Get On This Train......

Now that life has settled down a bit, it's time to get on with all those outstanding commissions.  This is an unusual (for me) little piece - I was asked if I could produce some travel drawings in the style of etchings.  I'm not sure if it has been achieved here or not - still awaiting approval from the client, but it was fun just using a pencil with a sharp point and nothing else.  This is quite small - A4 - but still took quite a few hours.

Now it's time to start those Inktense jungle creatures....

Monty

Here is the other portrait in the pair, ready to go off to it's new owner. Once again, this has been executed using Derwent Drawing Pencils, with white acrylic for the highlights.  This picture whizzed along - sometimes they just flow and it is surprising how quickly they are completed.  Perhaps because I enjoyed it so much due to it's resemblance to my old dog.

Next on the easel is something totally different - a large bright acrylic, yet another Christmas commission.  It will be strangely liberating to paint something large and loose - all my work for the past year or so has been so tight and detailed.

Just Monkeying Around.......

With no commissioned art work at the moment, I have been occupying myself with this pencil drawing of a gorilla.  It is based on a photograph taken at a zoo by a friend of mine, and I loved the contemplative look on his face. 

First I stained a sheet of The Langton Extra Smooth watercolour paper with a  few coats of strong tea, which makes for a lovely sepia tone.  The gorilla has been simply drawn using an HB pencil, an Aquarelle water soluble pencil, a white pencil for highlights and a 6B for a few final darks.  He had to be looking at something, so I have drawn in a small fluffy feather floating above his head.

Due to the overcast winter daylight conditions and the reflectiveness of the darker pencil shading, it has been a nightmare trying to get a decent photograph of this.  This is the best I can do, but you get the general idea.

Whilst it is always good to have paid work coming in, sometimes it is even better to have the spare time to draw or paint what I really want to get down on paper.  I've not had much chance to do that this past year,so this opportunity has been very welcome.

On the knitted front.....look out for a whippet with a badly cut tail and an injured paw coming shortly!

Found.....

Inbetween painting horses I have been having some fun with a little drawing exercise. Using very sharp pencils and working true to life with the objects blu-tacked to my drawing board, I have been trying to make some highly detailed drawings of found objects. The feather was good, the shell was quick, and the sea-urchin? The phrase 'never again' comes to mind although I am glad to have attempted it. It's always useful to challenge yourself with your drawing once in a while, keeps it all fresh and makes you glad to get back to what you are comfortable with!

- 0 -

This was in today's paper......

.... a quiz to find out if your dog is an optimist or a pessimist. I had to do it for him as he can't hold a pencil...or read (to my knowledge!)


Despite appearances, he is an optimist...........yeah, OK.....

First Feather

I just couldn't wait any longer - the horse went on hold for an afternoon and I drew/painted this using very sharp pencils and a brush with about three hairs in it. Great fun but not as perfect as I would like, but I guess you can't run before you can walk with things like this! The drawing is about two inches long, slightly bigger than the actual feather.

Now back to the horses as commissions are starting to stack up - woo-hoo!