Work In Progress, Updates, Donating Artwork and Resource of the Week

Hi Everyone!
It's been crazy busy with school. Trying to find time to draw has been pretty much limited to, one day a week for me - Saturday. And then I hope nothing comes up, to interfere with the day. I am looking forward to Christmas break to work on some sketches from the sketchfest. I am presently not taking any commissions, just no time to work on them.

Anyways, here is my current work in progress of a portrait of Frans and Trish. I am so thankful they have not complained about how long it has been taking to complete this. They got married back in August. Two very special people. I hope I am capturing their likeness and spirit. Presently working on their clothes and the flowers.

At my Zazzle Store there is 50% off of cards and calendars. A huge Veterans Day Sale. Use Code: 50VETDAYSALE
Check out my store here http://www.zazzle.com/mooresart

 

Donating Artwork

If you have been following along on my Facebook Page, you will have known by now that I finished the cougar piece. I tried to posting it up on ebay, donating a percentage to Wildcat Haven, well I ran into some trouble. Even though I got permission from the photographer to use her photo as a reference, it appears she failed to tell me that Wildcat Haven had exclusive rights. My fault I should have checked into it further and I should have contacted them as well. Well, they were bit nasty with their messages, which got me upset, and pretty much calling me a liar. Anyways, to put a long story short, I now have decided to give back to my followers on Facebook, the cougar drawing is now a part of a free Thanksgiving give-a-way. If you "like" the post on my Facebook page, you will automatically be put into the drawing on 15th of November.
I have done many donations for rescue places, this is the very first time, I have ever ran into any problems with donating a percentage of the sale to an organization. As artists, I think it is important that we share our bad experiences, so other artists may learn from our own mistakes.

Steps When Donating Artwork or Percentage of the Sale of Artwork:

1. Always check out throughly the non-profit organization you wish to donate your artwork to, or a percentage of a artwork sale to.  What exactly is their mission? Do they accept percentage of sales on ebay? Do they allow drawings or paintings of their animals (don't just assume you just need permission from the photographer)
2. Ask other artists, who have donated to the organization, what they thought about the organization. What did they think about the organization? How did they treat you? Did you get a donation receipt?
3. Always, try to use stock photos or your own photos for references.
4. If you decide to use a photo that isn't stock or not your own, make sure to get permission from the photographer and stick to their guidelines to the tee. And of course always give credit when you post the image up on your website.
5. Notify the photographer and organization when you are done with the artwork.
6. Notify the photographer and organization when you plan to put up the artwork for bid on ebay.
7. Find out if there are any guidelines, when posting artwork up for bid on ebay.

Resource of the Week

A great article for emerging artists, artists trying to re-define themselves or artists struggling what their niche is.
6 Ways to Develop Your Signature Style
http://emptyeasel.com/2011/05/13/6-ways-to-develop-your-signature-style/

Hope you all have a great week!

Happy Creating!

 

 

 

New Colored Pencil Works, Colored Pencil Tip & Colored Pencil Resource of the Week

Hi Everyone,
So sorry I haven't updated in a while. I have been so busy with school, I just haven't had much time to work on any colored pencil artwork. I made it a point to set homework aside to post something today.


I am putting school work aside on Friday, October the 26th and maybe possibly the 27th to throw out some ACEO and other sketches. So if you are interested in checking the sketchfest out and purchasing any of my sketches check it out here  http://www.ellenmilliongraphics.com/sketchfest/index.php

Colored Pencil Artwork Updates

I have two work in progress updates to share. I am not as far along as I hoped to be, but I will be working on them both this weekend.

The first work in progress is of a cougar.
Medium: Colored Pencil
Paper: Canson Mi Tientes 
Reference photo courtesy of Karine Aigner Photography www.karineaigner.com

The second work in progress is a commission portrait of Frans and Trish.
Medium: Colored Pencil
Paper: Bristol

Zazzle

Zazzle has a great deal going on cards 50% off on all cards. Use Code at Checkout: ALLCARDSALE
Offer expires 11/27/12
A great time to order some of Christmas theme cards if you are interested
http://www.zazzle.com/mooresart/cards
  

Colored Pencil Tip of the Week

A video on colored pencil tips by Janie Gildow focusing on the basic colored pencil techniques.
https://youtu.be/tFGBQJCnwbI

If you search for colored pencil tutorials or drawings at YouTube, you will find some amazing helpful informative videos to help you grow as an artist. I think it is important to see how other artists work with the medium you like to work in. You might discover helpful tips, ideas, and techniques you never knew about.

Resource of the Week

A great site I have discovered for helpful art advice and tips.
http://emptyeasel.com/art-business-advice/general-art-advice/

I hope you all have a great upcoming week!

Take Care and God Bless!

Keep on Creating!

Updates, Colored Pencil Tip & Art Resource of the Week

Hi Everyone,
So all week I have been getting ready for school, which starts Monday  :)
I have been practicing up on my keyboarding, and I got some of my books and school supplies. I am awaiting my pell grant to get the rest of my books.

I have been suffering with tendonitis all week. Pulled some tendons in my left wrist/arm while lifting heavy things. So my wrist has been wrapped up in a brace. A constant ache shooting from my wrist up my arm. Fortunately, it is not my drawing hand :)

Updates

So I am working on the details of the cougar. Either the sale of the original or a print will be a donated to http://www.wildcathaven.org/ Which is a 501(c)3 non-profit, no-kill, ‘last hope’ sanctuary for big cats. It is located in Sherwood, Oregon. 

