Pigment!

I think one generality I can make about artists is that they all seem to love colour!

This week-end I received my intermediate Copic certification and the participants oohed and awed over the variety of colours. The same thing happens in many of my classes. Heck, I feel it when i pass by the paint swatches at home depot. I really, really love colour!

I went to Sunnyside Art Supply to watch Nick do a free oil paint making demo. I have made my own oil paints in the past based on reading I had done, just so that I know a bi more about my craft. But Nick has taken this passion to a whole nee level and stirred that passion in me. He demoed a variety of pigments ans techniques and let everyone try mulling.

The tools are fairly simple, the options and combinations for recipes nearly endless and the final product exquisite.

Here is a comparison on how the natural pigments from France and Italy differ. I am really interested in making more paints using a variety of ingredients and pigments from different sources.

Here is some of what they have at Swintons. The colour's are making me salivate. I am really looking forward to finishing off what I have, using the new Williamsburg and Shiva brand pigments I recently bought and rounding it off with some good old fashioned elbow grease made pigments.

A dozen ways, a dozen days....what am I doing these days?

Keeping it up as any bunny would and could. I made this video from the studio of a piece I am slowly nudging toward completion. Check out the video on my you tube channel by clicking on the video below. It's only 5 min of your time deep in my thoughts and goals.

Drawing self portraits

The dreaded self portrait....

I begin the first and end on the last class with this task. You always have something to draw if you use yourself as your muse.  Here are some of my students from Drawing 1 doing self portraits at various stages of completion and some in comparison to their first self-portrait drawings.

EPISODE 11 - "Muslce head"

I made Episode 11, the third in a series, in order to show more detailed rendering and to bring my charcoal study from the mini plaster cast. Check it out below or on my you tube channel :D

EPISODE 10 - "Making Headway"

I continue on with my drawing study of the tiny plaster head and muscle cast.

Check out how after building the proportions with a scaffold of sorts I begin blocking in the lights and dark values to create form.

EPISODE 9... the latest is up!

It was the long week-end and I assigned my self some additional homework to help illustrate how I get started and going on a sketch from life. Watch it below and/or share this link: https://youtu.be/AUhWN8zCFiY