This is my first experience with Polychromos, and I probably would not splurge on them if lovely people from the Campbell Artists’ Guild haven’t sent me a very generous Blick gift card for looking after their website. It’s too early to see where these pencils stand in comparison to other brands I’ve tried.
Author: Yelena Shabrova
Handwritten 19th-Century Color Guide Poetically Describes Where Shades Are Found in Nature
Today, many color-loving creatives aim to illustrate and identify tones found in the natural world. From landscape-based color palettes to real-world Pantone matches, these polychromatic pieces sort and specify the colors that surrounds us. While new technologies have made this task easier than ever, the practice has been popular for centuries, with Abraham Gottlob Werner’s 19th-century book, Nomenclature of Colours, as […]
Silent auction for the Oregon City Chamber of Commerce
“Changing Colors” is going to the silent auction at the Oregon City Chamber of Commerce annual celebration night on February 23 at the Pioneer Community Center. The auction is going to help support the Chamber. OCCC is very supportive of arts in the local community, of TRAG where I am a member, and of events […]
Beaverton – Your Art Moment series 2019
Two of my drawings, Newborn and Sun Kissed, have been accepted into the first quarter of this new year-long, daily series showcasing artworks via social media to inspire the community to take a moment to reflect and appreciate art and artists. I love the idea and am pretty happy to be a part of this […]
Tsunago: the pencil sharpener that creates a never-ending pencil
The biggest problem with pencils is that you can never use all of them. There are always leftover stubs that become too small for your hand and must be thrown out. It may be not a big deal with graphite, but what about colored pencils that can be quite expensive? I learned to split the […]
Before the light ~ sketch done with black Faber-Castell PITT and white Gelli Roll pens on Strathmore toned gray paper, 6″ x 4″ [SOLD]
Finished this during last weekend’s Holiday Art Show. It’s my first experience with the Strathmore gray toned paper, and because art shows tend to be busy, I chose a subject that allowed me to work in short spurts without losing focus. Loved small darker fibers in the paper, they add to the look of the […]
Holiday Art Show & Sale 2018
For the second year, I will have a booth at this wonderful show. Come if you can, meet amazing local artists and enjoy their creations! Dec. 1 from 9 am till 4 pm December 2 from 10 am till 4 pm Pioneer Community Center, 615 5th St, Oregon City
Experiment with colored pencil on a gesso board
This is take two. Take one happened two weeks ago and went so wrong that the piece could not be saved. I started with darker colors thinking I would lighten distant ridges later. But apparently at a certain number of layers pigment clings to the surface for dear life and refuses to be lifted with […]
horse in a cave silhouette sketch
Gave Faber-Castell PITT pens one more try. A few years ago they seemed not to be dark enough, but things change with time, right? Not these ones, though… Ok, no big deal, I will stick with Derwent Graphik.
Silent auction at the Oregon City Festival of the Arts
This was the first time I participated at the silent auction at the event organized by the Three Rivers Artist Guild of which I am a happy mamber. All proceeds from the auction go to support the guild. Guess I missed the memo before, I do that regularly. This year I gave this one to […]
2018 Landscapes Art Competition
I’ve entered several drawings into the Landscapes Art Competition at the Light, Space, and Time Online Gallery and quite pleased with the results. “Truckee River” received a Special Recognition award, “River Of Light” got a Honorable Mention.
Copying Other People’s Art Can Boost Creativity, Study Finds
Creativity and copying appear to be the opposites. Therefore, it seems unlikely then that there would be a link between copying another artist’s work and being able to create fresh, original work of your own. However, Kentaro Ishibashi and Takeshi Okada, an architect and a professor at the University of Tokyo in Japan respectively, have […]
Pottery Is the New Pilates, and Macramé Takes Away the Crazy
… creative work can alter the brain’s neural pathways, and how working with your hands can produce changes in multiple brain regions, which can alleviate depression and improve one’s ability to problem-solve. https://www.nytimes.com/2017/11/30/style/anxiety-crafts-pottery-embroidery.html
Relations I – work in progress
Updated: October 9th, 2017 And this is how the whole piece looks. Layer one – an ink drawing on tracing paper. Layer two – a tissue paper collage with grated pastel. Layer three – a canvas. I need to remember to never, ever use a gel pen of any sort on tracing paper except for […]
My new mixed media pieces at Four Eights 2017
I will have four new 8″ x 8″ mixed media pieces in the Four Eights Artist Challenge II exhibit and art sale at the Center for the Arts. This exhibit will showcase artworks created during the Four Eights an Artists Challenge II that tasked participating artists with creating original artwork around a singular theme on […]
Beaverton Arts Mix! 2017
Two of my drawings were juried into the Beaverton Arts Mix! show and sale. The show will open on October 5 and run through October 8 at the Beaverton City Library. Reception will take place on October 6, 7:00 – 8:30 pm. If you will be in the area stop by to enjoy more than […]
“Fortitude” and “Sun Kissed” earned the Special Merit Award at the 7th Annual “Botanicals” Art Exhibition
My colored pencil drawings “Fortitude” and “Sun Kissed” have received the Special Merit Category of the 7th Annual “Botanicals” Art Exhibition held by Art Space & Time Online Art Gallery. I am still browsing through images of artists recognized in different categories and admiring the talent and vision of so many. The show will be […]
Stress-related hormone cortisol lowers significantly after just 45 minutes of art creation
Whether you’re Van Gogh or a stick-figure sketcher, a new Drexel University study found that making art can significantly reduce stress-related hormones in your body. Although the researchers from Drexel’s College of Nursing and Health Professions believed that past experience in creating art might amplify the activity’s stress-reducing effects, their study found that everyone seems […]
A sketch a day: conflicting needs of those with no hands ~ graphite pencil, 4″ x 6″
It’s a tough life for a horse when she needs to munch and scratch an itching knee but has only one set of teeth for everything.
A sketch a day: mountains ~ charcoal, pen and ink
The blacks are ink, all shades of gray are charcoal including grays over blacks. I hoped for a different result, but it’s just a small sketch, so not a big deal. I will get where I want with the next version.
The Artistic Cycle
Originally posted by Raymond McCarthy Bergeron at Spunky Dog Looks as an accurate observation to me.
How to draw 3 points perspective
I finally found out who was the author of the perspective drawing with a rubber band video that was making rounds on FB: It’s Reza Asgaripour. Would like to know why the second part of the YouTube title of the one below is in Russian, but regardless… it is as neat as the older one, […]
“Gathering” series at the Three Rivers Gallery and Gifts
I am excited to have my drawings in the Three Rivers Gallery & Gifts through March and April. The gallery is located inside the cozy Singer Hill Cafe in Oregon City. The gallery is hung salon style and offers paintings, drawings, ceramics, jewelry, and about anything you can think of. The cafe serves excellent coffee […]