Graphite and Coloured Pencil on Drafting Film (Polydraw)

I've been experimenting with doing a graphite drawing on one side of drafting film and then turning it over and working with coloured pencils on the reverse side.

This is the start of the graphite drawing. I used harder pencils 4H, 2H and just added a little B in the very darkest areas because the softer ones would smudge on the polyester surface.
I drew in the cat's eye and some of the surrounding fur making sure not to smudge the graphite.
Once I'd done a couple of inches of I turned the drafting film over and started working in coloured pencils.

You can see the graphite showing through the area not yet worked in coloured pencil. The graphite acts as a grisaille and has really increased the contrast of the piece.
Because the graphite is on the other side of the drafting film it doesn't smudge and muddy the colours.
One thing I need to keep in mind for next time is that I need to draw the graphite image in reverse so that when I turn the drafting film over I'm working the right way.
The final image is replacing the white backing board with a black one, a mid tone will work better but I can't find one at the moment.

Little Owl in Mixed Media

'Little Owl'

Mixed media on drafting film

As a complete change from the cats I've started working on one of my older paintings that I've ignored for a considerable time.
I'm using coloured pencil and acrylic on drafting film.
I see a little owl most evenings when I take Clinton a walk down the lane, unfortunately it usually sees me first and hides in the middle of the bush it likes to sit next to.
The curlews are also back, I usually see between 2 and 4 walking about searching the ground or flying over the fields. I love the haunting cry of the curlew especially when you get several all crying at once.

Cat on Drafting Film

'In Deep'

Acrylic and Coloured Pencil on drafting film, approx 7.75 x 6 inches

The new tiger is making slow progress because I'm having trouble with my shoulder. This makes standing at my easel for long periods with my arm raised rather painful.
So I revisited drafting film and used coloured pencil and acrylic. I haven't used drafting film for a while and found the process enjoyable.
But tomorrow I need to get back to the tiger.

Adapting Technique- Working on Drafting Film

I have been asked several times how I work on drafting film, and is it different to working on paper/board. So I thought it might be useful to do a blog post on the subject.

This Cheetah is approximately 10 x 8 inches, coloured pencil and acrylic on drafting film.

Right from the first marks I work differently on drafting film because it doesn't take many layers. This makes colour selection much more important than when I work on paper. Because I work in very light layers on paper I can correct colours as I go. On drafting film every layer has to count.
I also work on both the front and the back of drafting film, punching up highlights, and darkening lowlights. This gives extra scope for modifying the final colour.
My strokes are also different in some ways as I tend to work quickly establishing a base and then add the detail in acrylic. You can see the acrylic strokes on the cheetah, particularly round the eye. On paper all the layers are worked in small strokes to allow for the optical mixing of the colours.
On this image the background is all coloured pencil applied to both the back and the front. I have not applied solvent just layered the pencil with a very heavy hand, in real life there is a subtle change from black to brown. I will try to get a more accurate scan to show the true colours.
Sometimes I airbrush acrylic if I want either a more subtle or detailed background.

2010 Christmas Card

I promised one of the Cat Rescue Charities that I would create an image for them to use on one of their 2010 Christmas Cards.

This is the image I'm working on. It's coloured pencil and acrylic on drafting film, approximately 9 x 6.

I have quite a lot to do in the left corner to tie everything together.

We had a great day at Crufts last week with Roxie being placed third in her class.

Orange Cat Finished

'Who Me'

To bid click here

I finished the orange cat and like him much better on drafting film.

Dogs rather than cats tomorrow, it's Working and Pastoral Group day at Crufts. I'm showing Roxie so it's another very early start.
Hopefully I'll get some nice photographs for future paintings of dogs.

Changing Direction

As I begin the transition from a career I've had for almost 30 years to being at home and able to pursue my art full time (or as full time as the Collies allow) I've found myself disorientated.

It was actually my close friend Katherine (Making a Mark) that came up with 'disorientated' to describe my feelings. I can best describe it as skipping from one thing to another until I get 'brain freeze' as my son would say.

Now that something I've wanted for a long time is in sight I suddenly have mixed feelings about it. Over the last month or two I've spent a lot of time looking back over the years I've spent at work, thinking about decisions I made, thinking about 'what if', wondering if I'm now making the right choice. Going from a fairly successful career with a monthly salary to staying at home and creating art is suddenly scary.

Deep down this is what I want and I know I'm moving on to a path long desired, but it's still not an easy transition.

So the point of telling you this is that my feelings have affected my artwork recently. Other than one or two small pieces I haven't been really happy with anything I've created over the last few weeks.

The latest casualty is the ginger cat I started in watercolour, when I had a good look at him he was far to orange so I started again, this time coloured pencil on drafting film. In the daylight he is a far better colour so for the moment I'm happy with him.

With several deadlines fast approaching I'd better get my act together and actually finish something.

Tomorrow as they say is another day, actually it's British Collie Club Championship Show and I'm showing my crazy puppy as well as Roxie, so that will be a totally different challenge. If I can coax Cody to keep all 4 feet on the ground for five minutes I will have had a successful day.

Dogs in Snow and a Drafting Film Cat

I've just arrived home from a very long round trip to collect my youngest son from his University in London. There was an accident on the M1 so the journey home took around 6 hours.

It gave me plenty of time to think about where I want to go with my art in 2010, more about that later.

Yesterday the dogs enjoyed playing in the snow, Cody my mad puppy and Rio absolutely loved it.

I started an experiment on drafting film. I'm working on both the front and the back with coloured pencil and acrylic.

