The Gold-Ass - pencil drawing

 

The September challenge of "Goed Gezien - Goed Bekeken" is about 'resounding coins' as it can be translated from Dutch. And that was not inspiring for me at all. After a conversation with my husband about the theme he came up with something good, but again not really something I would love to paint or draw.

And there it was, the little Gold-Ass popping up as a real possibility. The story is about golden coins, dropping down. That makes a sound so it fits the theme - more or less - and this is what I wanted to draw.

Looking for a picture of a donkey I found a nice one that I could adapt to the 'stretching' of the donkey before delivering the coins. The coins are there as well, I used metallic pencils for them.

The information about the materials I have used, the size and availability of this drawing and - if you are interested in my original artworks - my contact information can all be found in my Flickr account.

Stone circle - five works

 

During my painting vacation I was looking for a way to paint/depict the spiritual feeling I can get at certain sites. Our teacher and coach Ad van Aart helped me find my 'voice' in this.

After the cap stone and the dolmen I needed a new subject and I made up a stone circle.  The work at the bottom is a first try on composition. It is not quite finished but the other participants of the painting vacation called this stage interesting so I just left it this way. For the composition I did not need to go further.

The second version is made with willow charcoal to explore the spiritual feeling. Following this version I made one with Chunky Charcoal which is much darker than Willow charcoal.

The watercolour versions are made on panorama size paper, the stones on the left and the light coming from them shining to the right. First only Indigo and a second painting with an earth colour on request of Ad.

The charcoal drawings and the watercolour paintings do show the spiritual feeling I wanted to show in these works. All four are different, but the idea is there. I am really happy with these results.

The information about the materials I have used, the sizes of these works and their availabilities and - if you are interested in my original artworks - my contact information can all be found in my Flickr account.

Bindweed (Calystegia sepium) - a pencil drawing

 

These days the bindweed (Calystegia sepium) shows its white flowers everywhere in our neighbourhood and I made some reference pictures for a drawing.

Using my Drawing Pencils I had to find a way to show that the white of the flower is not so very white at all. Using light colours I shaped the flower and added the darker background later.

The colours of the flower are created by the shadows in the petals and the light on them. Not to forget the reflected colours of the grasses around it.

The information about the materials I have used, the size and availability of this drawing and - if you are interested in my original artwork - my contact information can all be found in my Flickr account.

Sparrowhawk - a pencil drawing

 

Today's prompt in the Sketch a Day app was 'hawk' and as I went looking for a nice reference picture in my 'archive' of nature pictures I found this Sparrowhawk.

I decided to make a drawing on tinted paper using my Drawing Pencils. 

Working with these pencils is nice but it can be difficult to get a sharp point because they are softer than my other pencils. The result is not very detailed but that usually is just how I like it to be.

The information about the materials I have used, the size and availability of this work and - if you are interested in my original artwork - my contact information can all be found in my Tumblr blog.

Roadside flowers, a white on red drawing

 

This is my last work for the May challenge of Goed Gezien - Goed Bekeken about the colour red. On a watercolour paper I made a background using two shades of red, let that dry and made a drawing on it inspired by the roadside flowers I can see when I am driving home from work.

This time I used Drawing Pencils, so the work is sprayed with fixative.

The information about the materials I have used, the size and availability of this work and - if you are interested in my original artwork - my contact information can all be found in my Tumblr blog.

View through tree roots - a pencil drawing

 

During our short stay in the Val Joly region we made a walk that started in the Parc de L'Abbaye de Liessies and in a hollow road we saw how the sand was washed away from the roots of some of the trees. My husband had the camera and made some reference pictures for me.

This was the most 'dramatic' one and I made a pencil drawing while we were on vacation. 

These days I only bring some drawing materials with me on vacation because drawing is easier in less ideal circumstances such as not being in my studio.

This drawing is a small size and I will probably make another work using this tree as my inspiration.

The information about the materials I have used, the size and availability of this work and - if you are interested in my original artwork - my contact information can all be found in my Tumblr blog.

Blossoms in bud - a pencil drawing

 

Walking home after having done some shopping I saw these small buds on a bush by the footpath. Of course I made some reference pictures for a drawing.

These white blossoms or buds look best on a black paper and I chose medium size for this branch.

Using my new Drawing pencils I made this work. These pencils work great and I am still exploring the possibilities of layering and mixing colours and saturating the colours when I don't need mixing - like with the white petals.

The information about the materials I have used, the size and availability of this work and - if you are interested in my original artwork - my contact information can all be found in my Tumblr blog.

Nest - a pencil drawing

 

Today's prompt in the Sketch A Day app is 'Nest' and I really liked the idea of drawing a nest.

The scene is imaginary, a bird's nest in a fork in a branch, surrounded by more branches and the beginning of foliage.

I enjoyed using my new pencil set on another shade of coloured paper.

The information about the materials I have used, the size and availability of this work and - if you are interested in my original artwork - my contact information can all be found in my Tumblr blog.

Pine cone - a pencil drawing

 

The reference picture I made of this pine cone was waiting to be used for a painting or drawing and with today's prompt in the Sketch-A-Day app the drawing is made.

I used my new Drawing Pencils for this one, this time on a tinted paper.

Making the drawing was nice and relaxing, the result is what I hoped for.

The information about the materials I have used, the size and availability of this work and - if you are interested in my original artwork - my contact information can all be found in my Tumblr blog.

Tree - a pencil drawing

 

A few months ago I bought a new set of pencils, a quality I had not used before, but the range of colours attracted me. These Derwent Drawing Pencils are for drawing landscapes and animals, exactly my kind of subjects.

The first drawing I made with these had to be an subject I know - a tree. Last weekend we went for a signposted walk in 'Voorne's Duin', starting and ending at the visitor's centre 'Tenellaplas' a large pond in the dune landscape.

The weather was fine for a walk like this and I made several pictures, not only of trees, but also of the dune valleys we passed through.

This tree with part of its roots exposed attracted my attention and inspired me to draw.

Testing the pencils that are new for me I found out that they work easily, I have been mixing by layering more than two colours in one spot. I have also been using the white of the paper or completely covered the paper with colour in some parts of the tree trunk, the branches and the roots.

These colours cannot be 'awakened' by adding water - as can be done with the watercolour or Graphitint pencils - but I am happy with the result I get with these pencils. As said, the range of colours is limited and designed for landscapes, trees and animals but that does not really bother me.

After I finished my drawing I have used some fixative (as was advised on the website) and my colours did not change at all.

The information about the materials I have used, the size and availability of this work an - if you are interested in my original artwork - my contact information can all be found in my Tumblr blog.