Float Trip

"Float Trip"

colored pencil

10" x 15"

Here's the drawing that I mentioned in my March 2nd post. It's finally finished and I'm glad. This started out fun enough, but I have to admit that I got a little stir crazy working on the background of ripples, reflections, and distortions. I think that on my next "typical" still life I'll enjoy the boredom of drawing the flat toned background that I usually have.

I've been invited to participate in the Winthorp Rockefeller Institute's "Arts in the Air: Bountiful Arkansas" art show. The theme of this year's exhibit is "Garden and Agricultural Art". The show is in July. I've got to get busy - I'll need five drawings/paintings by then featuring scrumptious Arkansas produce. I'm thinking strawberries and cantaloupe right now...

Some Itsy-Bitsy Stuff

"Ten Little Piggies"

colored pencil

1 1/4" x 2"

I recently made the acquantance of Lynn Ponto-Peterson, a great wildlife and miniature artist. She encouraged me to try my hand at some miniature work. Above is a colored pencil drawing that I did of my daughter's toes. Besides just being small in size, a miniature painting or drawing is usually required to be at least 1/6 scale of the object being portrayed. I had first done "Ten Little Piggies" in oil as an ACEO (2 1/5" x 3 1/2"). That seemed small, but not small enough to reduce my daughter's petite toes down to 1/6 scale, so I did this smaller version in colored pencil.

Below is my attempt at a miniature in oil. I had used this same reference photo of mine for a large colored pencil drawing (20" x 28") about a year and a half ago. (The colored pencil version can be seen on my website.) I really liked how the small version in oil turned out. I'm planning on getting a few more of these done soon and try my luck at a miniature show. I'll get back with you on how that turns out.

"Trimmed in Red"
oil on panel
3" x 4"

Finally Spring

"Happiness"

colored pencil

9" x 12"

I got sidetracked from the colored pencil drawing that I was working on. Daffodils finally began blooming in my yard two weeks ago. I set up this little still life, including a glass "Bluebird of Happiness" that I purchased last year from Terra Studios. (Terra Studios has been making these little birds since 1975! http://www.terrastudios.com/ ) I usually don't have so many different colors going on in one still life, but I loved how the little striped kitchen towel repeats all of the colors from the bird, flowers, and nectarines.

Newest Work

"Red Pears at Play"
colored pencil
16" x 20"

Here's my newest large colored pencil drawing. I've been doing a lot of painting in the last two months and so slowed down some on the drawing. I kind of drug my feet getting this one finished up - I think that I was intimidated by that red striped cloth although it turned out not to be too bad. I came up with the name "Red Pears at Play" after my oldest daughter stuck her head in the studio door one night and exclaimed - "Oh, it looks like the pears are having so much fun."

I'm working on a very different sort of colored pencil drawing right now. It's a scene of two leaves floating downstream. It's been a challenge - all of the abstracted ripples and reflections. I can only work for about an hour at a time on it and then I start feeling like I need a straight jacket. I hope to finish it later this week and will post when its done. Guess that makes this a teaser post!