Colored pencil on Canson Mi Tientes. I am thinking I might change the one ear. I am not happy with it, but not sure yet.

On the portrait of Frans and Trish I have transferred the sketch to the paper and started working on the background. I Just starting applying colors using a light pressure, so kind of hard to see what I have done in the scan.

Colored Pencil Tip of the Week

Protecting colored pencil artwork is important to prevent UV Rays, wax bloom, and damage to your artwork. There are several products out there that artists use, but as with all products I advise to test first, before you apply the sealant.

When you apply the clear acrylic coating, you will not have to put your artwork under a glass frame. If you use just fixative, you will need to put your artwork under a glass frame.

The workable fixatives are great to prevent wax bloom, seal the work, yet still allow you to continue to work on the piece. You want to spray a thin coat, otherwise it will fill the tooth of the paper, creating a glass-like surface, making it hard to apply any more layers of colors.

Krylon UV Resistant Clear acrylic coating does not work well with watercolor pencils or works that you have combined with color pencil using some type of wet method technique. The colors change drastically.

• Krylon Workable Fixatif 
• Sennelier Delacroix Fixative for Pencil and Charcoal
• Lascaux Fixative for Pastel Charcoal and Graphite (forms a lightfast non-yellowing seal)
• Golden Archival Spray Varnish (provides a protective layer)
• Krylon UV Resistant Clear Acrylic Coating (protects against harmful UV light rays)
• Krylon Crystal Clear Varnish Spray (seals and does not yellow)

     

Art Resource of the Week

A wonderful colored pencil demo by Alyona Nickelsen
http://www.artistsnetwork.com/articles/art-demos-techniques/colored-pencil-nickelsen

I hope you all have a great upcoming week!

Take Care and God Bless!

Keep on Creating!

www.mooresartgallery.com

Tombow Irojiten Review, Colored Pencil Tip of the Week & Art Resource of the Week

Updates

*News I am now licensed with PSP Tube Stop http://www.psptubestop.com

So I had a pretty busy weekend and I didn't get much time in to draw, but I do have two new colored pencil works to share.

The first is a rough sketch of a couple I am doing a commission portrait for. I will be doing this probably all in colored pencil. I might use watercolor pencil or graphite for the background. I am not sure yet. Still playing around with ideas.

The second piece I am working on is the beginning of a donation piece.

Colored pencil on Canson Mi Tientes.

Reference photo courtesy of Karine Aigner Photography

www.karineaigner.com

Irojiten Colored Pencil Review

So I got the Tombow Irojiten Colored pencils a few days ago. I only ordered 4 colors, because using the 4 colors gives me a chance to explore and to decide if I like the brand or not. I chose 4 colors that I would normally use a lot in my works. But before I go into detail in what I discovered in my explorations, I would like to share a bit about what I have learned about this brand of pencil.

Tombow pencil company was established in Japan in 1913. Irojiten is Japanese and means "color encyclopedia". Irojiten is a beautiful white enamel pencil that comes in 90 colors. At Dick Blick, they are available in open stock, they are priced $2.39 each http://www.dickblick.com/products/irojiten-color-pencils/ . They are also available in three 30-pack volume sets - Rainforest 30-Pack, Woodland, 30-Pack, and Seascape, 30-Pack. And available in 5 pack pencil sets - Primary, Soft Primary, Fluorescent, Cool Gray, and Sepia . The prices for the sets range online from $8.54 - $53.99 per set. The pencils are wax based. No information yet on lightfastness test.

 

Now for my own explorations of this pencil. I have to say first, I love the range of soft to vivid colors that are available in their palette. Their palette of soft colors available is what caught my eye, as I tend to use a lot of soft colors in my colored pencil works. 

The lead is neither soft nor hard. If I were to compare them to a particular brand of pencils I would say they are similar to Prismacolors' Verithins, Prismacolors' Artist Grade, and Derwents' Coloursoft pencils. I would place them in the semi-hard category. They are definitely not as hard as Prismacolor Verithins, but they are not as soft and creamy as Prismacolors' Artist Grade pencils or Derwent Coloursoft pencils. They have more of a color selection compared to the Verithins. In addition, a handheld sharpener works great in sharpening these pencils to a point.

Applying light pressure, I applied one layer, then 2 layers and then 3 layers of color. I then applied a Copic colorless blender marker to see how the colors would blend. The single color did not blend as smoothly as the multiple layers of color. Next I applied a colorless blender pencil to the layers and then used a blending stump. I discovered some of the colors needed more layers in order to stand out well. I didn't have to constantly brush away pencil debris like I do with Prismacolors pencils. The Irojitens blended well with other colored pencil brands and they work great for small details. I will be ordering more. I love the color palettes. I think these will be great for working on my small miniature works and small details.

Art Resource of the Week

As I love to take photos but I haven't since my camera went on the fritz over a year ago :(, I have to share this photographer's community. Some amazing beautiful photography.

http://500px.com/

I hope you all have a great week!

Take Care!

Keep on Creating!

Carol Moore

www.mooresartgallery.com