A Couple of Commissions

Christina

2.5x3.5 inches

Coloured pencil on drafting film

Cheyanne

4x6 inches

Graphite pencil on drafting film

This little portrait of Cheyanne having a big yawn was done a few weeks ago, but I needed to wait until the parents had given approval before posting it. The portrait of Christina is a 21st birthday present for my son's girlfriend's sister, that I wanted to complete before going on holidays. Now the pencils are going away for a couple of weeks :))

ACEO - Sunkissed

Sunkissed

2.5 x 3.5 inches

Graphite and coloured pencil on drafting film.

One of the things I admire most in other artists is a wonderful imagination and the ability to create beautiful artworks without relying heavily on reference photos. This is an area, I feel I need a lot of development, particularly for illustration work. The Flower Folk and this ACEO are some of my early efforts which I hope will vastly improve over time. Whilst I still used some reference photos in these cases, I tried to avoid referring to photos too much. Commissions often require an artist to do a very close copy of one or several reference photos, and this is an area I find relatively easy. I believe to be truly artistic, it is necessary to extend beyond this, and whilst I'm not truly happy with any of my attempts over the last couple of weeks, I'm hoping with practice, to eventually produce work that is both creative and also to a standard I am happy with.

Latest commission - Raela and Dom

Raela and Dom

8x10 inches

Graphite, black pencil, Cretacolor negro and pan pastels on drafting film

One of the challenges I find working with graphite is achieving strong contrasts. I know a lot of artists combine charcoal and graphite very effectively in their artworks, but I find pure charcoal and even charcoal blends don't go well on the drafting film. I picked up a bundle of darker coloured drawing pencils from the artshop to have a bit of a play. Most must have contained predominantly charcoal, and basically scratched at the surface of the drafting film, but one - the Cretacolor Negro (we must have old stock, because I read the name has since been changed to Nero) works well on the drafting film. Apparently, it is charcoal based, but oils have been added making it much smoother than regular charcoal based pencils. I do use pure black pencils in my portraits sometimes, but then it can be a challenge blending the black with the graphite for a natural transition. In this portrait, Dom's hair was done entirely with the Cretacolor Negro, and you can blend it slightly with the tortillon as well. This pencil gives a softer black than a black pencil, which I was really happy with. The decoration in Raela's hair had no definition in the reference photo and was actually quite hard to pick out from the background, and for this I used a Faber Castell black pencil, followed by black Pan pastel for a smoother result. Always learning!!!!

Miniature Commission - The Brothers

The Brothers

2.5 x 3.5 inches

Graphite and black pencil on drafting film

This was one of my more challenging commissions. Not only was it small at 2.5 x 3.5 inches but because the upper bodies were to be included too, it meant the faces had to be very small. This is fine, if you are working on a piece such as A Life Well Spent, where it isn't a commission, and so there is no pressure to create a true likeness. In this size commission, you can't afford to be out be even a fraction of an inch, so I feel like I'm going to bed a little cross eyed tonight. (I still love working tiny though, and always love a challenge!!!!)

Miniature Art - A Life Well Spent

A Life Well Spent

7cm x 9cm

Graphite on drafting film

This wonderful artist can be found on any given day painting and drawing away in a cave at The Rocks in the heart of Sydney. I was so inspired when I saw him huddled over his easle, but still enjoying what he does, and it was with his blessings that I took the reference photos. I can't tell you how many times I have started and restarted this piece in a range of mediums and sizes, (this was the piece I attempted to do the silverpoint in) and each time for various reasons it got put away and never finished. After meeting with some of the members of ASMA (Australian Society of Miniature Art) last week, I promised that I would do a piece using graphite on drafting film and do a step by step tutorial for our newsletter. I started well a few days ago, and did a couple of progress scans, but then today I got so engrossed in watching the Opening for the Winter Olympics and working on this piece that I forgot to do any more progress scans LOL. I'll have to do another piece for the tutorial!!!! What a wonderful Opening Ceremony it was too - congratulations to Cananda!!!!

Calling all Miniature Artists

Zoe

8x10 inch

Graphite and coloured pencil on drafting film

After a break of a couple of weeks, I felt refreshed and ready for my latest commission - Zoe.
I met with some of the members of ASMA (Australian Society of Miniature Art), and this provided me with lots of motivation to get back to miniature work. I started a piece in silverpoint late last year, after being inspired my Barbara Freeman's gorgeous silverpoint work, and have come to the sad conclusion that I don't have half of Barbara's patience, because the silverpoint can be quite slow going, even though the end result is worth it. So I have restarted the piece in graphite on drafting film and hopefully can make some headway this week.

On the subject of Miniatures, if anyone is a member of RedBubble, I am trying to create a group for Miniature Artwork (fine art) - there is currently no such group, only a group for ACEO's. I'm just working on finding a co-host and will then let you know when the group has been approved. RedBubble is such a lovely, interactive site, and there are very few Miniature Artists represented there, which I am keen to change. Come on all you Miniature Artists - I need you!!!!

It is very easy to set up membership with them, you can sell prints of your artwork direct from the site (no need to do anything but upload your artwork), and you will come across the most talented and inspiring artists, writers and photographers. There is no cost. The key is to join as many groups as you can, place your artwork in these groups, and this will maximise your exposure. I look forward to seeing you all on there very soon - please!?!

The Process of Creating Burton

This gives you a bit of an idea of the process of drawing Burton :)