Portrait Commissions and Sketchbooks

This year I've been kept pretty busy with some beautiful child portrait commissions to paint. This sweet girl above, Sadie, was finished a few weeks ago, and I have a little boy currently on my easel that is nearly finished as well. I feel so honored that these parents trusted me to capture their child and I hope I'm doing each one justice.

There hasn't been any time for personal paintings, but after this last commission is finished I'll be taking a break from custom work to paint some ideas I've had floating in my head for a while. I've had an idea of paintings of my boys I want to do that I'm considering using to get back into the juried show game, but we'll see how they turn out first ha! I haven't entered a painting in a competition for a long time, but I think this might be just the thing to help me push myself out of my comfort zone and level up my skills. Well. . . that's the hope anyways.

I have however been doing plenty of sketching as time allows. This is so crucial to my own satisfaction as an artist, and for personal growth. Even if I don't have time to paint on a certain day if I can squeeze in a sketch I feel like I'm still growing my skills, developing my career as an artist and that to me, is pretty priceless. Here are some of my recent faves:

I really miss blogging, but it seems to take so much time. I'm posting much more regularly on instagram if you'd like to follow me over there!

Oil portrait work in progress

 16 x 16 inch oil portrait commission

In progress

Still working on commissions, but I thought I'd show a pic of this one in progress. Nearly done (well. . . the hardest part is anyways). 

And here's a little Last Unicorn doodle I did while drawing with my son the other day. :) 

Hope you all are doing well!! 

We've sold our house and will hopefully be all settled in to our new place by the first part of November. Then life can get back to normal, lol. It's been a crazy last few months!

Reading: Untold by Sarah Rees Brennan
Listening to: The Monstrumologist (audio book) by Rick Yancey
Watching: Supernatural
Snacking on: buffalo spiced Wheat thins

Alpha - original wolf drawing

'Alpha' 

6 x 10 inches

colored pencil on toned paper

click here to purchase

I have always been fascinated with wolves. I read White Fang and The Call of the Wild so many times as a kid and teen that I could quote passages of them to people who really, probably didn't want to hear it. But good literature should oft be quoted no? ;) 

When I was in high school I did my senior art portfolio test all about wolves. And all of them were painted with instant coffee and water on brown craft paper, and all of the poses were very stereotypical, slavering mouths agape, and chilling, predatory eyes burning in the night. Those art examiners ate my quirkiness up let me tell you. ;) 

I've since learned more about wolves, and how much of their interaction is very gentle, like a loving family and a parent who sometimes has to put their kid in a timeout. I feel like it's kind of a responsibility for animal lovers, especially wolf lovers, to not promote the vicious animal stereotype that surrounds them still, so now I try to portray them in times of playfulness, or love. Like this one. I love that calm, tolerant expression of the wolf who's getting chewed on. :)

In other news, I finally made a cute little clay pony that I'm really happy with and I'm putting her in my new Etsy shop as a made to order option for anyone interested. :) 

Listening to: 'What Happened to Goodbye' audio book

Watching: Merlin 

Snacking on: mini Snickers bars

Drinking: coconut/lime diet Coke

Reference photo of the wolves by Bob Haarmans, thank you!

A letter to the artist as a young girl

'Linger' 

5 x 5.75 inches graphite on paper

click here to purchase

A letter to the artist as a young girl,

I thought about you the other day. I pictured you sitting at that old computer desk that you dragged into your room. I remember how you placed it, with much planning and care on your part, so you’d have a clear view of the cherry tree in the backyard, the horse pasture beyond that, and the acres of apple orchards even further beyond that. 

I can see you in my mind with your pans of watercolors spread out in front of you, sketches of horses and ponies littering the floor, along with the odd crumpled up paper that didn’t quite live up to your expectations.

You are an artist, and you have been from the very beginning. And here you sit, painting and drawing away, feeling nothing but the uninhibited joy of a child creating.

With that in mind I have a few things I’d like to tell you. First of all, that I’m proud of you. For your passion for art, your perseverance even when things don’t come easy to you, and your faith in your future that you’re sure is filled with brilliant things.

The second thing I’d like to tell you is this. Don’t give up.

Now I know what you’re thinking. Why would I ever give this up? This wonderful happy-making thing that is art?

I’m afraid I can’t tell you that right now. Some things are better left for you to discover first hand. But know this, there will come a time in your life when things won’t feel this rosy and optimistic. All roads might seem to end up leading to nowhere. You will feel discouraged, frustrated, and maybe even a little hopeless. That dream that you’re holding tight in your heart right now might one day start to look a little tarnished, it might feel impossibly beyond your reach.

