D is for Daylight Savings Time (DONE)

We turned back the clocks last night. ARRGH. I love the light - the longer the days the happier I am. To counteract the instantaneous urge to hibernate that comes upon me every year at this time, we (husband and dogs) took a long walk in a lovely park. We've never walked here before. I loved the wide open vista of the sky, the gold of the grass, and the light and the darks of the clouds … so beautiful.

 So, here is today's art. Mother Nature made it, I just captured it to share. It brightened my day. I hope it does yours too.

U is for Unexpected

I found this city scene drawing among a pile of unfinished work. It called out for color pencil. I kept it light and layered color with sunset and atmospheric perspective in mind. Then, to experiment with possible background colors I opened it with Photoshop. Just a few contrast and brightness tweaks and some on screen paint touch-ups brought me to this totally unexpected result. I am amazed with the things that can happen with colored pencils.

Q is for Quibble

Conversation in Color Pencil class yesterday turned to the question of What is Art. Must it be done completely by hand. Where do photos and digital tools fit into the equation?

This image is part of a photo I took, I edited, I cropped and I worked with the create the feeling of the Color Pencil drawings I am currently working on. It is easier to do (for me) than drawing every stroke by hand, but the results are exactly what I envision - and it is a fine model of the work I will do today - with pencils in hand. so ...

M is for (What a) Mess

I started out with the intention of using color pencil to copy/draw a landscape - or in my case, a seascape. What I got was a trip through a mess to find ... something.

Utilizing a technique I learned in class, I printed the image to size and laid it atop my Strathmore Colored Pencil paper (which I think is a pleasure to draw on.)

Using a sharp pencil I "embossed" my main lines into the paper below. Then I began to layer color- I faced a large blank expanse and a tiny pencil tip. Sigh.

I collect art supplies at garage sales. Recently I acquired colored pencil sticks - with no box and no words on them. I also have some colored Conte crayon. They, and/or something else I can't recognize, all seemed to have ended up in the same little flat cigar tin during a mass studio clean up.  I selected a perfectly matched palette from the box, and started to color. 

Now - my problem is, that I cannot seem to make myself duplicate an image. I've done that - many times in the past, but now I want to be able to use this medium to make the images I want - and build my skills.

Yet, I start with the best intentions and quickly hate the image on my page. Then I discover that some of my sticks are pastels - they went on so nice, and some were hard crayon and a few were soft waxy crayons. But I used them as they came to hand to lay down the under colors. However, the color pencil effect was lost and another - something - was appearing.

This is the second time in two days that a carefully planned, copy from a photo project has turned into doing what I often seem to do when I make art of any kind, create a mysterious place. By now, I was so far away from where I started that I said, what the hell, and started messing around, adding little houses, changing the landscape - finding a place, but staying to the gorgeous color palette and feel of the original photo.

I feel like I've taken a step forward today ... 

I is for In for the Night

This landscape is in chalk pastel on dark blue Canson MiTiente paper.  

Somehow as I worked, the image turned icy cold. Even the moon became wintry and reflected its chill onto the water.

No one is outside in this dreary wintry scene - except the moon. I am no fan of winter - and this image reflects my feelings.

However, it was fun to let the colors turn cool and the houses grow dark so that everyone is asleep in their cozy beds. I hope ...

V is for Vibrant Variation

It is a cold, rainy and windy day. I need something warm and bright  - so I played with my soft landscape monotype  - inverting the image and playing with the palette - turning the lovely greens and yellows to yellows, reds and violet.

I love the vibrant crazy colors that result. They completely change the landscape image - day to night, calm to energetic - very different.
.

Q is for Quaint

Yesterday was cold, windy and clear. The light was that sharp, high contrast sun in the eyes that turns the world to silhouette.

I needed something warm and lush and green to remind me of summer.

 This is a simple watercolor monotype - done with Caran D'ache watersoluble crayons, a favorite technique.

I like the rolling, tree-filled landscape - reminding me of simpler times and places - quaint is the word that came to mind when I looked at the finished print.

C is for Crazy for Caran D'ache Crayons

Caran DAche Neocolor II Watersoluble Crayons

As an art teacher, I try to introduce my students to new and interesting materials that are easy to work with and produce great results. I also strive to find inexpensive ways to provide great materials to try out at a the lowest cost possible. So - I go to garage sales and look for art supplies. Last summer I found a great stash of brushes, a cool collapsible easel, tons of crayons, an assortment of interesting papers (I am always amazed at the things people get rid of), and lots more. Then, I hit the mother lode. For just a few dollars, I found a shopping bag filled with all kinds of art related odds and ends. Several canvases, half dozen drawing pads, a painter's apron, and at the very bottom, several tins of pastels and what looked like weird crayons.

I spent several lovely summer afternoons trying out all the new things I'd found - fat oil pastels, unusual (to me) soft pastels from France, and finally, those weird crayons. Caran DAche Neocolor II Watersoluble Crayons. The very first time I played with them - drawing little boxes to test each color, and adding water to see the results - I knew I had found my new favorite art toy. You can draw with them just like crayons, you can blend the colors with ease, and when you add water, the colors become as vivid as the rainbow.

I knew these were the perfect way to encourage my senior art students to get comfortable with color mixing and painting. As I have mentioned, working with (very) senior artists presents many challenges. Several have trouble seeing, others have limited ability in their hands. But, the thick crayons are easy to handle, and the amazing colors that appear when water is added is bright enough for even dimming eyesight to see. Most of all, these water soluble crayons offer tremendous opportunities for creativity, and surprisingly beautiful results in a the span of a single class. (see the beautiful paintings in yesterday's post)

I could not wait to see what my young students could do with them, and designed a landscape project (image above) to take advantage of the crayon's ability to make drawing easy, and allow the kids to use brushes to dissolve the pigment into soft, vibrant, almost water color backgrounds. Once this dries, you can go back and add more crayon, blend in another layer of color wet or dry, or, draw on top with markers or pencils. As you can see from these paintings below - results are lovely.

Aurora

Elly

One more thing. These crayons are not inexpensive - but, I believe that good quality materials are worth the investment because the results are often improved by the more vibrant color, especially when used with good quality water color paper, or interesting texture. These crayons combine the ease of a crayon with the beauty of watercolor. They are a great substitute for color pencils or pan paints. Most of all, they are a huge hit with students of all ages and levels of ability. I recommend them highly.