The background is airbrushed acrylic worked completely on the back so that I can now move onto the front to get the effect I'm looking for. I thought you might like to see the before, of course the after might be a disaster.

The piece is around 10 x 8.

Maine Coon Cat on Drafting Film

I decided to do something a bit bigger than ACEO size and go back to drafting film.
This will be approx 10 x 8, coloured pencil and acrylic.
I've been invited to have a stand at the Shropshire Cat Club show at Bingley Hall Stafford in February so I'm going to try to draw some different breeds.

Little Owl Continued

I've been asked a lot of questions about how I combine acrylic and coloured pencil on drafting film. All will be revealed, but it will have to be later I'm off to catch a train now as I'm not in a driving into city centre mood.

Little Owl on Drafting Film

A different subject and a surface I haven't used for a long time, drafting film. I'm working mainly in coloured pencil with touches of acrylic.
This is just part of the whole image, it will be around 20 x 16 when finished and include the whole of the owl.

A Tiger ACEO

I'm trying to maintain productivity but not neglect my marketing. Today I've selected the four images I hope to submit to the 2008 SOFA exhibition later in the year and sorted out my Crufts entry so I'm feeling slightly pleased with myself.

I've also created another ACEO, a tiger but this time on drafting film.

SOLD

The rain is continuing, leading to web foot syndrome among the dogs again, even the squirrels need waders to get to the nuts. The circular stones which form a path across my garden have been transformed into miniature bird baths and the pond has overflowed into the surrounding borders. I was reminded of the Amazon when I noticed my fish could now swim among the plants, I expect if it rains for much longer they'll probably be able to make it to the Amazon.

My friend recently tried to contact me on my mobile, which was as usual switched off. If I leave it on then I forget about it, and it either rings in the middle of important meetings or the battery runs down in the middle of the night. I'm not sure why batteries always expire in the middle of the night, I think they must work to the same timetable as in whelp bitches!. Anyway Clinton is terrified of the bleeping noise expiring batteries make, as soon as the first bleep happens he comes to me to be saved. This involves him jumping on the bed and wrapping himself round my head. Even when I stagger out of bed, find the phone and turn it off, the damage is done for that night. He insists that if he doesn't remain wrapped round my head, something on the floor will get him and he wont make it through the night. After about half an hour of large, heavy, very hairy male Collie round my nose I wonder if I will make it till morning, so that is why my mobile is never turned on.

Art Materials - Part 1

I have found that people are curious about the supports I use for my work, in particular Drafting Film and Pastelbord. So I have decided to include a page on my website giving more information on the materials I use, but I thought I'd also do a blog post.

Although I have tried out many supports over the past few years I return to the same favourites:-

Arches Hot Press Watercolour paper or Mellotex for graphite

Polydraw Drafting Film for coloured pencil, or mixed media including acrylic

Ampersand Pastelbord for coloured pencil including Neocolor ll

Drafting Film, I use Polydraw double matt, 75 micron sheets. Polydraw is by West and is available as sheets or in rolls. It is described as a polyester drafting film with a high degree of dimensional stability.

I find its exceptionally smooth surface ideal for the detail I want to be able to produce. A sharp pencil point lasts for a long time on this surface. I can also easily airbrush acrylic backgrounds to produce a wonderful soft focus effect.

The one thing that you can't do on this surface is use a lot of layering, I've found 3 or 4 layers is about as many as I can manage.

If you make a mistake on Polydraw it is easy to correct, simply dampen the area and wipe off. I have even removed an airbrushed background, although that wasn't quite as easy.

I believe that an equivalent to Polydraw in the US and Canada is Mylar, and I know many artists use Mylar to great effect.

Here are a couple of examples of my work on drafting film. I have airbrushed all the background in the Rough Collie painting, in real life you can see how this pushes the subject forward.

In the Norwegian Forest Cat painting I have done the background entirely in coloured pencil, again a subtle effect but much more time consuming.

To be continued.....................

Demonstrating for the UK Coloured Pencil Society

I spent Thursday and Friday at the Art Materials Live Exhibition held at the NEC in Birmingham.

I was demonstrating for the UK Coloured Pencil Society (UKCPS) and it was great fun. I talked myself hoarse early on the first day, and had to revive myself with large amounts of liquid refreshment, strictly non alcoholic as I was driving. The stand had several artists demonstrating, all very talented and quite diverse in approach, so people got a good idea of just what can be done with the coloured pencil.

I had two half finished pieces there, Shred the ginger cat on ampersand pastelbord, and one on drafting film. People were amazed at the finish you could get on the pastelbord and I got some really wonderful comments, if any of you read this, thank you for making my day.

I got so many questions on how to draw eyes and how to work on drafting film that on the second day I started a new cat. I started with the eye and showed people how to work by building up the layers, and then adding the final highlight to get the glassy appearance. I also did a little of the surrounding fur. I met several architects and graphic designers who found watching me work brought back happy(ish) memories of using drafting film.

The drafting film I use is Polydraw double matt, 75 microns in weight.

Here's what I drew plus a bit more that I added yesterday.

I also had my photograph taken with my work several times, even by one of the other exhibitors.

I really enjoyed my two days, I met up with some old friends, made some new ones and saw some stunning work.

The exhibition finishes today but I can highly recommend a visit next year to stock up on your materials and see some wonderful work. I know that as long as they want me, i will be back on the UKCPS stand.

Several people asked me about workshops or if I would do a DVD on drawing animals in coloured pencil, I will look into that after Christmas.