March 2018 Showcase - Colored Pencil Artwork
The three artists featured in the March 2018 issue of COLOR Magazine Showcase submitted stories about their artwork for our blog. Read below about their inspiration for each of these interesting animal subjects.
Having a Nap by Silke Kirch
8" x 11"
Image used with permission
Pan Pastels, Polychromos, Luminance, Pablos and Pitt pastel pencils on Pastelmat
I drew this piece for my husband's cousin, aunt and uncle who lost their dog Sheela a few weeks ago. I wanted to give them a special gift to remember their beloved dog. They sent me some reference photos and I immediately fell in love with this one because the dog's eyes and other details were very clear to see and I loved the perspective of the photograph. It shows Sheela's lovely nature and her pure love for their owners.
This drawing was a real challenge for me because I used Pan Pastels for the under-painting of the fur for the first time. After I applied the pastel I noticed that I lost almost all lines from my initial sketch. There was a lot of measuring and comparing the drawing with the reference photo involved the get the proportions right. After I was happy with the under-painting I used colored pencils and a few pastel pencils to create the details. I painted the foreground and background with Pan Pastels too.
The dog's eyes were drawn only with colored pencils because I wanted to show as many details as possible. The eyes of an animal are the most important part for me because they show the personality of this particular animal and not just any animal of the same species. I always take my time and usually I spent at least 2 hours on the eyes.
At at the end I was quite happy with the result and ordered a print of the drawing on a large canvas which was sent all the way to Germany to its new home. I was very pleased that our relatives loved their gift and Sheela found a lovely spot on the wall in their living room.
About Silke:
Silke is a self-taught artist. She discovered drawing and colored pencils as a drawing medium in 2015 and fell in love with them. Being able to draw such fine details was an amazing experience. Although she also works in pastels and pastel pencils she always returns to colored pencils.
See more from Silke here: http://www.facebook.com/Silke.Kirch.FineArt
In the Red by Suzanne Marcil
15.5" x 12.5"
Own photo reference
Prismacolor & Caran D'Ache on Uart Sanded Pastel paper.
I bought this bowl, globe and glass to decorate my mantle because I liked the colors. Seeing the trio on the mantle and watching the play of colors, especially in the bowl, I decided I needed to draw it. I set it up with the neutral satin in the background and once I was satisfied with the outcome (always after multiple photos) I started drawing it. I had some problems with the perspective between the rim of the glass and the water in it but finally it was done. I still love the shades of reds and gold in both the drawing and the actual bowl.
About Suzanne:
Suzanne Marcil was raised in the French part of Canada and moved to South Florida in the early 70's. She later retired in north Florida and that's when she discovered colored pencil and fell in love with the medium. She is a self-taught artist.
See more from Suzanne here: http://www.SuzanneMarcil.com
Sage by Lauren Cahill
17" x 14"
Image used with permission via wildlifeReferencePhotos.com
Faber-Castell Polychromos Color Pencil on Strathmore 500 Series Vellum Paper completed over 43 hours.
The name Sage means "Wise One". I believe the title of the piece is very fitting for such a beautiful barn owl. This piece is my third original wildlife piece. I was feeling very high spirited at the time and I wanted my piece to represent a member of my family. My sister Gillian has had a love for owls as long as I could remember, so I asked her to choose the subject of the drawing. She cleverly (and expectedly) chose a Barn Owl. I love how she and Sage both show personalities of poise, charisma, beauty, and courage.
About Lauren:
Lauren is an accidental artist, stumbling upon a talent creating caricatures. In January 2017, Lauren began experimenting with different techniques, progressing quickly in the art of color pencil. Spending most of the time working on fan pieces, Lauren recently began to develop her own original colored pencil drawings in wildlife art.
See more from Lauren at http://www.facebook.com/LCArtDesign
These artworks were published in the March 2018 issue of COLOR Magazine.
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