Project Projection...

Panels are primed and ready for the design.  Luckily, I have use of a nice projector recently donated to Town Center Gallery to make this process go A LOT quicker than drawing freehand.

I cut a photo copy of the design into 5 equal parts, enlarged it to fit the panel, and sketched the basic shapes with a pencil.  I'm mainly interested in basic shapes, placement and proportion - I'll worry about details as I paint.  I was able to tansfer the design onto 3 out of 5 panels (so far) in a short amount of time. 

Saves sooooooooo much time!

I'll do the rest tomorrow.  After that, I'll be ready to start painting...but I won't start that until next week (State Cup Soccer Tournament this weekend with oldest daughter).  So, no updates for at least a week.  Check back, though, and see how it all comes together.  Posts may not be daily as the painting begins, but I'll try to keep the pictures coming.

Another Quick Project...

This is just a quick project inspired by a lion sketch in my sketchbook.  Like the last image, I used a combination of gouache and color pencil.  I very much like this combination of materials right now - the layering of washes, the texture of of paint, the subtle shading of the pencils or the emphasis of line.

Overall, I'm not as happy with this as I was with the "rainy day" one.  I started in with darker brown washes than I had intended, so I had to rework it with a little thicker paint.  Jury is still out - but it's growing on me.  Might have to be redone before making it in the portfolio, though.

A Productive Christmas...So Far...

The cookies are baked, the presents wrapped (and now opened), and as the holiday chaos winds down I've actually been able to work on a new project.

A little doodle

Out of the many doodles in my sketchbook, I'm not sure why this child in a raincoat suddlenly caught my attention.  But, I've been trying to think of some designs (past, present, and future) that I could have made into prints this spring.

Ink with a little cloud - works alright with this drawing
but didn't hold much weight in color

Once I figured out the initial composition, I did a couple of studies.   I could picture many things so, at first, I really wasn't sure if I was going to do a moody pen and ink, tried-n-true ink with watercolor wash, or ???  Originally, I didn't have a background at all, but I felt that the child needed to be looking "at" something. The cloud started off small, but once I saw it in color, the cloud needed to be more substantial.  I can't decide if it's too big now, but it seems to work.

The end result in gouache and color pencil

But, as I've learned in the past few years, a drawing or painting will let me know what it needs - what materials are best suited for it and what direction it will move in.  It reminds me of what I need to do day-to-day when it comes to "listening" to God - I may have one vision of how my life should unfold, but if I take care to observe and address the situations that arise each day, then I tend to encounter the unexpected on my way to a beautiful outcome.  Sometimes (a lot of the time) it's scary, aggravating, or delightful, but always worth it.

Ultimately, this image called for the softness of gouache washes and the detail that could be achieved with color pencil.  I don't know how I could have envisioned it any other way.

Illustration Friday: "Beneath"

This drawing done over summer was a good fit for this week's theme.

Kitty's looking for her mouse.  Perhaps he should look beneath the bed.

Illustration Friday: "Dessert"

I can't believe that with everything going on in the past few weeks that I managed to eek out an IF illo!

 I can dream, can't I?

There are a couple of issues I had with this image.  I really didn't like it as I was doing it, mainly because of the media.  I've officially decided that I don't like working with color pencil.  And that's funny because I LOVE working with graphite pencil.  And, I love a lot of things that other artists (like Kathy Hare) do with it.  But, I just don't think it's for me.  I prefer to do detailed line drawings in ink and follow through with the "quick gratification" of watercolor - felt like I was layering and layering forever with the colored pencil!

I gave my cheap scanner a try and (gasp) found that it isn't the best for uploading art...at least for colored pencil and all of it's texture.  I haven't tried other materials yet.  But, I got it for $10 from a school that was closing down and it will have its uses around the house.  I might return to photographing the art for a better picture.

The Sun Reports For Work

I haven't had a lot of time or motivation for drawing these days.   I've been busy trying to do some things around the house and writing some online articles on various subjects.  But, luckily, I was able to combine the two passions when I did an article describing the process that I use for doing my "extreme doodles."

