Back to the Drawing Board...

My free time was recently consumed by the chicken project, so I ended up just stepping away from drawing for a couple days. Well, OK - I doodled in the sketchbook during break at work. I was trying to think of what I wanted to do next. There are several juicy little tidbits in the sketchbook that I was thinking I'd like to make into something. And, I'd still like to pick a passage from something we've read this year to illustrate.

In the meantime, this is a drawing from several months ago done in pencil (obviously) - something a little different.


HOWEVER...the more I tried to put the chicken drawing aside, the more and more I've been thinking of redoing it. Darn - I thought it might be done! It had taken a lot of time, but I know what I would do differently - fix the sign, add some of those string lights to all of the bushes, go for a little more gradation in the sky, and I saw a photo of some neon lights that inspired me to improve on that. I had observed neon signs around town, but something about the photograph made certain elements more obvious. There's A LOT that I would do the same - it's just a matter of spending the time to do it. But, if it's gonna go in the portfolio...

So, I guess the chicken drawing was just an elaborate study after all. But then, this is how it would be if this had been a paid job (not just practice) - gotta put your best work out there.

"Why Did the Chicken Cross the Road?"

OK - I'm ready to dig out the old scanner. I've spent all morning trying to photograph this drawing, battling the breeze and inconsistant sun. Trying to get an image that shows the colors accurately has been a challenge.


The original goal of this drawing was to carry out my own complete illustration inspired by the book "Why Did the Chicken Cross the Road?" (which includes the work of many popular illustrators).

Besides just coming up with the concept, composition, and media, I met another unexpected challenge when I realized that this was going to be an evening/night scene. Now, I had to figure out how to show various lights - not sure I was completely successful, but I learned something new (and that's really the point here).

I think the drawing is done (mostly). I always go in and tinker with little details for several days, but it probably won't change much from this. I'm happy with a lot of things about it, although there's always something that stands out as "YUCK." I don't know if that's the result of being to close to the drawing for too long, or if certain things are really as bad as I think they are.

One thing I can't stand is how the "Pecking" sign came out - very muddy. If I can change that, I think I'll sure try, but it's not easy to change colored pencil! But, I really learned a lot about working with colored pencils and the result of layering different colors.

I really like the diagonals that zig-zag throughout the composition. I'd like to say that I planned ALL of them, but some I noticed after laying it all out. I like how the diagonal of the roof takes the eye down to the (ugly) "Pecking" sign that turns the diagonal back the other direction. This takes you to the blue tables and bush that turn the diagonal back to the chicken in the foreground. That's what I see, anyway.

I consider this still an unfinished work and would love any feedback or suggestions that any of you might have.

And now for something completely different...

I finally got an entire day to work on my projects(almost). Time sure can fly! I just sharpen the pencils, turn on the music, and next thing I know, it's bedtime.

Well, it's not EXACTLY like that. With 3 kids, there's always interruptions. You know, they all want snacks or something to drink - and NEVER at the same time. When you finally get settled, one of them needs you for something. A few minutes later, the next child comes out. But, one day that will end (and I'll miss it).


While I made a lot of progress today, I'm not ready to share. So, for your viewing pleasure, I'm posting a picture of one of my family members - Basha - with her favorite toy. We discovered that - like most little girls - she loves Barbies. When we first got her, we'd catch her sneaking out of my girls' room with one. So, every time they get a new one for a birthday, they give an old one to the dog.

Of course, she plays with them a little differently. She likes to chase it after you've chucked it across the room. Other times, she rolls around, swinging it by its hair. So much fun!

Sneak Preview

Just to prove to everyone that I am actually working on it, here's my progress so far on the answer to "Why Did the Chicken Cross the Road"...

It'll give you a preview of where this picture is going (but it doesn't give away all of the surprises).

I've laid in some of the base colors in places and built up some layers in others. I think I mentioned that I like to layer and layer (and layer and layer). It's pretty dreary and overcast here today, so the colors came out rather dull and inaccurate. Usually when I photograph on a sunny day, I get a pretty good result. One of these days, I'll get the old scanner out of the garage and see if it still works.

Anyway, LOT'S still to do...but I might need a little nap before work.

Eine Kleine Nacht-Chicken

I started work on the "final" of the chicken drawing - I know it seems like I've been talking about it forever, however when you only have an hour or less at a time to work on a project...

It didn't help that we went miniature golfing today (but that was fun).



