Clematis on Trellis

Hi all,
I finally finished the last drawing in a series of of pictures I was doing of flowers growing on a trellis.
I have shown a Clematis (montana) and bindweed in the last post so here is the final one.

It's another clematis but I not sure which one. It is probably my least favourite of the three that I have done but I still pretty pleased with it. They make a great group where they are hanging in the hallway and give me a lot of pleasure. I have taken prints of them a hung them in recycled frames from a charity shop. It is too dark now to photograph them but I hope to show you a picture of them together in my next post.

There is something else I have to report on the art front and it is quite exciting. Over the years I have had a longing to have a go at digital art. I have used it for design purposes but not for proper art. I did have try using photoshop, but the learning curve was extremely steep and I lacked imagination as much as I lacked the skills.

Anyway, I decided to give it another go and bought myself an ipad for Christmas. Well if I don't treat myself nobody else will. I've had a bit of a dabble and I am really impressed by the potential, what's more, I can do it while sitting in my favourite armchair. No water, no mixing paints and all mistakes are instantly rectifiable.

It is my intention to post my efforts on here, warts and all, so you can see how I get on and judge for yourself how and or if I improve. If anybody else is thinking of going digital I will be pleased to answer any questions. I won't be going over to the dark side completely so you will still be able to find normal artwork on here.

Just one last thing. To Celebrate the start of the new year I am giving away downloads of my book "Bossyboots."

It will be free to download from Amazon and you can go straight to it by clicking this link .
Please download it and have a good laugh. I am removing this book from Amazon's "Select" programme so this is prabably the last time you will be able to get it for free.

Clematis and Bindweed

Hi all,
I am concentrating my artistic output at the moment on graphite pencil. I don't know why, but for some reason graphite is floating my boat. I also like the fact that there is no need to mix colours. The materials are simple, I just use five pencils, an erasure and some blue tack. It is very simple and satisfying.

The drawing below of a clematis is the first in a series of 3 images that I am doing which will all feature a flower growing on some trellis.

 I have been drawing on Bristol board because I find it easier to get fine details, but for this drawing and the rest in the series I'm using Arches hot pressed watercolour paper. I can't get the same level of detail with this paper but I can get darker blacks. For the darkest tone I have used a Derwent 9B. The other pencils I used were, 3B,B, H and 2H.

I am hoping that Santa brings me a set of Steadler Mars 100 lumograph pencils for Christmas and then I can get back to the Bristol board and hopefully maintain a really dark black. There is nothing wrong with the Derwent 9B and Archies combination but the deatail isn't quite so sharp.
Here's the second drawing in the series of some bindweed.

I hope you like the drawings, any comments or question are welcome..

I'm Back

Hi All,
Its seems like ages since I did a post on here but I'm now back for another run. The reason I have a break in my art posts is because once the weather gets warmer I want to be doing stuff on my lathe or I'm busy doing stuff in the garden. The main problem is that I like to be creative and want to do so many things. Woodturning, woodcarving, pyrography and gardening all take up a huge amount of time in the warmer months. However, once the cold weather arrives those activities take a back seat and art takes over.

I'm a bit on the nesh side so sitting in the warm doing some artwork really appeals to me. So here we go with another 6 months of  regular posts.

This season I intend to concentrate on pencil drawings with an odd colour full piece now and again.

I have just finish a drawing of a clematis on some trellis and I can tell you now that I'm very pleased with it.

In fact I'd go so far as to say it is my best drawing so far. If you compare it with one of my last year's pieces it is easy to see the difference. Here is a drawing from last year.

Now don't get me wrong, I like this drawing too but it is spoilt by the lack of background colour. Basically, it is a competent drawing, but it doesn't look finished.

The clematis drawing was done with 3 pencils made by Derwent, 9B, 3B and H I also used an electric erasure in places. The paper I used was also interesting. Until now most of my drawings have been done on Bristol board and I have always liked it. To be honest over the years I have used all sorts of paper for drawing. This included cheap art sketching pads, cartridge paper and sheets of copy paper from my computer. The results were always mediocre but when I tried Bristol board the quality of my drawing increased dramatically.

If you have just taken up drawing or sketching and you are using any of the papers I mentioned above, please do yourself a favour and get some Bristol board. Winsor and Newton do a small A5 size pad so give It a try and you'll never go back to the old stuff.

Having said all that, for the Clematis drawing above I actually used Aches hot pressed watercolour paper. It has slightly more tooth than Bristol board so it allowed me to get a deeper tone of black and provide a bit of texture that suited the subject matter.

Right, that's it for now. Any question or comments please let me know. I am looking forward to showing you my next drawing soon, I've just got to figure out what it will be and do it.

To celebtate my return one of my fishing books," Learn From The Tips And Laugh At The Tales"

will be available for a free download from the 27th of November until the 1 st of December. To get your free download just click this link and it will take you straight to the page on Amazon

Roses

Hi all,
Following on from the drawing of the iris, I thought I give myself a challenge and have a go at some roses.