That’s why I’m writing you this letter. To tell you that no matter how dark things might look one day, they will get better. But not if you give up. The only way things will get better is if you keep making art with that same passion and love that you had when you were sitting at that beat up old desk under the window in your room. Things will get better if you listen to that voice inside that keeps whispering to you to paint your heart out no matter what anyone else tells you. Especially then.  Don’t ever let the opinion of others stop you from making art. Things will get better if you just don’t give up. I promise.

Now go on back to that desk and paint something pretty. I know you can do it.

Love,

Crystal (your future self, who just so happens to be a professional artist)

Tales From The Sketchbook

'Ever Watchful' 

9 x 12 inches graphite and white colored pencil

$45 plus $7 US shipping, or $15 International 

 

A few weeks ago I somehow ended up looking through a bunch of my old sketchbooks. I found one from 2004 that was my first sketchbook that I worked in nearly every single day. Most of my other ones were very hit and miss. I was absolutely amazed at the difference between the sketch on the first page of the book, and the one on the last page. Here they are: 

 First page sketch 2004

Last page sketch 2004 

Kind of a big difference don't you think? I almost couldn't believe it. 

As I looked through this book I could remember almost exactly how I felt with each sketch. The first pages were filled with insecurity and doubt, and a lot of not knowing what I was doing. But there was also such a desire to improve, to learn as much as I could, and most of all a passion for drawing. By the end of the book I remember feeling so much more confident, and also I remember it being more of an intuitive process, where my mind wasn't actively thinking about how to draw, I was just drawing. Where as in the beginning my mind was filled with 'rules' and what not to do.

After I closed that book I wanted to get back to sketching a lot. So when I saw that Strathmore had come out with these new sketchbooks with tan paper you can bet I snapped that baby up faster than Uncle Si could say 'Hey Jack!' 

But then when it actually came time to sketch in my new, pretty book I kind of froze. The first two sketches were horrible. And I mean Horrible. Un-redeemable. I ripped them out and threw them away, which was very liberating. 

I am pretty superstitious about my art creating rituals. I don't like to skip pages in my sketchbook because then I think I won't be able to make great sketches after that. I have a paint brush that is totally beat up and basically unusable but I always keep it next to me while I'm painting because I secretly think that it's the key to a successful painting. If I'm struggling with a certain area of a painting I have to put 'Hysteria' by Muse on my iPod and that will instantly make everything better. Yes I am a weirdo, I openly acknowledge this.;)

Then finally I did a sketch that I was happy with. The deer sketch is the first successful sketch in my new book. :) And I'm so excited to do the next one. Huzzah and onward to the next!

Almost a Smile

'Almost a Smile' 

7 x 9 inches

graphite on paper - not for sale

This is a beautiful little girl that lives in my neighborhood. Last fall I started asking some fellow moms I knew to see if there were any willing models nearby. And I had a pretty big response which made me SO happy! Then the holidays came and well, I am just now getting around to working on the photos I took of this darling little girl.

When I ask someone to model for me I give them the option of either me paying them for their time, or giving them a sketch. Her mother chose the sketch. I want my models to know how much I appreciate their time, so I always try to compensate them in some way.

Except for my children and my nieces and nephew who are exempt from this rule. They work for free, and occasionally cupcakes! :)))) Mwa ha ha!!!

With this sketch I wanted the emphasis to clearly be on her eyes, so that's where I kept my darkest values and the most detail too. I am really happy with how it turned out. But let's face it, having such a beautiful model makes my job pretty easy right? Happy weekend everyone!

In Flight - Andalusian Horse - SOLD

'In Flight - Andalusian horse' SOLD

6" x 8" graphite on bristol paper

A horse gallops with his lungs,
Perseveres with his heart,
And wins with his character.
- Tesio 

Why yes I was waiting in the car yesterday for my boys. Why do you ask?? Getting lots of drawing time in and it's awesome. :) Also my Kindle is now full of games to keep littlest Cook occupied while in the car so he's not bored either. Good times. 

Have a wonderful weekend everyone!

P.S. this is the very same Andalusian stallion from my previous drawing 'Without Wings'

Reference photo by venomxbaby on deviantART, thank you!  

Undecided SOLD - Southeast Asian girl drawing

'Undecided'  SOLD

6" x 6" sepia colored pencil on paper

My kids are back in a bunch of lessons (guitar, Tae Kwon Do, Spanish reading) after taking a break during the holidays so I have quite a lot of time to draw while waiting in the car for them. :) Which is where I did most of this drawing. 