I've set aside all of the colors that I'll be using from my magic pencil box for this night scene with chicken. Anyway, I think this will be the final. For all I know, it will end up being a very detailed study and I'll want to do it over with slight changes. Oh, I hope not. It's funny, but even with all of the planning and color tests, there are still surprises.


Once again, the paper I'm using is different. My sketchbook paper is very slick and white - the paper I'm using is slightly textured and not as white. I do prefer a little "tooth" to the paper, though (note to self: get sketchbook with different paper).


Also, it's surprising how much second-guessing can go on. Should I have made this bigger? Should I move that over? etc. Maybe that's just normal. I wonder if other illustrators question themselves so much.

Free at Last...sort of...

I finally have time! And now it's hard to figure out what to do first. The house needs a good cleaning (boooo!), rooms need to be painted, the yard needs to be weeded...

And, of course, there's drawing and painting to do. I think I'll sneak out to the garage before work and really get going on the chicken drawing. I think I've got most all of the details ironed out and it's time to take it to the next level.

In the meantime, I'll share a older picture from the sketchbook. It started as a doodle, having fun with line, value, texture, and facial expression. I liked how it was going but there was a dark mark on the guy's forehead that I couldn't quite remove. I thought I'd hide it better with some White-Out (after all, this is just in my sketchbook, right?)...WRONG! That only made it worse! So, I cut out a "bandage" from an Avery label to cover it. Oh well...

College Again? Nnaaaaaaaa!

With all of my recent efforts to improve my skills, the thought has crossed my mind “Would it be worth it to return to college to study illustration?”

I can actually come up with a pretty quick answer to that – no.

Of course, there’s the time issue. Home, work, and kids don’t leave much time leftover for school assignments, and their short-term deadlines would never fit into my current schedule. I need a great deal of flexibility right now – if there was a class that started at 10:00 at night, then I might be able to squeeze it in.

But, that’s really only a small part of it. I’ve already gone through the Bachelor of Fine Arts program in Drawing and Painting, and I’m quite aware of where my shortcomings are as an artist. I know that I need to be observing, drawing, and studying every chance I get in order to improve. I know that I need to practice with the figure as well as various media. I don’t think I need to pay a huge amount of money for someone to tell me to keep doing those things. And no professor could wave a wand over me to make me better - only effort on my part can do that.

I’m a big fan of taking advantage of learning opportunities as they arise. I was always frustrated when I had the inspiration to work on “X” and would have REALLY gotten something out of it by seizing that moment. But if the class had to do with “Y,” then there was no time for “X.” I consider that an opportunity lost – valuable time wasted.

I’m much better suited for independent study, and I don’t see the need for a college program for that – I’m already doing it. I’m doing anatomy studies, color studies, composition studies, etc. I’m searching the net for insight and instruction on technical issues as well and tips on media, and reading interviews of people working in the field. In short, I’m creating my own assignments tailored to my specific skill needs and time constraints. The work I’m doing has great meaning and relevance to me at this time, so that makes it MUCH more enjoyable!!

Therefore, I think a mentor or a critique group would be of greater value in my continuing art education at the moment. The one thing that a college atmosphere does provide is feedback and discussion - well, sometimes. I’m happy, at least, to be able to post online and get feedback on works in progress. That will have to do for now.

(Sorry for resurrecting an old sketchbook picture, but since time seems to always be an issue anymore I thought this one was appropriate)

Thanks For the "Gesture"

I guess did get a little drawing in this last week. Work was really slow last Thursday, so the boss called and told me not to come in (I really needed a break anyway). So, I was able to attend my daughter's last soccer practice of the season and, of course, took the opportunity to draw.

I used to hate doing quick gesture drawings like this when I was a student. I guess I found it rather frustrating - my desire for detail and a finished product that looked "good" overshadowed things. Even these probably have more detail than a true gestural drawing should have.

I had a figure drawing instructor that took us to a fencing club in Culver City over several days for the purpose of capturing quick action. It was tedious at first, but it did get easier. Of course, I did absolutely NO gesture drawing for years. But, now I really appreciate the exercises. It's so easy to take a moment and scribble a few figures who might be around and add to the sketchbook "reference library."

WoooooHoooooo! I made it!!

I did manage to find some unexpected, early morning moments to blog this last week. Still, I can't think of a week in recent history that was as packed full of activities, end-of-school-year events, awards ceremonies (f0r the kids - not me), etc. as this one was!

