the Pink Mixer
8"x8"
I picked up this pink mixer at the Salvation Army in Keene before I left. I'd like to plan a larger "baking"still-life with it too.
Monday, June 24, 2013
Saturday, June 22, 2013
Varnish Experiments
I am thoroughly enjoying living near a big city. I have had to order my art supplies online because my only art stores in Keene were Michaels or my local frame shop, who was great but had limited items or you had to know what you wanted to special order. I went to the Dick Blick the other day in Portland and was able to pick up several varnishes to try out. If you order online you have to pay a fee for the flammable products so I never ordered too many online to be able to experiment with.
I am varnishing on a makeshift table made out of a wardrobe moving box. I'm glad they get to be used for something.
Here's The varnishes I got to try. On the left is Grumbacher final fixative that I sprayed on first. It did a good job not altering the colors much. It slightly darkened the darks which I am okay with. It did also eat a little of the green background on my slug picture below. That, however is probably because that was straight Coloursoft and I was told that some Coloursofts are actually water soluble to an extent. Next time I will make sure to layer some prisma over that color or at least a colorless blender.
The other two were mentioned by Ranjini Venkatachari who works very similar to me. This stuff is AMAZING. I bought satin and gloss. When the satin dries you wouldn't even know it was there except when you touch it and feel the protective barrier. I think I can even photograph it without glare. The gloss will bring out your colors more and make them slightly more vibrant if you are looking for that.
This is my CPSA etry that will be going to the International show this summer. I was worried about varnishing it because I was having issues with a lot of things changing or pencil being eaten away with the Krylon I was using in Keene. I am SO pleased. It really didn't change at all and I can feel confident sending it off to California.
This is the one that the background green got eaten away by the fixative. I really think that color must be a little water soluble so I am not too worried about that.
Next I need to try the Golden Varnish without the fixative and see if that is okay as well.
Monday, June 17, 2013
Color Theory
I did a little 10 minute (it was supposed to be 15 minutes) talk on color theory at my local cpsa chapter in Portland and I feel like I need to add to what I said!
I am a big lover of Betty Edwards Color book. She makes color theory so easy.
The basis of her and my color theory is KNOW what colors you are working with. Verbally identify the color and what is in it. As colored pencil artists we don't start with primaries and mix or even with warm and cool variants of the primaries like painters. We start with premixed colors that may have black, white, or grey in them. Verbally or mentally identifying what is IN that pencil will help you keep nice, clean colors WHEN YOU WANT THEM.
So what I like to do is first identify the primary color that is associated with the pencil. Remember that primary red is more like magenta or a prismacolor process red than stop sign red and primary blue is cyan or true blue Prisma. So if I am looking at Prisma poppy red - the hue is red with some yellow to warm it up.
The I like to decide if it is tinted or shaded. Meaning I decide if white has been added to lighten it. This makes a big difference on the colored paper I use! How much white is in a color is key for mixing too! A color may have black added to it as well to darken it. If you want a clean color in a spot keep these pencils away!
The third thing I decide is if the color is saturated or not. If the color is as bright as it can be then it is considered fully saturated. If you would describe the color as muted, greyish, or dirty the the color is not fully saturated. It either has grey added to it (white and black) or the color's complement added to it. These colors are very useful, but again, if you want a clean color somewhere keep these away. Use them mindfully.
Something I talked about during the meeting was unintentionally mixing colors that you don't realize will create a commplent. My example was mixing a color like poppy red which we have decided has red and a little yellow in it. If you mix that or layer it with a red that leans to the cool side so it has a little purple in it... you are essentially mixing red + yellow + purple, which can dull your results. If you are mindful of what colors your pencils are comprised of AND layer less in the vibrant areas - then you can achieve cleaner colors.
ALso I had a book with me that people were interested in called The Contrast of Colors by Ellen Marx. It is all about color theory and has some great color overlays throughout the book to demonstrate theories. Here it is on Amazon http://www.amazon.com/The-contrast-colors-Ellen-Marx/dp/0442251149
I am a big lover of Betty Edwards Color book. She makes color theory so easy.
The basis of her and my color theory is KNOW what colors you are working with. Verbally identify the color and what is in it. As colored pencil artists we don't start with primaries and mix or even with warm and cool variants of the primaries like painters. We start with premixed colors that may have black, white, or grey in them. Verbally or mentally identifying what is IN that pencil will help you keep nice, clean colors WHEN YOU WANT THEM.
So what I like to do is first identify the primary color that is associated with the pencil. Remember that primary red is more like magenta or a prismacolor process red than stop sign red and primary blue is cyan or true blue Prisma. So if I am looking at Prisma poppy red - the hue is red with some yellow to warm it up.
The I like to decide if it is tinted or shaded. Meaning I decide if white has been added to lighten it. This makes a big difference on the colored paper I use! How much white is in a color is key for mixing too! A color may have black added to it as well to darken it. If you want a clean color in a spot keep these pencils away!
The third thing I decide is if the color is saturated or not. If the color is as bright as it can be then it is considered fully saturated. If you would describe the color as muted, greyish, or dirty the the color is not fully saturated. It either has grey added to it (white and black) or the color's complement added to it. These colors are very useful, but again, if you want a clean color somewhere keep these away. Use them mindfully.
Something I talked about during the meeting was unintentionally mixing colors that you don't realize will create a commplent. My example was mixing a color like poppy red which we have decided has red and a little yellow in it. If you mix that or layer it with a red that leans to the cool side so it has a little purple in it... you are essentially mixing red + yellow + purple, which can dull your results. If you are mindful of what colors your pencils are comprised of AND layer less in the vibrant areas - then you can achieve cleaner colors.
ALso I had a book with me that people were interested in called The Contrast of Colors by Ellen Marx. It is all about color theory and has some great color overlays throughout the book to demonstrate theories. Here it is on Amazon http://www.amazon.com/The-contrast-colors-Ellen-Marx/dp/0442251149
Saturday, June 8, 2013
Sneakers
Sneaker 8"x8"
I needed a third image for the theme below. I am thinking I need a boy image with these shoes too!
Thursday, May 30, 2013
Sixties SL
Sixties
8"x 8"
As you can imagine this one is really hard to photograph! This is close on my computer - but not quite there.
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