February Showcase - Colored Pencil Artwork
I'm always so thrilled by the talent we come across in the colored pencil community. Two artists featured in the February 2017 issue of COLOR Magazine Showcase were kind enough to share a little bit more about the pieces we published this month. Enjoy reading! - Ann
Gone Fishin'
by Vickie Lawrence
12" x 18"
Own photo reference
Still life is a relatively new subject for me and lately I find myself in a sentimental frame of mind. I inherited this rod and knew it would be a drawing one day! But how to incorporate it into a still life? I was browsing at a flea market and found these worn, beat up, rusty lures and thought of the rod and the art possibilities!
I used a piece of Kraft Brown Stonehenge paper and Prismacolor pencils. Working the random bits, pieces and crumbs of cork was liberating! It didn't have to be precise, and the paper color did most of the work.
My favorite part of this piece are the eyes on the right lure. One eye is deliberately higher than the other and lends it a comical air! Originally the rod was standing on an old book but I changed it out for a barn board, with more lovely texture!
I learned a lot from this drawing. I use photos because they are convenient, and the light never changes. But in this case, I was able to pick up the pieces for closer inspection and was surprised at how much detail and color my camera was missing, compared to the actual object!
About Vickie:
Vickie is a self taught artist who's career started in 1986 with graphite drawings. She discovered colored pencils in 1994 and it's been her favorite medium ever since. Vickie's subject material includes still life, animals, landscape and florals. She has won awards for her work and exhibits it internationally.
See more from Vickie on her facebook page or by visiting http://www.vickielawrence.ca.
Rock Smorgasbord
by Richard Chester Klekociuk
12" x 17"
Own photo reference
Luminance pencils on Mi-Teintes paper
The second in my current series featuring Australian rocks, this drawing is as much about the colors and patterns to be found on rocks as the variety of three-dimensional shapes of the rocks themselves.
The rocks featured in this drawing come from the shoreline along the NW Tasmanian coast. The variety of rock shapes and patterns in this area is truly amazing, having offered me much "grist for my creative mill" for many years. I have collected, photographed and cataloged a substantial variety for future reference. It’s important to know, understand and appreciate your subject if you want to do it justice on the drawing board.
I often use a variety of pencil brands, but on this occasion I had just completed a series of drawings featuring objects above, on and below the surface of tropical creeks from Far North Queensland, and I was keen to see how the Luminance pencils performed with a different color palette. I wasn’t disappointed. They are such wonderful pencils to work with.
For me, the greatest satisfaction in this drawing has been the opportunity to work with abstract-like patterns. Abstract art has been a passion of mine since my art school days. It’s not often seen in CP art, but I believe that it should be. Nature offers many wonderful examples of abstraction, rocks being one of them.
I write a blog where I discuss a variety of subjects including what I’m currently working on. I invite you to visit it and in particular, my article ‘CORCD’, which I wrote last month.
About Richard:
Richard Klekociuk graduated from the Tasmanian School of Art in 1971 and has been a practicing artist, teacher and art judge for over 40 years. Richard’s art is inspired by the Australian landscape. Mark making, weathering, landscape memory, decay, pattern, color and shape are of particular interest to him.
See more from Richard at http://www.artkleko.com.