I know I listed some of the many picnics, meetings, sporting events, parties, and awards ceremonies that were planned during the week. You'll see some of those highlights here in pictures.

However, I don't think I mentioned the 3 soccer games, 2 end-of-season "Indoor" soccer parties (not to be confused with "arena" soccer), Sunday Soccer at the YMCA for all ages (that is in an arena), and the AWANA (youth group) awards night at church that took place over the weekend.

Ok, so I'm a soccer mom.

A Sneak Peek - Developing the Character

Do you recall the doodle that started me thinking about the chicken picture? Well, I realized that it really looked more like a parrot or cockatoo.

So, I did some chicken studies out of a book at work to identify more of their real characteristics.

The character now has more of a real chicken quality. This is a close-up of one of the studies I've been working on to determine some of the colors and compositional elements.


I've still got a little more to iron out, but I think I'll be diving into the final project pretty soon.

The Importance of Studies

Way back in my student days, with a full load of classes, there never seemed to be the time to do studies before a final work. And, it was never really discussed by any of my professors - well I had one painting professor that assigned a series of color studies using a limited color palette. But at most, I might squeeze out a few quick sketches.

Even as I've worked on some things for the current portfolio, I haven't really engaged in doing detailed studies...until now. Some of the drawings I'd done earlier and really liked still had glaring flaws that could be the difference between getting an illustration job and not getting it. I realized that those drawings couldn't be considered as more than studies, and a couple of them have been redone. Looking at so many examples of great work through various blogs has motivated me greatly.

Now, I'm finding that as I work through my "chicken" ideas, I am really spending time working out many of the details before I begin. I'd hate to spend hours on it only to have a part "not work" (I'm not digital - don't have any delete or undo options). So, I'd much rather spend the time working out some of the unknowns before I dive in. That's not to say that I don't leave some things to unfold during drawing, but I'd like to have a firm understanding at the get-go where I want things, what colors would be right, how to get certain effects, etc.

Anyway, the picture I'm sharing today is of a tree in our backyard that has been semi-removed . My girls had set part of a bird-bath on top. I think we're going to cut it shorter, get a larger and more sturdy bird bath bowl, and plant flowers at its base...just waiting for that free time.

Waiting for pizza...

Look what I found! A few spare minutes!!!

Sometimes when I have a lot on my plate, the Lord "blesses" me with sleeplessness. So, I've actually been up quite early yesterday and today with a little bit of time to spend with the sketchbook. Right now, I'm waiting to order the 29 pizzas for our party this afternoon - can't order until 10:00 a.m. - so I thought I'd blog really quick.

Anyway, I'm working through many of the details of my chicken drawing, particularly colors. Every drawing I do seems to bring technical issues that I have to sort through and learn about. In this case, the scene turned into a night scene and there's issues of lights - such as a neon sign - that I'm having to deal with.

I think it's wonderful, though. Every little thing that comes up like this is just a little more added to my visual vocabulary. Hopefully, it will make my future work flow more smoothly. However, I couldn't imagine that there is a point where you're not discovering something new as you go.

No visuals to share on the chicken. But, I'm including a page from the sketchbook. You'll notice the doll in the upper right might look familiar - I've posted the acrylic study of that drawing before. You can also see the painting in the photo slideshow of my work at the top of this blog.

Beside the sketch, you can see the study of my daughter's doll that I did in order to figure out the positioning and how the dress would fall. Everything else on the page is just more "kiddy stuff" doodles. Who knows - maybe the bear will end up in a children's book. The little shoe-car down at the bottom is an actual wooden car my husband had made with his dad when he was a Boy Scout.

Just checking in...

This is turning out to be an unbelieveably busy week...

-Our 2nd to last science co-op class is tomorrow
-The last homeschool support group meeting tomorrow night (party + used curriculum sale)
- It's the last week of indoor soccer practices Tuesday and Thursday (in between science and support group)
- Our multi-subject co-op picnic/party is on Wednesday afternoon
- The kids' last youth group meeting and bbq is Wednesday night
- The Presidential Physical Fitness co-op picnic/party Thursday afternoon
- My usual work schedule (5 evenings per week)
- AND I promised the kids we'd see Prince Caspian on opening day (Friday).

It's a lot of fun stuff, but it's a lot of running around and a scheduling nightmare. I'm exhausted just thinking about it!

I'm not sure how much illustration or blogging time I'll have this week (I'm thinking NONE), so I wanted to at least check in with a quick update. I don't have any pictures to post (and I don't like posting on an art blog without some sort of visual) However, I haven't been working on very much except trying to iron out the composition and some details of my chicken drawing.

