Outburst – 6″ x 9″, colored pencil on drawing paper

Well, was it a strange journey with this one or what. Never worked on such a moody piece, but I think I like how it turned out.

4″ x 6″, charcoal, pastel pencil

This one started out relatively smoothly until I realized that the background was anything but what I wanted it to be. Several attempts to solve the problem were unsuccessful, and for about a month I used every excuse to work on something else instead in hopes that the solution materializes in my head on its own. Before that happened, help came in the form of a demo by a very talented watercolorist, Terri Hill who gave a demo at FALC earlier this week. Just watching her do her magic got me out of the fog. The background is far from being finished, but at least we are moving again:

I am not sure how I ended up with the painterly background. It certainly was not a conscious decision, but I like the look:

Almost there:

Updated January 17, 2010
And I am going to call it done, nothing else to add to it:

4″ x 6″, pastel pencil, China marker

Today’s small discovery: China marker works way better as a highlight preserver than white charcoal or pastel (I made trunks and branches with it). Also, some Dervent pastel pencils of earthy variety act more like colored pencils then pastel. Since this sketch was done mainly by blending colors with a dry brush, the second discovery was not pleasant. Moral: test on scrap paper first (yeah, fresh idea, I know).

6″ x 4″, charcoal

I wanted to see how Prismacolor charcoal pencils will play with the mysterious cardstock that I got at Michaels long time ago. I say”mysterious” because the package is long gone, and I have no idea what the brand is. It turned out better than I expected – apparently, the paper is quite durable and allows for many layers of blending and crosshatching.

Artist at Heart is an oil pastel blog that shows oil pastel sketches by Yusuke Katsurada. Very nice work.

My son’s knit cap

6″ x 4″, charcoal

6″ x 4″, pastel pencil

4″ x 6″, gel pens

Since oil pastel is my newly found favorite medium (going back to it after an almost 6 year break), the title of Tanya’s blog caught my attention. She works primarily in oil pastel, but her acrylic and colored pencil works are just as delightful.

Tanya’s Charming Critters – oil pastel paintings

Patricia the rat drinking baileys on a quiet night out
Coloured pencil on black card, 2.5 x 3.5 inches (ACEO)