Experimenting with mixed media. I should be in my element here as I’ve never been afraid to mix anything with anything else – gouache and pencil and ink and acrylic and bits of collage and sometimes a drag or two of oil pastel. I’m guessing some sort of discipline about choice might be more important in this task though. I’ve begun by applying a coarse layer of acrylic gesso on a sheet of A2 cartridge because I like the texture it provides and the way it holds all sorts of media, although I haven’t tried with inks or pencil yet. … Continue reading Part 2, Project 3, exercise 3

Replicated from a previous post in which my ability to keep track of my parts, projects, and exercises was exposed to be lacking. After some tutor feedback encouraging experimentation (also ‘try not to make a picture’ but let’s park that one for now!), this is what throwing acrylic gesso-prepped support [<– new word for my artist’s lexicon], pastels, oil pastels, and inks looks like in a first draft [is there a word for that?]. The white strokes down the centre are new gesso as I’d messed up (in my view) the transition between the first object and the second. When … Continue reading Part 2, Project 3, Exercise 3

Love a bit of consistency! [Edit: turns out this is Project 3, not 2] This exercise is quite the opposite of the previous one in which line was paramount; this is about building up shade and tone using the flat edges of pastels and blending without too much regard for detail. This first attempt – on four pieces of A4 black sugar paper taped together at the back – uses oil pastels and also charcoals to get the feel of broad sweeps again after all that tickling the paper with pencils. Both picked up their own textures from the paper … Continue reading Part 2, Project 3, Exercise 2

I’m planning on eating this soon so today was the day for another go at Part 2, Project 2, Exercise 1 – still life using line. I had a bit of an epiphany in the last few days, the whole deal coming over me fully articulated and with supporting evidence from artists I could refer to and name. Sadly it was last thing at night and I’ve forgotten most of it but the ripples are there and I guess it will come back. In my experience, once those tremors get started, there’s no stopping them. So I tackled the still … Continue reading Carrots

Prismacolour and Derwent Inktense. Trial run on mauve sugar paper because why make it easy! Above is the prismacolour which I can’t quite bring myself to spell without a ‘u’ and how petty is that! I wasn’t too impressed with these at the start but actually the colours stand out pretty well, given the fibrous nature of the paper. I like the way the white really does come up bright and sharp. Below, with the other bird looming above like a predator, is the Derwent Inktense which, admittedly, is a medium that benefits from adding water. Not on this paper … Continue reading New pencils

This is a poignant drawing and I may have deviated from the brief somewhat. My neighbour’s husband died on Wednesday after being taken ill on New Year’s Eve. We’re a small community and a tight little neighbourhood so everyone rallied round to look after dogs and domestic needs while, let’s call her Wendy, sat at her husband’s bedside in the hospital. Now she’s home and her family is with her, we’re on standby to be the shoulders she’ll need after they’ve all gone. Tonight, I took a little LED candle and put it on her doorstep with a note. This … Continue reading Part 2, project 3, exercise 1

Going tiny today; two ceramic birds that fell off a wind chime in the garden, a shell, a pencil, and an eraser on a black paper background. The sketch took about 10 minutes because I’m trying to be quick and loose (careless? casual? nonchalant?). 9B pencil and my trusty Derwent battery operated eraser with a new bit in its teeth. Conte crayon with objects picked out using the eraser. Similar quality to those first photos of Ultima Thule! The next page is that (totally self-inflicted) mauve. And the still life has been rearranged; cheers Flora. I set out to pinch … Continue reading Part 2, Project 1, Composition 3