The composition is proving to be a little more problematic than I originally thought. As I sketched out some roughs, something wasn't working right. I needed to change some size relationships. I'm still tweaking that a bit.

Well, there's a light at the end of the tunnel - if I survive this week, I'll have a little more time to work on my illustration projects. So, check back soon - I won't be gone long.

Chicken Scratch

Moving forward with my “Chicken crossing the road” illustration.

So, last night at work I came across a Dorling Kindersly “Watch Me Grow” book about chicks. DK books always have excellent pictures to draw from since I don’t have any chickens lying around – at least not any that have heads, feathers, and aren’t currently frozen. I do have a mummified Cornish Game Hen from last year’s history co-op – but that’s another story.

Anyway, I spent my break doing some rapid studies of chickens in the sketchbook (shown here).

Besides that, I’ve decided what medium I want to use – sometimes that can be a tougher-than-it-should-be decision. I knew it wasn’t going to be paint or chalk pastel (grrrrrrr). But, I wasn’t sure if I wanted to use colored pencil alone (like the recent dancing fish), a combination of ink line and colored pencil, or ink with watercolor (like the Spectator Ant from earlier). After playing around with some colors in the sketchbook, I’ve decided on going with the colored pencil only option.

So, now I’ll be busy with some little studies and the final drawing.

Illo Challenge - So, why DID the chicken cross the road? Anyone Care to Answer?

I'm planning on doing some single illustrations based on some of the novels my kids and I have read together this year. Also, I'd like to plan out and storyboard an entire picture book based on a folk tale or classic story. However, I haven't yet decided what sources to work from - nothing is really speaking to me at the moment. Although, we're currently reading "A Wrinkle in Time," so I'll probably do a scene from that book.

At the moment, besides the color wheel painting - which I can only work on at certain times - I really don't have a project in the works. So, last night I resorted to the random doodle as a starting point. It wasn't long before the subject of this drawing began to emerge: a chicken.

We currently have a book that I ordered into the store called "Why Did the Chicken Cross the Road." It is a rather amusing collection of potential answers to this question illustrated by 14 different children's book artists (Jon Agee, David Catrow, David Shannon, Jerry Pinkney, and more).

In the past, I've worked very slowly on these doodles, letting the entire drawing unfold in it's own time. However, I was hit with an inspiration that interrupted the doodle and gave me a definite direction to pursue - I would illustrate my own answer to the "Why did the chicken cross the road?" question.

If anyone else out there would like to answer this question in a drawing or painting, I'd love to see it when you're done. I'll be working on mine here, but it will probably take me a while to finish - my time is still extremely limited until the school year ends. In the meantime, you can take a peek at the doodle above that jumpstarted the idea (I don't want to give the entire picture away).

Studio Battlefield

Today was a day I was looking forward to all week. My girls were on a field trip to an aquarium, but I had to stay behind because my son is doing standardized testing. That means all children were out of the house for a few hours this morning. I love having them around, but I can’t think of the last time I was alone in the house!

So little time – so much to do. I took the dog for a walk and then carved out some time in the studio.

First, I worked on a complementary pair of colors on the color wheel I mentioned before. This was only the 2nd set of colors I’ve gotten on there. It’s quite time consuming, trying to get the different tones. But, I think acrylics and I are starting to become friends.

The same can’t be said for another medium I dealt with today. I decided to warm-up with my “drawing game.” The subject: bicycle. The medium…my nemesis: chalk pastel.

I knew I was in trouble from the very beginning. A bike – narrow bars and spokes, numerous intricacies. Chalk pastels – chunky blocks with no fine tips for capturing those details I like so much. But, there was no backing down from the challenge.

Now, I happen to greatly admire a lot of art done in chalk pastel and wish I was more comfortable with the looseness that it requires. I love chalk pastel on a colored paper. However, I can’t stand all the chalk dust all over my work space, getting smudges of color and finger prints where I don’t want them. I love edges, pulling and pushing elements in space with color or value brought right up against it.

So, we duked it out for a while. More than once, I wanted to walk away from it out of annoyance. But, I know that I tend to get something out of an exercise if I just stick with it a little while.

I think the one highlight of this drawing session was in placing the atmospheric foliage on the horizon. I will admit that it can be easier to deal with background distance because of the smudginess of the medium.