What I loved most, and hoped to capture, was her very concerned expression, especially the little wrinkles in her smooth, youthful forehead. Like she was trying to make a very hard decision. I'm also experimenting a little bit with a slight exaggeration of the facial features with my drawings/sketches. I am trying to emphasize those things that stand out the most to me, what makes me want to draw this person in the first place. I think it worked out well here. :) 

Until tomorrow friends! Huzzah for Mondays!!  

Reference photo by Gustavo Jeronimo, thank you! 

Bloom - SOLD

'Bloom' SOLD

6" x 6" graphite on paper

Sometimes I just really miss drawing when I spend so much time painting. Preparing a drawing for a painting is very different from doing a drawing to stand alone as a work of art. So the best thing to do is get out my pencils and sketchbook and go to town. I thought this girl from India had the most beautiful features I'd ever seen. I ended up exaggerating them a bit unintentionally because I loved them so much. :)

I have the hardest time photographing pencil work. It really makes me wish I had a scanner because while this is close to the original, it's really not as close as I would like. 

I don't plan on taking any time off now that the 30x30 challenge is done. I simply have to paint. And I have really enjoyed blogging more often. I'm shooting for Mon - Fri. Some days may just be works in progress since I would like to work on a large oil painting soon. I just have to get handsome hubby into the garage to cut up some more panels for me. :)

I hope you all have a fabulous weekend!

Reference photo, with thanks, by Ryan Lobo

Of portrait drawings and pirates. . . savvy?

'Kat'

graphite portrait study

not available

 

Earlier this year I got to work with this beautiful model. I have lots and lots of paintings planned. :) So many that I kind of get overwhelmed at all the choices in front of me you know? But that's a good problem to have I think. Don't you?

 

I really enjoy drawing faces with glasses or earings because they act as sort of a built-in grid. And they're fun too.

 

In other news, did you know a very important holiday is coming up? That's right. It's one of my favorites. National Talk Like A Pirate Day. :) On Sunday Sept. 16. To help you land lubbers prepare for this important day I'm providing this very helpful tutorial on pirate speak:

 

 

If you have young kids you've probably heard it a time or two. :)

And Talk Like a Pirate Day just wouldn't be complete without some sort of a tribute to the best pirate ever. THE Captain Jack Sparrow:



Heh heh. Best Pirate ever. :))

See you next week everyone! Savvy love? ;)

Of Sketchbooks and Birthdays and The End of Summer

graphite on sketchbook paper

Saw this beautiful girl at the dog show me and my son went to earlier this year, I think she's a Saluki.

 

This has been a busy week. Back to school shopping, meeting the boys new teachers at back to school night, my youngest son's fourth birthday party, and spending our last week together before school starts doing all kinds of fun stuff.

 

Happy Birthday to my baby boy!!

 

 I can't believe he's already four. We made puppy cupcakes, which has kind of turned into his tradition. He always asks for 'pupcakes' for his birthday. :)

 

It's been a good week. Crazy, but good.

 

The end of the summer always brings out mixed emotions for me. Part of me wants our routine back and yes, a break from brotherly squabbling. If I hear one more time "Mom he's touching me!!!" I swear. . .

 

But a larger part of me wants to have unlimited days of being at home together, afternoon trips to the park, art projects, long drives in the car while listening to Harry Potter, and swimming with the cousins.

So yeah, I'm going to miss summer. But at least it brings us one step closer to fall and Halloween, my favorite season of all. :)

Huzzah!!

Cougar Kitten Sketchbook Saturday and some randomness

prismacolor on sketchbook paper

Just a little cougar kitten sketch that I did back in June. :)

Do you ever feel so excited to paint that every minute away from your easel (table, desk, what have you) is kind of torturous? I kind of feel like that right now.

I think I'm starting to get the hang of these oil paints (at least a bit), I painted my first portrait with them the other day that I'll post on Monday, and I can't wait to paint another one!

And then I have all these watercolors drawn out and ready to paint, and of course a colored pencil portrait in the works, three new commissions of darling and beautiful animals to start. . . . Who wants to vote to add more hours into the day hmm?? :)

And I found this quote the other day by Julia Cameron that I thought I'd share (I already shared this on my Facebook page so sorry about that if you've already seen it) because it seemed to fit my feelings of trying oil paints for the first time:

"Remember by being willing to be a bad artist, you have a chance over time to be an artist, and perhaps, over time, a very good one."

