Saturday, March 12, 2011

Temptation


Temptation
37cm x 37cm
Coloured pencils and Panpastels on wood
Some artworks prove to be lots of fun and some end up being more of a chore. For some reason this artwork ended up being the latter and yet I have had the image in my head for weeks and have been so looking forward to bringing it to life. It could have something to do with the fact that it has taken two weeks to do, (I do get sick of artworks if they take too long) with interuptions from naughty computers playing up and taking three days to fix, followed by a battle with a head cold. I am loving working on the wood, but still struggle to achieve the absolute realism that I am after. I suspect it is all about the preparation of the surface - too much tooth, and the pencil breaks up and has a broken look, too little tooth and the pencil doesn't adhere, so obviously this is something that still needs to be fine tuned. The pan pastels were used in the background only to give the transparent look of the runner.

16 comments:

Anonymous said...

Gosh Karen, this is so realistic and all in CPs...I love the title. Know what you mean about taking too long, I dont like that myself want to get done and move on to the next piece....you have outdone yourself with this one though !

Unknown said...

Thank you Vic - just the encouragement I needed. It is so hard to appraise your own artwork and I'm so happy you like it!!! :)

Mona Diane Conner said...

Karen, this is another amazing piece, even for 2 weeks time! Perhaps the fine-tuning is only obvious to you, (I get that way about my paintings too!) but to me it looks wonderful.

Autumn Leaves said...

It sure was worth clicking on the image to see even better! The runner is exquisite, as is the china. The tarts and cookies leave my mouth watering. I love the little bubbles in the coffee (or is it tea) around the edges; very realistic indeed. As always, a gorgeous work here, Karen.

Unknown said...

Thank you so much Mona and Sherry for your very kind words - they are always appreciated!!! :)

Unknown said...

I agree with everyone. It's an amazing piece and I can see the amount of work in it but well worth it Karen.

Superb job.

Unknown said...

Thank you so much Dors xx

Unknown said...

I think youve done a great job Karen, everything looks very life-like your attention to detail is always impressive

Tracy Hall said...

Its just beautiful Karen, I would have had no idea you were struggling with it - it doesn't show! Love the title and the food looks so real it makes you want to reach right in too!

Unknown said...

Thank you so much Sam and Tracy - your support and wonderful feedback are always appreciated!!! :)

Artoholic said...

Not fair Karen! It's afternoon teatime over here! But it has prompted me to put the kettle on for a cup of Earl Grey.

This is just fabulous - am loving those tea bubbles. Did you work from a photo or was it a great excuse for real pastries and a cuppa sitting in front of you for a fortnight?

Two weeks work - wow! You must have been pleased when it was finally time for your signature! I am so looking forward to seeing the entire breadboard "Collection", it's going to be awesome!

Unknown said...

Ha Ha Cindy - no I definitely worked from a photo - there is no way those goodies would have lasted two weeks in our house! I was thinking of you and thought you must be flat out with all your work - I haven't seen a post come through in a while :)

Wendy Mould AFCA said...

Karen the picture looks great. I think that this picture got to you because you had to look at all those tempting sweets for so many days and you couldn't eat them!!

Julia Ruffles | wildlife artist said...

GORGEOUS picture, I'm so pleased to have found your fantastic blog and very much look forward to viewing more of your creations :) what an incredible talent, I love it, Jules

Unknown said...

Thank you for stopping by Julia and I feel exactly the same about your artwork - truly inspirational!!! It is hard to believe those dogs have been done with watercolours - fantastic work!!! :)

Unknown said...

Wendy - I'm so sorry - for some reason your comment sat in spam all this time and I only just noticed it. You could be right about those sweets - I am eternally on a diet!!! :)