You can read the article and see this drawing unfold step-by-step at my Hubpages site by clicking HERE.

Otherwise, I hope you enjoy my latest "doodle."

A Shout Out to Earth Day

Well, here's a little something in reference to Earth Day. It's nothing spectacular. What is spectacular is that I found a moment to do not one BUT TWO quick studies today. This one I squeaked out while waiting in the car with my sleeping baby while my other girls were in a fabric store with their girls group. The other is something I'm going to be using in my next Hubpages article.

Anyway, I'm trying to keep drawing - even if it's just a little bit.

Found the Colored Pencils

Easter Vaction and I finally dug through a couple boxes for my colored pencils.

These guys were a quick 2 minute doodle done a while back that I added some color to.

I doodled the picture on the left first and had no plans to do anything else. However, I do need to do some studies that show one particular character in different moods or actions. This isn't for the portfolio or anything, but it's good practice. I wanted to make sure I could recreate the same character from a different angle. I think I duplicated her shape and features well enough. But, I need to take a look at some other artists and see how they handle hair in this medium. I'm not a big fan of how I did it here.

Goodbye to Christmas - Hello New Year!

The cookies have been baked (and consumed), the presents have been opened (and assembled), and the stockings are now empty (no matter how hopeful the little guy up top may be). And now, I have a day or two that I can do a little bit in the sketchbook before I have to think about school again.

I had the forethought to take my drawing stuff to the doctor's office yesterday as the waiting room was packed and I was able to start the above drawing. I didn't know what it was going to be - it started as a doodle. But, it turned out to be very appropriate for the time of year and my feelings about the season at the moment (funny how those things can come through when you're not actually conscious of it). Christmas was sort of a blur - here and gone - and I feel like I hardly had time to enjoy it. However, I'm ready to put it all away and try again next year. In the meantime, 2009 ought to be interesting - full of changes!

This drawing is a little different for me in that I never do such minimal eyes - little more than dots. I usually draw more detail in the face in general. I'm happy that I came up with the appropriate age - often, my young children look older than I intend them to. I think I achieved the right amount of squat pugginess for a toddler.

This blog needed a little punch of color, too!

What's new...

I've started up with the local free community college illustration course on saturday mornings. There's really not a whole lot of instruction - it's more of an "independent project/discussion" situation. We come up with our own projects that we want to work on and not everyone who signs up has an art background.

It only meets for 6 Saturdays over summer, and it's an opportunity for feedback and a social outlet. I've been watching the SCBWI calendar for my region and there's been squat for illustrators - everything is for writers. Seems I'll have to consider driving to Los Angeles.

Anyway, I've been spending time between doctor visits (my daughter got a lovely blue cast this morning) working out my idea for that class. So, again, not much has happened in the studio. The project will be a series of about 12 illustrations - not really child oriented, but more personal. It will be a different direction from what I've been doing, so I can't wait to see what comes out. It certainly won't be finished in 6 classes (but that's the nice thing about taking this "class" - no grades, no deadlines - just participate).

I think I will be using ink again. I like the ink and colored pencil combination. So, in honor of that - and since I don't have anything else to share - here's an ink sketch of a tree stump in our backyard. Then again, since the concept is quite different, perhaps I'll use something like charcoal and pastel (gasp!).

Illustration Friday: "Hoard"

I'm delighted that I finally had a chance to do an Illustration Friday illo.

This was really fun to do once I got going. I had doodled a couple different ideas, but this one won out in the end. I was able to explore the the ink and colored pencil combo which I really like.

The End

I just have a little tweaking left to do (as usual), but I finished the redraw of the "Why did the chicken cross the road?" drawing. Can you tell what's different from the old one? This is like one of those "spot the differences" game. The new drawing is above; the original is below.



Of course, there's some rendering differences since I did it all by hand (no computer). I didn't notice how "pointy" the foreground plant is until I uploaded it here (note to self: fix that).

