Ann's Colored Pencil News & Stuff!

I know the price for all 3 webinars is fairly high. Each one is pretty much a stand-alone course, though. Taking just Webinar 3, if you're familiar with my portrait book, would be very helpful. It really does include video that shows much more than you can possibly see in an in-person workshop because the camera is so close and unobstructed. I have a fair amount of costs involved: equipment, software, assistants and I personally have put in over 200 hours of work in planning, filming, organizing, writing and editing just Webinar 3!X

Why are the Webinars expensive?

Ann Kullberg
Aug 09, 2014
2 Comments

Someone emailed me saying my webinars were too expensive and that I'd sell many more if they were cheaper. My latest LIVE Webinar is priced at $44.99. Although It's a live webinar, it also includes a DVD shipped to you, a PDF that includes the photo reference for the portrait project, a line drawing to trace, 28 step by steps,... View more

My first love is teaching

Ann Kullberg
Mar 13, 2014
3 Comments

I had a horrible sinus infection and to make things even more interesting, the stomach flu too on the first day of the first colored pencil workshop I ever taught, about 20 years ago. I couldn’t cancel the workshop, because I couldn’t refund money I’d long ago applied to an electric bill or kid’s school shoes. I had to ride... View more

Do you ever eat all the frosting first? Probably not...because then all you're left with is cake, and cake is pretty dry without that sweet frosting...

Which is why I save the face till last in a portrait! Let me explain...

My method for portraits is to finish the background, foreground, clothing, hands, feet and hair first, before working on the face, and here are all the reasons why:

Frosting First?

Ann Kullberg
Feb 07, 2014
1 Comments

Do you ever eat all the frosting first? Probably not...because then all you're left with is cake, and cake is pretty dry without that sweet frosting... Which is why I save the face till last in a portrait! Let me explain... My method for portraits is to finish the background, foreground, clothing, hands, feet and hair first, before working on... View more

If I were to paint this image today, it would probably end up closer to looking like this versioh. A higher range of values, more color saturation, smoother textures. Yes, it would take me much longer to finish than the original drawing. Yes, it would take more courage to keep pushing the values darker and darker, but the end result would be worth the extra time and effort.
I am guessing that if I knew two things then that i know now, I wouldn't have quit when the piece was half completed. X

Abandoned, not finished...

Ann Kullberg
Dec 27, 2013
6 Comments

I heard a wonderful quote at a workshop in SC last year: "A painting is never finished, it's abandoned." Loved that! I could instantly relate, particularly as a colored pencil artist working in such a painfully slow medium with one of the most painfully slow techniques. At some point in every portrait, I believe I do just decide to abandon... View more

Guess maybe I should start with the question before rushing to the answer...

Back when I made my living drawing children's portraits, I had a rule that I wouldn't accept any commissions for children under the age of 4. When asked why, the reason I gave potential clients was that a baby or toddler rarely looks like "himself" until he's at least 4. Since I hoped my portraits would be real heirlooms for their family, I encouraged them to wait until she was 4, at which point she would pretty much look like "herself".

Because they're too hard to photograph!!

Ann Kullberg
Oct 06, 2013
3 Comments

Guess maybe I should start with the question before rushing to the answer... Back when I made my living drawing children's portraits, I had a rule that I wouldn't accept any commissions for children under the age of 4. When asked why, the reason I gave potential clients was that a baby or toddler rarely looks like "himself" until he's... View more

And the Winner Is....

Ann Kullberg
Sep 29, 2013
0 Comments

The results are in, and the hands-down winner for our Pussycat Poll is.... Drum roll, please... Peeking Kitten! Look for a fabulous new In-Depth Kit by Irina Cawton of this adorable image soon!! View more

What does it cost to pursue a passion and learn something new?

Personal Trainer: $50 - $70 per hour Dance Lessons: $60 - $120 per hour

Singing Lessons: $60 - $90 per hour Golf Lessons: $80 - $120 per hour

Jigsaw Puzzles...

Not too often, but now and then I hear a comment that our kits are too expensive...

I took a quick little look online today for artsy projects you can do at home. Jigsaw puzzles, for example. Even on amazon.com you'll pay

What does it cost to pursue a passion?

Ann Kullberg
Sep 29, 2013
4 Comments

What does it cost to pursue a passion and learn something new? Personal Trainer: $50 - $70 per hour Dance Lessons: $60 - $120 per hour Singing Lessons: $60 - $90 per hour Golf Lessons: $80 - $120 per hour Jigsaw Puzzles... Not often, but now and then I hear a comment that our kits cost too much... I took... View more

This time around, I decided to open it up to one and all.

There is gorgeous colored pencil work out there from emerging artists, complete unknowns, and from those too timid (or intimidated) to enter the big shows. To those of you who recognize that timid artist in you...let me tell you something I learned a long, long time ago

CP Treasures Volume II - Colored Pencil Masterworks from Around the Globe

Ann Kullberg
Sep 17, 2013
2 Comments

The first time around, inclusion in the book was by invitation only. Around 18 months ago, I created an email to send to around 100 CP artists around the world whose work I admired, or who had earned CPSA Signature Membership, inviting them to submit work for a new colored pencil compilation book. I needed 80 of them to respond. ... View more