I love that. There's nothing to be gained by an artist who doesn't take risks and try new things. Constantly exploring new subjects and media is what keeps me inspired and I know if I keep doing that I'll be able to express the deepest feelings of my heart. . . But perhaps badly at first. ;)

And I can't leave you guys without sharing this pic of me with a streak of pink oil paint that somehow ended up in my hair. At least it washed out. . . mostly. :) I've always wanted pink hair anyways.

Huzzah!!! :) For pink hair!!! :)

Vintage Lady - sketchbook Saturday

 

prismacolor in my sketchbook

from a vintage black and white photo

This sketch is actually from a few months ago and I already posted it to my facebook fan page but realized I never posted it over here.

If you look close at her nose you can see that initially I had it totally in the wrong place, but kept drawing anyway, even though you can stilll see my goof. :) For sketching I think it's really important to not worry about mistakes, but to just get your initial impression down as quick as you can. I think it really helps to record the first impulse you feel for your subject. Any one else have any thoughts about that?


Happy weekend all! Huzzah!

Reference photo by Ky Olsen

Lashes Sketchbook Saturday and some Huzzahs

I started this little sketch in the car (I swear I do my best sketching there, it's almost like I can't sketch anywhere else!) yesterday, trying to be quick and expressive. I never erase these sketches in my sketchbook either, what you see is exactly what I lay down the first time I touch pencil to paper, which perhaps explains why they aren't exactly perfect, but I like that.

By the time I had to stop drawing in the car I had finished her face and just barely laid in a few strokes to suggest her hair.I should have left it as it was. I came home and filled in the rest of her hair and I wished I hadn't. I really think it would have been better to just keep my initial impression of her instead of filling in every last detail.

A good lesson to learn to translate to my paintings I think. Stick with my initial impressions! Don't go back in and over work! Something I say over and over again when I teach workshops. Ah well, lesson learned. :)

Happy Saturday all! :)

Huzzah!

Had a question from LW Roth who asked me what I mean by shouting Huzzah all the time, I wrote a blog post about it some time ago, but here in a nutshell is what it means:

 

Huzzah

huz·zah also huz·za (h-zä)

interj. n.

Used to express joy, encouragement, or triumph.

1. A shout of "huzzah."

2. A cheer.

 

There you have it, and so I leave you with yet another. . .  Huzzah!! :)

 

 

Swishy Hair Sketchbook Saturday

teen girl caught mid hair flip

prismacolor in my sketchbook

There's a park close to my house that is one of our favorites. It has a duck pond, two huge playgrounds, swings, one of those metal merry go round death trap things (yay. . . said no one ever), endless grassy fields and trees, and something that really appeals to me, le artiste, a high school just around the corner.

There are endless subjects for smitten paintings and other great figure paintings. Which is something I really want to focus on more, even though I find it challenging. It's hard to focus on detail so much in my close ups and then switch to the bigger picture and suggestion for figure paintings.

But I'm working on it.

I loved that I caught this girl flipping her hair around to impress the boy who walked along side her. Heh. That's so something I would have done too.

Happy Saturday everyone!

Arabian Horse Sketchbook Saturday - sold

Arabian Head Study sold

Prismacolor pencil on Bristol

4" x 6"

click here to bid

A drawing of a beautiful Arabian horse that lives behind my house. She's been my muse several times. She is always so friendly, her ears prick up and she gracefully walks over to see me whenever I get close to the fence. I secretly wish she was mine. :) I drew this little sketch today because I knew I had a sketchbook post coming up. That's one benefit of blogging, it forces you to GET TO WORK!

In other news, life is crazy-hectic-busy around here lately with the kids home for the summer. We're having all kinds of fun and athletics and enriching activities. And all that essential non-fun stuff like laundry, and lawn mowing, and laundry, and weed pulling, and laundry. . . Can you tell I hate laundry??

But I love having them home. I really do. Even with all the busy-ness and extra laundry. :)

In other words I'm struggling to find a balance here. In other-other words, this is a plea for help! Help! Any one have any tips for good time management when there is no extra time to be had?? Usually I feel like I have a good handle on time management, but not right now. I could use some tips. Please?

Cougar Sketchbook Saturday

Cougar sketch

dark brown prismacolor pencil in my sketchbook

I really love big cats. When we went to the zoo last month I spent way too much time in front of the tigers taking hundreds of photos of them. They are just so fascinating and beautiful. Although the photo I used for this sketch of a cougar is from an old reference book about North American wild cats.

I've also been getting some questions about why I use colored pencils for sketching so I thought I'd let you all know. :)

1. They don't smear and I like a tidy sketchbook. It is so aggravating to open my sketchbook and find graphite smudges all over the place. And by all over the place I also mean all over me. More than once after I've been drawing I look in the mirror and find I have pencil smudges all over my face.

