A new avenue

So, as many of us are want to do I asked for guidance about my art. I want to be more creative, more something. I asked this come to me during my sleep. The message came: wire and crystal jewelry design. This was totally unexpected. I am, as you all know a 2d visual artist. I was looking for inspiration in my approach. Surprise! 

Well, over 40 years ago I studied jewelry design in college. I learned what I wasn't good at. I kept my tools and they are in perfect working order.

Over the years I've tried beading bracelets and necklaces but was not all that impressed with my work. I've never worked with wire in jewelry making although I did work with it in sculpting class over 40 years ago. 

Now I don't expect this to replace drawing. My best guess is that I need a creative avenue of the 3d variety to inspire my 2d art. So I'll be taking a break while I watch more videos on wire art and practice. I have plenty of crystals about and my tools and I purchased three different gauges of wire. I'm set. I will be using pencil and paper to design the jewelry as I learn the methodology of wire and crystal jewelry design so I get to keep my hand in 2d art. I'm looking forward to creating an Ibis with wire. I almost have it worked out in head. 

My next post will be an update on jewelry design. See yoh then.

Freshened up art space

 Here it is. Photos of my art space after some reorganizing once again. The five foot long desk is still eating up a log of space but I use it since it is here and ignore it the rest of the time. I still have conainers of media and paper I don't use very often tucked away in the closet but what I need is at an arms length, mostly.

I have my various materials on either side organized and easily accessible. 

My large portfolios and papers are still in the corner along with a cart of papers I use most frequently and a smaller cart of my portfolios. And yes, there is the desk.

And my photos, some books, and art work along with all of my gnomes are resting on my bookshelf under a painting of Renard.

I have plenty of workspace and I'm no longer scrambling to change out my medium and papers when I chose to use a different medium. And, I have natural light. So cool. 

Toucan in white pastel on black paper

 

Click on the image of the Toucan to watch the video of it's creation.

 

Finally, i have the delicate touch i was searching for.

 

This is a white -pastel painting of a Bullfinch. Just click on the image to see it's creation on YouTube. I used Stonehenge-hotpress-watercolor paper. I love it. Unlike other  white on black paper drawings, I used the reverse of the rendering method I used with graphite powder. I built up the light areas and erased away the dark areas. I realized as I was working that all the work I'd been doing with graphite had strengthened my hand and I am not able to work with a more delicate touch. 

This drawing took me just over an hour to complete and it's beautiful; as good as my best graphite drawings. Down the line I may be adding color but right now this is the technique I need to use. This realistic rendering is so much easier for me, for my hand and I get to create. I love to draw with graphite but I think I will love white pastel on black paper even more; more than any other medium I've used in the past 72 years. I've strived for this, for the best medium, my best medium for all of my artistic career. I'm  always drawn back to pastels but leave it in favor of something else. I know I will go back to color media (colored pencils, acrylics) in some form but I'll come back to pastels. 

When I sat down to draw the Bullfinch, I knew exactly what I was doing. Usually I don't know quite where or how to start. This feels like home.  I know. I've said this before about other media and this one. I feel as though I've been on that endless journey of self discovery only to lose myself at every turn. I've felt quite often that white on black was too quick and somehow art  should take more time. Why? Why does it have to be a slow and arduous process? It doesn't. It has to take however long it takes and there are no rules about the quality of art based on time of completion. I've created plenty of crap now in a landfull somewhere that I sent days on. It takes as long as it takes and it is as good as it is. 

I hope you enjoy the video and if you would like to take a look at my Threadlests store, you'll find this image is now for sale. 

Starting a New Year

 

I've ended my year, 2024 with the completion of this image, a drawing done from a snapshot my mom took of me and my younger sister, Jean, in 1956. Featured are our brand new bikes.

I used a rendering technique with pencils and erasers and powdered graphite to achieve this realistic image and here is the link to the 2 plus hour long video.  First Bikes

I am happily ensconced in the world of graphite and ready to tackle my next memory from snapshots of my past. 