Part of me would just like to ignore chalk pastel forever, and I suppose I probably could. But, as long as I keep seeing beautiful work with that medium, I think I'll keep coming back to it.

Bathing Beauty Revisited

Ok, I think I brought this one to a resolution. I was stuck for a little while - there was too much negative space before, but everything I added just cluttered the scene. Everything seemed to draw attention away from the figure. So, I posted it on Amateur Illustrator, got some feedback, and this is what I came up with.

Simply adding another edge behind the figure definitely improved it - the figure feels more grounded, the space a little better defined. But I think this is one of those instances where the blank, white space is necessary. The white space to the left of the figure's feet balances the bag and shadow that are off to the right. The large amount of empty space in the upper half of the picture balances the multiple patterns and darker values toward the middle and bottom.

The thought has crossed my mind - what could I put in the upper part of the picture? I tend to like to place elements (objects, values, patterns, etc.) around to draw the eye around the composition. But, I come up with nothing that would fit or make sense - the empty space is serving that purpose without stealing the spotlight, allowing you to focus in on the girl and all her gear.

Bring on the Illustrated Novel!

Back in the mid-90’s I remember hearing that illustrated picture books were experiencing a lot of growth in the publishing world. These books certainly showcased some real talent – both written and visual. I think the illustration seed was planted in my mind at that time, however it went ignored for quite a while.

Now, working in a bookstore, I wonder if the picture book genre has slumped a bit. I don’t know the statistics or the trends, and I still see some great books come into the store. But, from a booksellers perspective, our hardcover children’s books don’t really sell that well.

Perhaps it’s the economy or the demographics of this particular area. While people are more willing to pick-up a paperback, I can’t say we sell many of them either. The $16 hardcovers just sit, for the most part (holiday books being an exception). Even bargain priced titles aren’t moving.

On the other hand, the beginning readers, chapter books, and young reader novels do much better. Of course, kids are required to read these types of books for school, so the demand is automatically there.

Anyway, I’m thrilled to see the upswing of young reader novels with illustrations. I’m not talking about the illustrated diary format like the new and popular “Wimpy Kid” books or the decorative chapter header. And, of course, I’m not referring to manga (which I’m really not a fan of overall). I’m thinking of those books that have a handful of well executed and artfully done illustrations dispersed throughout the book.

Brian Selznick’s “Invention of Hugo Cabret” has received much attention for its illustrations, so I don’t need to say more on that. But, books like Kate Di Camillo’s “Tale of Despereaux” and "The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane” both include beautiful imagery by some talented artists. The Edward Tulane book in particular (illustrated by Bagram Ibatoulline) even includes the occasional color plate, reminiscent of older classics that are saved and passed down through families.

I noticed a new book come into the store the other day called “The Underneath” by Kathi Appelt. It jumped out at me because the illustrator’s name – David Small – was also prominently featured on the front. I don’t know much about the story at this point, but I thumbed through to check out some of the artwork.

I don’t know if this is a growing trend or not, but I sure hope it is! Novels don’t necessarily need to be illustrated to the degree that Selznick’s book was, but it sure is nice to have at least one image in each chapter. I just think – as a visual person – it’s a great way to draw people into the story that much more. In addition, it does its part to turn a good story into a treasure of a book.

Shall We Dance?

I spent some time in my studio before work yesterday and had some fun with color. I was having one of those “directionless” moments since I didn’t have a work in progress to go to, and I didn’t have enough time to get into painting on my color wheel (I have yet to work more on that one).

So, I thought I’d start with the “drawing” game I’ve mentioned before (miscellaneous subjects and media written on little pieces of paper, randomly drawn out of a bowl). This is one way that I get warmed up or just get started on something if I’m at a loss for an idea.

The subject chosen was “fish” and the medium was colored pencil. Usually, I might only spend as little as 15 minutes on a warm-up, or it can go for up to an hour. It depends on how “into it” I get. Well, I probably spent about 3 hours total on it over the course of 2 days, squeezing it in around work, school, and errands. My daughter thinks he should be named Albert.

Doing something new and different is always fun. It’s when I get stuck in a rut that drawing seems more of a chore. In this drawing, I like that it’s colorful, but it’s a step away from the type of color I used to fall back on (like in the Jack and Jill image of my last post). I’ve found that I like the layering of many different colors with colored pencils. I couldn’t imagine just going in with a single color (blue for example) and just leaving it at that. I used a combination of several blues, greens, and grays for the body, along with some others.