Anyway, the most obvious differences:
- string lights throughout all of the bushes
- neon sign has more of a glow














Less than obvious differences this time around:

- added tuscan red linework to the feathers (instead of just brown)
- bolder, richer color on the coop itself



And now, it is time to move on to something else. What? I'll have to get back to you on that...

"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.

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.

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.

Going Colorful...

Today was busy, busy, busy - the last teaching day of our big, multi-subject co-op. We still have our end of year picnic in 2 weeks, but at least I can cross off one of my teaching responsibilities for the school year.

There was definitely no drawing time today, so I dusted off this old relic from about 4 years ago. This was before I seriously returned to art and illustration; an exploratory work with colored pencil (this blog's needing some color these days). The expressionistic color palette that I've mentioned is obvious here.

Anyway, now that the anatomy studies are done, I've decided to abandon working from books or from doodled inspirations at the moment and look more at the real world for a while. The bookstore where I work is located in a mall, so there's an abundance of subject matter there that I never really considered. So, now on my breaks, I just step outside of the store and draw what I see - people, clothing displays, mall foliage (is that stuff real?).

A Game to Get Things Rolling...

It's funny how when you finally have time for yourself, you still manage to fill it with a lot of "other" things. In spite of having the night off from work, it was still after 8:00 p.m. before I finally let myself go out to the drawing table. Then, I was really too tired to do much - just a smidge of sketching. Besides, my studio is in the garage - a little chilly in winter (even if I am in California with a space heater).

Anyway, today was different. I did have some morning stuff to do, but I managed to get out to the studio around 12:30, just after lunch, and spend a good 2 hours solid. I have to work tonight, so I have to figure in a little "rest" time and dinner prep.

Since time is precious and I can spend a great deal of it trying to decide what to do, I came up with sort of a game to help me get started. I figured it would serve as a "warm-up," but if I get into what I'm doing, then I'd just keep going. I simply wrote down about 25 different subjects such as farm animal, household furniture, buildings, etc. on different pieces of paper and threw them into a bowl. I did the same with several different materials such as charcoal, ink, watercolor, etc. I then chose one paper from each bowl - the subject I would warm-up with and the material I would have to use. I did it today for the first time and came up with "bear" and "colored pencil." (shown above)

I probably worked on it for about 30 minutes before I moved on, but it turned out to be a fun way to get the creativity flowing. I'm not sure that the bear's foreshortened leg is very accurate, but I didn't have a bear handy. When I got tired of working on it, I switched over to a project that had been a doodle, but I'm redoing it as a completed picture. I'll share that in a future post.

McCarty - A Recent Discovery

I’ve just discovered an illustrator whose work I really admire. Well, actually I have seen a couple of his books and made note of the covers many times, but I’d never really looked very closely at them. However tonight, it was painfully slow at work, so I took the opportunity to study some of the children’s books we have in the store.

The artist is Peter McCarty. He’s able to achieve an effect that I have played with since my college days – graphite and colored pencil used together (or at least that's what it appears to be). It gives the appearance of a color-tinted black and white picture that I really like.

My approach has been to do a drawing fully shaded in pencil and then color over it with colored pencil. This resulted in a smearing of the under-drawing that I didn’t like, giving some of the colors a “dirty” appearance. It looks as though he mainly uses hatching and cross-hatching rather than smooth, seamless shading like I do. Another difference between our approaches is that his illustrations have a hazy, all-over softness about them while mine employ more of a hard edge.

I’ve included a couple images of mine where I’ve used colored pencil over pencil – the one on the left was from about 17 years ago in college; the one on the right was done just recently in my sketchbook - both began as doodles.



I was a little discouraged by one thing – I once thought the approach of working with colored pencil over pencil was unique since I hadn’t seen it anywhere. But, I guess like most everything, it’s “been done” in some way by someone. On the other hand, it’s encouraging to see another artist working successfully with pencil (he’s a Caldecott winner)