And occasionaly, and unfortunately, I find this out from someone else. *embarrassing*

2. Colored pencils don't erase so they force you to place your marks confidently and accurately. And if you get it wrong? Tough puppy.

3. I just really like colored pencils. They feel buttery and smooth and they are just fun to use.

In other news my computer is giving me fits again so it's headed in to the doctor today. And I will be out of town during the early part of this week (Happy Anniversary to me and my husband, Huzzah!) so I won't be able to ship any paintings out until Wednesday, and I most likely won't be replying to any emails until then either. 

Unless you want to get an email from my mobile device that looks like this HU8%*ZAH :)

Have a great weekend everyone! See you next week! :)

Vices and Virtues SOLD

'Vices and Virtues'

6" x 6" graphite on Strathmore 400

SOLD

I love to draw. But really I can't think of an artist that I know who doesn't love to draw. And if you're an artist who doesn't love to draw, you need to learn to love it. Make drawing your favorite. :)

Technically this drawing isn't a sketchbook study, it's much more. . . fine tuned, I guess you could say, than most of the drawings in my sketchbook. But it is one that I started while waiting in the car to pick my kids up from school. I do a lot of drawing in my car, I hate waiting and being bored. :)

When I first saw this woman I thought she seemed a little haughty. But the more I studied her face as I was drawing her the more I thought of her as just plain confident instead of prideful. She had a good mix of the two I suppose. And there is a certain curiosity in her expression that I really, really like. Don't you think?

P.S. I'm hopefully going to be posting more drawings and sketches every Saturday. . . As long as I get to it before my children wake up and demand breakfast and park trips! Loveable little minions. :)

Isabelle Lightwood

Isabelle Lightwood

character study from the book City of Bones by Cassandra Clare

graphite on Strathmore 400 11 x 14"

I'm working on having some giclee prints made up of this drawing. They should be available in my etsy shop by the end of next week. An 8 x 10" will be $30. Smaller sizes will be coming soon as well.

 'Shadowhunters: Looking Better in Black Than the Widows of our Enemies Since 1234' - City of Bones   

The other day I had the strongest urge to just draw something. I have been neglecting my sketchbook lately and if I do that for too long I start to feel very unhappy. So I started this drawing from a non-copyrighted photo I found of a young woman with a hefty dose of attitude while I was waiting in the car to pick my kids up from school.

After about fifteen minutes of drawing I realized that she reminded me of someone. A character (Isabelle Lightwood) from one of my favorite books, City of Bones by Cassandra Clare. Once I realized that, the drawing started to take on a life of its own, and it was SO much fun.

No, wait fun's not the right word to describe it, it was just enjoyable and satisfying to put on paper an image I had held in my head since I had first read these books nearly four years ago.

Drawing characters from books is something that would not have occured to me if I had not found and became friends with Kim Kincaid. She is an amazing artist who draws character studies from books she loves (a fellow bookaholic just like me!). Click here to see some more of the characters she created from this same book.

Sometimes I really feel like drawing is as close to real live magic as I can possibly get. And it is awesome.

Have a great week everyone! See you on Tuesday. :)))

Sparkle 2 - A Sketchbook Tuesday study

Sparkle 2

graphite sketch on unidentified paper currently in my sketchbook :)

Well friends, 'tis the day after Halloween and I'm feeling a wee bit sluggish. This may have something to do with the copious amounts of sugar I indulged in yesterday, (though I'll never admit to it) and as such this post will likely be a mix of all things random and nonsensical.

This sketch is a small study I did for an upcoming painting I'm going to be working on. I loved this little girl's big, sparkly eyes, and her pouty lips. But, the lighting on her face was very soft and diffused, which makes for beautiful soft cheeks, but also makes it more difficult to model form.

I usually don't do such detailed sketches like this before every painting. I typically have a very short attention span and don't do well with a lot of preliminary work, I lose interest and don't want to carry on with the painting. But the lighting was tricky here and I wanted to see if I could get it right in a sketch first.

I think it turned out pretty well. I just fell in love with her eyes. :) And I can't wait to paint her.

Now my friends I shall leave you with two photos of my two most favorite super heros, as well as a spooky looking phantom-type thing. (Which would be, my three boys)

The spooky looking phantom-type thing (oldest Cook boy) with the Green Lantern (middle Cook boy) hot on his heels.

Beware evil doers! Spiderman (littlest Cook boy) has joined up with the Green Lantern to bring you to justice! Huzzah!

Until Thursday! Huzzah!

photo reference used with permission by Steve Evans (babasteve on flickr)