The Pencil Box - Featured Artists - December 2021
Corresponding with the art gallery that is featured each month in Ann Kullberg's COLOR Magazine, The Pencil Box blog series will give artists a bit more space to share insight and inspiration about their colored pencil art. Make sure to check out FB group links at the bottom of this post. Call for entry is posted every month in participating Facebook groups - join in the fun and your artwork could be featured, too!
Boujee by April Repotski
14×14 inches, colored pencil on Grafix .005 double sided matte drafting film
Boujee is a very special friend's pup. During the two months I spent creating his portrait, he suffered a horrible accident and broke one of his back legs to the point of almost needing to be amputated. I spoke about his accident and provided updates while also sharing his portrait progress, which brought all of my followers and friends together as a little community. Boujee had so many prayers, well wishes and love during that time; it was truly phenomenal!
About April Repotski:
April has been drawing since elementary school. Her first grade teacher noticed her artistic abilities and submitted one of her drawings to a community art center, the Kalamazoo Institute of Arts. They awarded her a scholarship to attend their art classes on weekends for a full year. April continued to draw throughout her childhood and early teens, learning from her public school art curriculum. Once she graduated from high school, art was put on the back burner as just an occasional hobby while she pursued other interests. Fast forward 20 some years to December 2020 where she discovered the world of colored pencils and hasn't put them down since. When she is not drawing these days, April can be found outside with her horses, chickens and goats.
See more at: https://www.instagram.com/aprilrepotskiart/
My Middle Name is Happiness by Judith Heilbronn-Crown
12x16 inches, coloured pencil on Hahnehmuele paper
I decided to challenge myself to a portrait, and as I have a friend who is very beautiful, I asked her to pose for me in my garden. The light was perfect as there was hazy late afternoon sunshine so just the right amount of shadows. I always use my own photos and think that the source photo can often be the most important part of the artwork, so if people use other photographer's work then the skill of that photographer is a large part of the artwork. I decided that although I am not a portrait artist, I would create a picture using my own photo to show that using a really good photo matters more than the skill of the artist; this meant getting the perfect model to pose for lots of photos! I got the photo I wanted and used that for my source making it fully my own. My model's second name is Simcha, which translated into English means Happiness.
About Judith Heilbronn-Crown:
Judith Heilbronn-Crown is an experienced amateur artist who has been using coloured pencils for over twenty years. She is a Gold Signature member of the UK Coloured Pencil Society having exhibited in about 14 of their Open Exhibitions. Her favourite subject is landscapes.
See more at: https://www.facebook.com/Judith-Heilbronn-Crown-artist-659166094200467/
In The Grevilleas by Rob Spedding
16x23 inches, coloured pencil on Arches Smooth Watercolour paper
Rainbow lorikeets are a colourful species of parrot common in gardens in eastern Australia. They are known for their noisy, bossy, and comical antics, especially at feed time. They can become quite tame, and interact with people, landing on head or shoulders if food is offered. They are a nectar-eating bird, and Grevilleas are a favourite food. They often visit in groups, squabbling amongst themselves as they eat. They are real characters. Both rainbow lorikeets and Grevillea flowers are colourful and interesting to draw. Together, they require great attention to detail. There was a great deal of fine pencil work required on both feathers and flowers. Once I started, I couldn’t leave it alone. I just wanted to keep going and see what the next section looked like! This work is only loosely based on reference photos, as I often rely on memory and a feel for the subject.
About Rob Spedding:
Rob is a self-trained artist who began drawing in 2012. He is inspired by Australian flora and fauna, and these are key themes In his artwork. He also enjoys portraiture, particularly of older people whose faces reflect their life experience. These subjects lend themselves to the fine detail that can be achieved using colour pencils. He enjoys experimenting with colour, particularly using underlying colours and building layers to create colour, texture and tone. Drawing is his passion, and he draws every day. He has been successful in exhibiting his work, and in competition, however it is the pleasure and relaxation it gives that is his motivation. He also enjoys sharing his knowledge and enthusiasm with young people and those starting their colour pencil journey.
Resplendent in Red by Silvia D'Almeida
11.7x16.5 inches, coloured pencil on Strathmore Bristol smooth paper
Resplendent in Red is my latest commissioned portrait which will be a gift for the lovely, little girl’s parents by my clients. The reference picture is my client’s own photo of the child wearing a dress sewn by her. When I saw the photograph, I just fell in love with it! It was the perfect picture with the adorable child in her very pretty, red and black dress laid beautifully around her looking up to the camera with her lovely, inquisitive eyes. We agreed on cropping the picture a little to bring the focus on the child’s face and body while not taking away the beauty of the dress. This portrait has been one of my challenging commissioned works in terms of size and the many components that I had to work on but is absolutely my favourite so far. As there was no time constraint in finishing the portrait, I really enjoyed working slowly on rendering the soft skin tone with the light and dark values, the hair, the dress with the many pleats, folds, polka dots, lace and the blurred look at the back which brings the child into focus. As I do with all my portraits, I have tried to capture the sweet, innocent and curious expression of the little girl and hope that her portrait will give her and her family much joy in the many years to come..
About Silvia D'Almeida:
Silvia is a self-taught part time professional artist from Melbourne, Australia who specializes in creating realistic portraits. Silvia’s works have been juried into many exhibitions and won awards.
See more at: https://www.facebook.com/SilviaDAlmeidaArt
These artworks are published in the DECEMBER 2021 issue of COLOR Magazine.
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