In the world of YouTube I am fast approaching as in by the time this blog is posted 10,000 subscribers. So pleased to be reaching so many people.

Thanks for checking in and Happy New Year!

About to enter a New Year

 I've drawn a few more images. Some I've saved, some not. I did a couple of dog portraits for the family and bird portraits but I'm not sharing those here. I worked in Inktense and did a good job, but not great. I've said it before and I'm not going to keep mentioning it again, I promise but Covid a year ago did me in as an artist. I have fnally accepted it even though I've complained about it. I can't paint with anything as I used to. Not watercolor pencils, or acrylics for watercolors or guache; not anything. The only thing I can sill do is draw with graphite ( on white or toned paper) and white pencil (on black paper with a touch of white pan pastel.) Grammar rules have changed so much I don't know if the punctuation goes inside or outside of the parenthesis. 

I once again rearranged all of my art. I put away anything that wasn't serving me and hid it from view. Just graphite and a touch of charcoal. Mostly graphite. And I'm changing my focus; subject matter. Less wildlife and more people in urban settings starting with really old famly snap shots. I have the first one selected. Me and my little sister. So very obviously the 50s. It doesn't matter. Time doesn't matter. Memory matters and I intend to draw memories for a while. I resolved that on the 23rd during a meditation after a frustrating session with my Inktense. 

Yesterday, during the family Christmas Eve dinner (Swedes do that, dine and exchange gifts on Christmas Eve) my younger sister called and she needed to talk. Life in Colorado is rough and expensive and health problems all around. But she wanted to hear good news and speak with everyone and she told me her grandson, my Godson, was interested in writing and art and that he had been watching tutorials and she had been unpacking long unused gifts with art supplies for him. This just lit me up like the Grinch who stole Christmas. She asked me some questions about colored pencils and I said I has come I could share with him. Today, Christmas Day, we lay low, I gathered some art supplies and wrote a letter of instruction and a tiny bit of advice about good content creators he could watch and will mail it on Friday. The post office has to quiet down by then.

My joy about art is back. No matter that I won't be using color anymore. I love drawing and obviously, drawing loves me. But I'm excited again about new videos and sharing what I know with my subscribers. I'm happy about art again. I'm happy from the inside out. It's like G-d, Spirtis, the Universe (pick one or all) planted this interest in my Great Nephew for me as well as him. 

Happy New Year! I wish you all joy in 2025.

Moving Right Along on YouTube and with Glazing

 Here are four of my recent glazing projects. I'm using watercolor pencils, intense and graphitint to glaze graphite and water soluble graphite drawings. It's called grisaille but that's not really acuate. The grisaille portion of the graytone image. The part where I add color is the glazing. I have YouTube videos on all of these pieces; well two are still in editing. I don't know why I left this method of painting way back in 2019. I do love it and it is beautiful. It combines my love of drawing and the ease of glazing to create a colorful image. I have my next promect in mind; I've pulled out 16 x 20 illustration board and I'll be using Derweint Inktense for this project.  Oh, the first three images are Derwent Inktense glazes. The fourth is a Derwent Graphitint glaze.

Okay, so now very quickly onto YouTube. I am finally able to promote my channedl and I am on my 3rd promotion. That's the Barn owl just aboe. I went from 800 plus to 3.3K subscribers in three weeks. I am amazed and delighted.  Once I have 4000 hours watched in a month I can monetize and make better use of Community. I realize that people are clicking on my videos and subscribing and liking and sharing. Also my demographic has changed from the "organic" growth of my channel. It used to be mostly 65 plus aged women in the US and India. Now my subscribers are mainly in the 20s and 30s and slightly more men than women. Oh and it's still the US and India although in both cases the numbers ar are much smaller in India. I follow several East Indian artist. Click on the Barn Owl to see this video.

Yes, I did mention that my next piece is 16 x 20. I'll be creating several glazed paintings in this size and for a while staying away from 9 x 12. I'm channeling my inner James Audubon san the rifle and all of the killing of entire species. I love photography.

I'll be sharing with you soon.