Sorry it is a bit twisted and the background shows where it went in the scanner, but I really like the roses. I also like the fact that I used reference images from photos that I'd taken in our own garden

Having done a few drawings now that have come out, in my opinion, pretty good, I can give you a great tip. Many artists will tell you that success does not depend on your equipment, and I think there is a lot of truth in that statement. However, one thing that is vital, again in my opinion, that you need to use really good paper if you want to do a good drawing. It really does make a difference. I used Bristol board on the image above and it is so much better than, normal sketching paper or even cartridge paper.
If you want to create a really good drawing I would strongly suggest giving Bristol board a go.

Iris

Hi all,
Sometimes it is nice to forget all about colour and do a bit of drawing with a couple of pencils. Well I use three actually, most of the work is done with a mechanical pencil, but then I create other tones with a 4b and7b pencils.

Here is a drawing of an iris that I completed recently.

I also use a blending stump where required. I think it is important when drawing flowers to achieve a good balance between letting pencil lines show and blending them out. Both are needed, the lines create form while the blended areas create depth. Together they create a realist image. I hope I have captured at least a small amount of realism in the image above.
Any comments and questions are welcome.

Inky flowers

Hi all,
Every now and again I have an urge to try something different, so armed with my inks I did a couple of flowers.

I like them a bit, but not a lot. I'm beginning to realise that I need to have a fair chunk of realism in my work, if it is going to give me any sense of satisfaction.

With this in mind I did couple of anemones, again using my magic colour inks.

Okay, they are less colourful but more realistic. The big petal at the centre of the bottom flower is jarring my eye, but overall I like them.
 I would like to do more flowers in ink but I only have six colours. I know that I could mix some but I really dislike mixing colours. I either mix too much and waste paint or ink, or most often, I don't mix enough and can not reproduce the exact same colour. This results in a messy looking piece of work.
Anyway, I think I have the answer and I will tell you what it is in my next post.

Inks

Hi all,
After dallying with the watercolour markers for a bit I thought I'd try something different. I got out the inks that I use in my airbrush and painted a flower with them.

The result wasn't great but I like the vibrancy of the colours. The background is a bit naff, but the flower is ok. I shall do more.

Markers take 2

I've had another go with the watercolour markers.

This flower image came out reasonable. It was very easy to do with the markers and quite enjoyable. However, the quality of the painting is not up to the standard I'm aiming for.

Here is another one I did a few days later. It is of a ladybird on a bluebell and is a copy of a photo I took last spring.

I guess it is colourfull and competent, but the flower seems a bit flat. I'm looking for a medium with a bit more life in it, so I've decided to leave the markers for a bit and try acrylic inks. Please watch this space to see how I get on. It could be crap or just what I'm searching for.

Water colour markers

Hi all,
I've been having a go with the water colour markers and I'm quite impressed by the colour and how easy they are to use. Here is a painting of some California poppies that I did recently.

The colours are really bright and the whole thing was very easy because I did not have to bother mixing paint. I will do more and try to put them up frequently.

A Little Bird

Hi all,
I'm being quite successful at the moment doing sketches on a regular basis. I am find it quite therapeutic during these cold days. My wood turning workshop is as cold as an Eskimo's fridge, but at least while my wooden creations might be suffering, my art skills are getting a chance to improve.

I have decided to concentrate my efforts in certain areas. Flora and fauna and small birds are going to be my main focus. The former, just because they are beautiful, and the latter because they are not only beautiful but will also be the subject of some woodcarvings I hope to do in the spring.

I thought that sketching birds would help me to understand their shapes better.
Here my first attempt.

Sorry about the quality of the scan, but it gives you an idea about where I'm going. The sketch was done using pencils, graphite, brown pencils, plus pen and ink.

The next one I did was a goldfinch, which is a bit more colourful.

This one was done using the set of 12 winsor and Newton watercolour markers that my wife bought me for Christmas. I really like using these because they save me having to mix paints in the conventional way. I use them mostly in conjunction with a water brush and they work like magic. Highly recommended if you are thinking about giving them a go.

In my next post I'll show you how I'm getting on with the flora and fauna.

Take 2

Hi All,
It's been a long time since I've done a post on here. I spent most of the summer and autumn honing my wood turning skills, but now that winter is upon us I need a change. The reason for the change is that my workshop is as cold as an igloo so I've had to come indoors for some warmth.

So, I've gone all arty again. I have bought a couple of books and some more art supplies and I'm giving it another go. I am also trying to do one sketch or drawing per day; at the moment I'm doing about five a week but that's five more than I was doing a month ago.

Anyway, I purchased some watercolour markers and was inspired by a rose that was on the front of one of the books I purchased.

The book is by a brilliant botanical artist called Billy Showell, and it is just amazaing. I have only flicked through it but it looks great. I am hoping to try out some of the exercises soon and will show you how I got on. I am also trying to write/draw in a journal every day so I may share some of that with you too.

Regarding the wood turning, here's  a couple of items that I did before the winter froze my appendages off.

You will notice a theme with these two items and I'm going to make it a set of three if ever the weather warms up again.