Thursday, June 30, 2011

Hare - Finished

I added a little background to my hare which puts it in a setting without distracting the viewer, in my opinion anyway.
I added the touch of blue, white and ochre using pan pastels and was pleased how well they worked to give a hint of colour on a smooth paper. The foliage is painted in watercolour, so all in all this is a real mixed media piece.
I'll let it sit a couple of days before deciding if I need to tweak.

Monday, June 27, 2011

Hare - Part 4

The hare itself is almost complete I'm now working on the background. I'm just going to add a few bits of grass and lightly tone the background with pan pastels so that it becomes more of a complete picture rather than a study.

Wednesday, June 22, 2011

Brown Hare - Part 3

I've been updating my website so progress on the hare has been slow.
I'm hoping that I can finish it tomorrow.

Sunday, June 19, 2011

Brown Hare - Part 2

Yesterday I picked some of the orange poppies I have flowering in my garden. I'm considering adding one or two in the background using very soft watercolour washes as they are more or less the same colour as the hare's eyes.
It's a good job I picked them yesterday as there is heavy rain here in Yorkshire this morning and most of the petals are now ruined.

Friday, June 17, 2011

Brown Hare in Mixed Media

I want to take a break from drawing cats, I feel that I need to concentrate on different subjects for a while. I have more or less completed the images for this years Society of Feline Artists exhibition so I can spare the time away from the felines.
I want to add to my portfolio of british wildlife so I'm starting with this hare.
I'm using coloured pencil and watercolour on a Strathmore paper. The image size is about 10 x 8 inches.
The left ear is not yet completed as I need to really concentrate on the way the fur grows.

Tuesday, June 14, 2011

Almost finished, just a few tweaks needed.
I have lost a little around the edges by adjusting to lose the background tone in photoshop, I'll post a corrected image tomorrow.

Monday, June 13, 2011

Patchings Art Exhibition 2011

Anyone who saw me at Patchings will recognise the cat. I am almost finished and I will post the finished drawing on here within the next couple of days, honestly.

I had a good time at Patchings apart from the horrible weather on the last day. One of the best parts is the socialising, I had a laugh with several artists, some old friends, some new. In particular Darren, Vivienne, Cheryl, Paul and Bob. You are all fantastic artists and great people, and I hope our paths cross again.

Thank you to all the people who bought my work and to those who stopped to say hello, I enjoyed meeting all of you. I hope I was able to help some of you move forward with your drawing.
I had to laugh at some of the comments we got and can assure you that concentrating on drawing or painting does not affect your hearing. Most of the artists I spoke to could relate a funny comment each day.
My most memorable comment was from an individual who walked up to me and asked why I draw cats, because they are nasty, dirty animals that destroy gardens.
Without giving me time to reply they sighed deeply and walked away.

I was very impressed with how Pan Pastels worked on my hot pressed watercolour paper and I will be doing a little demonstration on my blog later this week.
I also couldn't resist splashing out on yet more supplies that I probably didn't really need but couldn't resist.

Tuesday, June 07, 2011

Coloured Pencil Techniques Number 2

Just in time for Patchings I have completed my second coloured pencil step-by-step. This time it's Lenny the tri colour Rough Collie dog.
It is exactly the same format as the guide to drawing Poppy.
The booklet consists of 16 A5 pages (approx 5.75 x 8.25 inches) printed on a heavy bright white printer paper.
For the colours used I have included a pencil comparison chart for Polychromos and Prismacolor pencils. I have not always found an exact colour match but have suggested a similar colour.
Anyone who purchases the guide can email me for help if they get stuck.

You can purchase direct from me by clicking the link in the sidebar.

If youy are planning on visiting Patchings Art Exhibition please come and say hello.

Sunday, June 05, 2011

Lenny Part 3

I saw a Roe Deer on my early morning walk. Much to the dogs dismay I hid behind the hedge until it came close enough for me to take some nice photographs.
He will be making an appearance in a drawing very soon.

Friday, June 03, 2011

Thursday, June 02, 2011

Lenny the Rough Collie Step-by-Step

I'm working on my second tutorial, this one is a step-by-step drawing Lenny a beautiful tri colour Rough Collie.
Hopefully it will be finished and printed in time for Patchings exhibition next week.