these students.  I love being able to draw broken things and make them look whole - and it is even more fun to share it with people excited to learn how to do the same!

The students and faculty at Bucknell are preparing for their upcoming field school in Ancient Thebes.

The academic life of Athens is incredible!  There is a constant circuit of lectures and events and you never know who you will run into that is either living here or flying in for a short or long time.  I was able to attend the open meeting of the American School of Classical Studies and attend the keynote lecture given by Jeremy Rutter - entitled "Tsoungizan Surprises" which was live streamed and you can see here. 

Work here has been exciting and diverse.  I first worked at the current excavations at the Palace of Nestor in Pylos where work is being done to prepare for the building of a new roof.  I was in the field drawing sections and trench plans -- something I haven't done in YEARS.  It was cool outside at times and rained - but the scenery was gorgeous and I have never seen better conditions for drawing stratigraphy!  (i.e. minus the blazing sun and dry soil of the summer!)  Then I travelled north of Athens to draw metal objects and lithics in the Atalanti Museum from the site of Mitrou.  These objects take such a long time - it is great to get a head start on them before the busy schedule in the summer!

And Spring is definitely arriving!!! 

Full to capacity at 20 students - there were a variety of interests in the room!  Students from Greek and Roman Studies, Anthropology, and Art History. The workshop began with a brief introduction to Archaeological Illustration and why it is so important to draw artifacts and what information can be conveyed in a drawing.  All types of illustrations were discussed with an emphasis on artifacts.  Then the real fun started!  drawing sherds that I brought along from a previous pot breaking experiment!

The students worked with sherds to discover their diagnostic features, stance, and diameter.  Tools available included profile guages, calipers, diameter charts, stainless steel rulers and 0.5 led pencils.  And the anthropology students brought along some animal bone samples to draw! Everyone got to draw several things and brought home a folder of goodies, a certificate of completion, and their own pencil :)

All in all a great success!  Thank you to everyone for coming!  Can't wait for my next one!  Contact me for details and booking!                              For more photos see my facebook page! facebook/TinaRossIllustration

My first time as an exhibitor in Seattle at the AIA/APA Annual meeting was a great success!  I was extremely happy to be involved and impressed with the number of people who approached me with genuine curiosity and interest.  Questions ranged from What is Archaeological Ilustration? to Are pencil drawings here to stay? to Are you also interested in general graphic design and creating logos.  All interesting questions which I plan to address in coming posts.

In general, I firmly believe that as long as we continue to study the archaeological record the way that we do, then pencil drawings are indeed necessary and here to stay.  Photography and digital scanning, while useful and exciting tools in and of themselves, still cannot combine the visual aspects of an artifact with the knowledge of the trained eye of an archaeologist the way that a drawing can.  The interest shown for the various workshops I hold attests to the fact that the younger generation of archaeologists is still very excited about and interested in archaeological drawing and the tools/skills involved.

I was happy to meet quite a few other illustrators in attendance at the conference as well - several with many more years of experience than myself! Great conversations about traditional ways of drawing and the changes brought on by the digital age. In future years at this conference I hope that we can meet and discuss aspects of our trade in a more organised way.

This year I displayed examples my work - pottery drawings, vase-painting scenes, maps, layouts, and plans - and the various tools I use in the field.  I gave away mailable postcards and highlighted my new workshop series.  I even held an impromptu drawing demonstration.

All in all I have come away refreshed and invigorated by the conversations and academic buzz that is always present at this joint annual meeting of Archaeologists and Classicists and I can't wait for next year's meeting in Chicago.  I especially want to thank Andri Cauldwell and Elizabeth Christian for being so keen to have me as a part of the Exhibit Hall and for promoting my table so enthusiastically prior to the conference!  Having a table nearby the Centre for Hellenic Studies, the American Schools of Oriental Research and the American Institute for Conservation made it even more enjoyable.  Also special thanks to Max MacDonald, a student from the University of Victoria, for being such a GREAT help throughout.

See more images on my Facebook page facebook.com/TinaRossIllustration

Have a Merry Christmas and an amazing start to the 2013!

I also plan to bring an 11 x 17 portfolio of my drawings, special postcards about me :), and also all of my drawing tools and information about how and where to buy the types I love and can't live without!

I will be holding specific appointment times for those interested in talking with me one on one AND I will be doing various drawing demonstrations throughout the weekend.  So come on by and check out my work, my drawing tools, and other exciting things at Table Number 5 in the exhibit hall

Please contact me to book an appointment or for more information

Please contact me for details about registration for this workshop at Brock or for arranging one at your own University. Click here to read more about the various workshops I offer.

Cyprus was the beginning of it all, when Danielle Parks gave me my first introduction to drawing.  What better way to start off this new blog then to share some pictures from Episkopi where is all started.  Enjoy these!  Episkopi and the whole island f Cyprus is one of the most beautiful places I have had the pleasure of visiting and working, and the KAGC Project the most fun and memorable.  No wonder I'm still at it 10 years later!