The Pencil Box - Featured Artists - June 2020
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!
These Are Mine! by Tamara Culp
11x14 inches on Fisher400 sanded paper
Portraits are my passion. As an inveterate people watcher, I can become lost trying to capture an expression. Children are especially pleasing because they don't have “camera faces”. They present you with the face of their feelings. When I teasingly questioned this little boy, who is a young cousin, about having too many cookies he indignantly replied, “These are mine!”. Add in his startling eyes and that terrific orange shirt and this was an irresistible portrait opportunity. The challenge was to portray his wide-eyed surprise and slightly pursed mouth. His pockets were also stuffed full of cookies, so I chose to show some sticking out of those pockets in order to exaggerate his thievery. The picture was taken at a reunion of my very large, extended family. My memories of all of my cousins are particularly special to me which allowed me to bring some extra love to this painting.
About Tamara:
Tamara Culp is a retired jewelry artist who turned to 2D art when the fine art fairs became too strenuous. To her surprise the years of sketching designs had improved her drawing skills. A few hundred pencils later a new obsession was birthed.
See more at: https://www.facebook.com/tamaraculpstudio/
1 in 3, Western Lowland Gorilla and Ebola Virus by Frances Daunt
30cm x 40cm, Pastelmat paper
I am an animal artist because I love animals. We are very lucky to have so many wonderful creatures in the world, yet because of humans actions they need more and more protection. I regularly donate work to animal charities, both wildlife conservation and also to pet rescue centers. I also like to use my artwork to highlight various issues. This picture shows a Western Lowland Gorilla. These beautiful animals (along with other non-human primates) were badly affected by the Ebola virus which in the early 2000s wiped out around a third of their total wild population (hence the title). At this time whilst we are battling Corona virus it seems an important point to be making — it may not only be us at risk. I was pleased to see that the rangers who protect these creatures are already putting extra protections in place to help prevent the virus reaching them, I only hope they are successful. Western Lowland Gorillas are already critically endangered, it would be heart-breaking if artwork is all that ends up left to remind us of how beautiful they are. I hope this piece of artwork encourages people to think and to support wildlife conservation before it is too late.
About Frances:
Frances Daunt is an award-winning animal artist from Derbyshire in the UK. She works in a variety of media from her favorite colored pencils through to felted artwork made from wool. Her work is exhibited nationally and is held in private collections worldwide.
See more at: https://www.francesdaunt.com/
Be Safe by Sarah Bowsher
7.5 x 8 inches, UArt Premium Sanded 800 paper
I have a Coloneaster Horizontalis bush at the bottom of my garden, in the Summer it has small pink flowers, which the bees love. Last year I manged to get some pictures of them that would make lovely reference photographs. I adore bees and have drawn a few pictures of them, they have always been quite lucky for me. For this piece I used UArt Premium sanded 800 paper in Charcoal, as it would suit both the blending of the background and the sharp detail of the foreground. The dark colored paper really suited the depth of the background. I used Faber-Castell Polychromos and Derwent Lightfast colored pencils as they work nicely with the Brush and Pencil Powder Blender to create the background, which I blended with a small stiff brush to create the out of focus look. The sharp foreground was created by blending just with the pencils themselves.
I started this just as this COVID-19 pandemic was reaching the UK and finished it as we went into lockdown. It seamed only fitting to dedicate it to all those staying safe in their homes to save lives. The original title I thought of was Bee Safe, Bee Nice, BEE HOME. However, I ended up just simply calling it Be Safe.
About Sarah:
Sarah is a part-time artist based in Buckinghamshire, England. She loves to find inspiration in the natural world and colors that surrounds us. Sarah is a member of the UKCPS, CPSA and local MKSA. She has exhibited locally and nationally with the UKCPS.
See more at: https://www.facebook.com/sarahjart
It’s About Time by Linda H Clark
11x17 inches, Team Plastics 2-sided .005 Drafting Film
“It’s About Time” was created to be a whimsical, yet thought-provoking, story about a fabulous family of stoic mannequins who represent the timeless strength of five generations of women. At a quaint local shop last summer, there was a display of several look-alike, mannequin heads sitting on a shelf in front of a large clock. I immediately wanted to tell a story about the mannequins in my creative, whimsical, artistic style. A story about time. A story about generations and of family.
To create my generational story, the mannequins went through a metamorphosis and became these fabulous — and fashionable — five figures representing different generations. Their faces were designed with an artistic flair to look sculpted and distinctively painted. The mannequin family stands in front of a vintage clock and a building of weathered brick, worn and irregular, both symbolizing the passing of time. The brick wall also represents strength of character and their red hair signifies the strength of the family.
This piece actually almost ended up in the trash several times, but thankfully, drafting film handles being erased really well — which easily allowed me to restyle, revamp, and make changes to better tell the story..
About Linda:
Linda H Clark is an award-winning artist, with background studies in illustration and design, and living in the Pacific Northwest. Her distinctive, colorful, and whimsical artistic style typically evokes positive, cheerful, uplifting, and lighthearted emotional sentiments. Linda is a member of CPSA and a Signature Member of CPCAU.
See more at: https://www.facebook.com/LHC.whimsyartist/
These artworks are published in the JUNE 2020 issue of COLOR Magazine.
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Comments (1)
Great stuff.
Way cool I’m having a bit of fun discovering some places I didn’t know existed. Thanks! - Apr 26, 2020