Sketches for 8/25 and 8/26

NO Cats Allowed


Act of Faith


I did a few pen and ink sketches these days...I haven't had time to add color yet...those will be posted probably later this week.

Illustration for August 24

New kitty illustration. I'm going to do more illustrative style work for awhile. They are fun and quick to do, which fits in perfectly with my schedule.

Two New Drawings

Guess What?



I couldn't resist messing around with the supplies tonight since I had the time. The following pieces were created using watercolors, soft pastel pencils, and micron ink on watercolor paper.


Fawn


I still need quite a bit of work with the different mediums...oh well, more practice could never hurt.

Man

I did this drawing sometime ago on a website called www.ratemydrawings.com. I go there, mostly when I get bored or when I want to have some fun with my wacom. I did this drawing of a man to try out the tools when I was first starting out.

The Past Few Days

I haven't been able to update the past few days. School just began for my little people and with the craziness of getting supplies (gotta love Wal-Mart), meeting the teachers, and going to work on top of all of this has taken a lot of my time. I also did some traveling back and forth to my hometown (2 hours one way) and to North Carolina tending to family. I haven't had the opportunity to draw these past few days. Once the weekend comes I'm going to make up for it for sure. My first project, more than likely, will be one for a friend of mine. She wanted me to draw a picture of her two kids. I'll keep updates on the blog about it in the coming weeks. She told me she wanted it by Thanksgiving...I'll have it long before then. Well it's goodbye until Saturday :-).

Drawings for the day--August 13 - 14

I didn't get the opportunity to post yesterday. Things got a little hectic and this piece took a little longer than originally anticipated. I rather like how it turned out. It was completed in ballpoint ink, micron ink and watercolor and I call it, "A New Friend."



My drawing for today is back to my traditional kitties and butterfly friends. This was completed in graphite and watercolor on Arches 140 lb watercolor paper and I call it, "Face Off."

Ebay Listings Week of August 11-15

I have 3 new auctions up on ebay now. They consist of the drawings for the day I've been listing the past few posts.

A Cool Place
I wonder
study in ink "Kitty and Yarn"

I'm still contemplating what I'm going to do for tomorrow...definitely something new. One of the artists on one of the ebay groups (ACEO YBA-Year's Best Awards) had a beautiful drawing of a hummingbird posted. It reminded me of the hummingbird that comes almost every morning like clockwork to my job's door window and pecks incessantly at the bright red No Soliciting sign. The poor thing is terribly confused obviously and he's no bigger than a minute. I suppose his nest is somewhere nearby...I kind of figured after a week he would have figured it out but alas he was there this morning too lol.

Drawing for the Day August 12

This is a study in ink and watercolor of a kitty with a ball of yarn. It didn't take me long to complete and I'm still not sure if this is a style I can get into. Well practice makes perfect. My days are pretty hectic (I'm an accountant....yeah I know) so my lunch breaks are mostly for drawing than they are for eating since I tend to eat at my desk throughout the day anyway. Almost everyone in my office either is a lover of cats or own cats so I am quite popular. My boss however, has the distinguished title of "The Cat Whisperer," lol. She has four cats and it seems like she adopts some temporarily every other week from Project Pet. I showed her this drawing and she "adored it," (her words). I am not fortunate enough to have my own kitties, however I have several neighbors who own a whole bunch (11 my last count) so I have plenty of kitties to love and draw. When my youngest (2) gets a little bit older, or at least out of the "squeeze everything smaller than me to death" phase I'll get a kitty.

Drawing for the day "I Wonder" Cat ACEO

In the spirit of trying something new, I created this piece entitled, "I Wonder." It is one of my beloved tabby cats in ballpoint ink, micron ink, and watercolor.



A bit different for me however I like how it came out. This will be one of my auctions for this week once the other ones end. Today is the last day of my auctions. I'm keeping my fingers crossed. I'm going to try some different critters in the meantime, maybe a deer...something to that effect. I took advantage of the fact I had a little bit of time this weekend...my weekdays are pretty hectic however I will make sure I do a drawing of some sort (even if it is a sketch) each day.

Drawing for August 10

I have completed the raptor! I wanted to try so many new and different things that I ended up doing all of them. I used pencil, ballpoint ink, micron ink, colored pencil, and watercolor to create this piece.



It was originally supposed to be just ballpoint ink but I thought I'd experiment a little. Now that it is complete I wish I had taken the approach I had taken with the wing over the entire piece since the wing is my favorite part. I am rather pleased with the result. I have so many art supplies it really doesn't make any since that I only use the pencils. I'm going to experiment making this raptor in oils in the coming weeks too.

Drawing a day, contest entry, August 9

I am starting on a piece I intend to enter in the YBA Call to Art Contest for August. The theme is Wildlife and I am going to draw a golden raptor for my entry. Rather than my usual pencil (I've beaten that horse), I am going to try ink. I have already had a successful run at ink drawing previously:



This was done in black and blue ballpoint pen ink on watercolor paper. Ink is cleaner than graphite and I loved the effect...it just takes a little bit longer to do because of the inability to correct mistakes with this medium. I may try pen and ink with nibs...Even more time consuming but I love the effect. Perhaps colored pencil...so many possibilities. Here is what I have so far (also doubles as my drawing for today):



I am still considering pencil. This is a previous eagle ACEO I have completed and sold back in 2006:



My usual method of layering combined with crosshatching helped to create this piece in graphite. I am still strongly geared towards graphite...


I've always been asked why do I choose watercolor paper rather than bristol or more traditional paper used for pencil drawing. The answer is simply that watercolor paper is more conducive to how I choose to draw. I don't blend or smear with my fingers, paper towels, or tortillions. I vary the values based on the pressure used to create the different tones. Bristol board is cleaner for graphite in terms of the mark however the smooth texture just takes something away for me. I use it for colored pencil work. I love that the process shows more with the watercolor paper. The texture allows for an animated type feel to the work, in my opinion. So that's that.

Ebay listings week of August 4 - 8

I have three new ebay auctions up right now.  There are two days left and hopefully they will do well.  

The Cat Days of Summer



Chester and Friends



Kitty and Friend

I am going to try something new in the next few weeks. I have realism pretty much down. I"m going to try perhaps full body kitties and line drawings. I will try doing a drawing a day. This is my drawing for August 8th.