January Portrait Session Pastel

12" x 9" Pastel on Coated Paper

This is a portrait drawing of our model at the Thursday evening portrait session last week in Pleasant Grove. Thought I'd give the pastels a go at it this time. The paper is Art Spectrum Colourfix paper. It's a coated paper with a gritty surface for holding pastel pigment. The pastels used were Faber-Castell Polychromos pastels and Conté pastel pencils.

For more about drawing sessions, go to "Labels" on the side bar and click on "sketching" or "drawing."

Hiking and Sketching, Part 2 - Plants and Critters

Charcoal Pencil

These are a few more sketches from the two 6" x 8" sketchbooks mentioned in last weeks post. From it's appearance the sketch shown above could be a picture of a juniper tree or cliff rose, but it's a Gambel oak. Another time I went back to the same spot and did a plein air painting of that sprawling tree.

Next is a sketch of a little cottonwood sapling. 

Graphite Pencil

Below is another line drawing, this time of a willow branch, and some unidentified leaves in the upper right of the paper.

Graphite Pencil

This page from one of the sketchbooks is kind of a three-fer. It has a line drawing of some leaves, and also a bunny and cliff face; animal, vegetable, and mineral.

Top, Right, Graphite Pencil
Lower Left, Charcoal Pencil

I'm fascinated by the lines leaves have, but sometimes I'll add a little shading. These are leaves of a box elder tree.

Graphite Pencil

The following page from the sketchbooks has a couple silhouetted trees. The one on the left is a cliff rose. On the right is a sketch of a fir or spruce tree.

Charcoal Pencil
(Except Duck, which is Graphite Pencil)

At the top of the previous sketchbook page is a quick line drawing of a duck. As you can imagine, sketching animals is a little more challenging than trees and bushes. Trees and bushes don't move around very much. Not only can animals move around - a lot, they can disappear. Often all I can get is a quick gesture sketch of whatever critter I want to draw. The ducks in the sketch shown below were at a local city park I visited. They came up to me quite eagerly, but wandered away when I began sketching instead of throwing bread crumbs to them. Before they left, I got as many quick gesture sketches as I could.

Graphite Pencil

One day down by the lake, I got close enough to a few Sandhill Cranes to get these studies. The day had early springlike weather, and was quite pleasant, except maybe for the little spiders which kept crawling on me.

Graphite Pencil

The snail shell in the next image was found along a bicycle path by the lake. The cows were sketched at a different time in the same meadow I had seen the sandhills in.

Charcoal Pencil
(Except Snail Shell, Graphite)

On another day near the lake, I came across a small group of magpies and made these studies of them.

Graphite Pencil

Small garter snakes will sometimes risk their life to sun on the paved bicycle trail. I make a point of chasing the snakes I find off of the trail before a cyclist runs them over. Except this one. This Garter snake sat still long enough for me to make this sketch of him. Afterwards I shoo'ed him off the trail, too.

Graphite Pencil

Hiking and Sketching, Part 1 - Landscapes

Early Spring in the Valley, Graphite Pencil

Most every time I go on a hike or take a walk that will last for more than, say, ten or fifteen minutes, sketching supplies go with me. Taking time to sketch on hikes and walks sharpens drawing skills, helps explore potential painting subjects, and provides a different way to observe things outdoors.

Maple Mountain in Summer, Graphite pencil

Some might think sketching in nature would be relaxing, but it takes putting forth the effort and focus needed to draw as you do things like: sit on hard, bug infested ground, or stand in the snow, fingers stiffening and eyes watering as icy winds try to freeze them. If that's relaxing to you, more power to you. Whether or not it's relaxing, sketching outdoors is an important part of being a plein air painter.

Summer Cottonwood and Ranch, Graphite Pencil

The sketchbooks I take with me on hikes and walks vary in size, from little 4" x 5"s to 9" x 12" pads. The images in this post are selected from a couple of 6" x 8" drawing pads. They're only a small portion of the sketches I've made over the past few years.

Wasatch Front, Graphite Pencil

 Some of the sketches are less than a full page. One page in the sketchbook might have two or more different sketches on it.

Charcoal Pencil

The next sketch is a half page sketch of outcrops on a mountainside. The mountain was the one that's front and center in the "Wasatch Front" sketch (fourth image from top), which is also a half page sketch.

Outcrops, Graphite Pencil

The next sketch is of a column of steam from a power plant. It was sketched as I stood on an ice covered lake.

Graphite Pencil

Next is another sketch of Maple Mountain, done this time with the low angle of winter light.

Graphite Pencil

Here's a view from a mountainside trail, looking up Slate Canyon.

Graphite Pencil

The next two sketches were made looking west across the lake. The first one is looking toward the Oquirrh Mountains in early spring, the last one is a study of summer clouds building over the Lake Mountains.

Graphite Pencil

Graphite Pencil

A Portrait Sketch from the Past

14" x 11" Charcoal and "White Charcoal" Gray Paper

This is charcoal sketch from a live drawing session done a number of years ago. She's the same Native American woman who modeled for this sketch. You might think that I'd get tired of charcoal and "charcoal white" on gray paper, but it's an excellent way to quickly and accurately sketch various faces, poses, angles and lighting situations. Those last four things are what really keep me drawing - not necessarily any particular medium. I'll never tire of drawing people's faces. Besides, you never stop learning from practice.

For more about drawing sessions, go to "Labels" on the side bar and click on "sketching" or "drawing."

Merry Christmas 2015!

12" x 12" Oil on Canvas Panel

Last week Santa Claus modeled for us at  Casey Childs studio! For this oil sketch I used a three color palette: cadmium yellow, cadmium red, and ivory black, plus titanium white.

It was fun in spite of the challenges. I set up at a spot that had flat lighting and no shape-defining shadows. I absolutely love drawing and painting faces, but so little of the jolly guy's face was visible. The portrait is dominated by a shapeless red suit and a mile-long polyester beard. But maybe that's not important because, after all, I got to paint Santa!

Besides that, there was lots of cookies and chocolate for us to enjoy during breaks!

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Here's a Christmas Video I enjoyed on YouTube. If you haven't had a chance to see it, here's your opportunity:

Merry Christmas everyone!

Portrait Sketch from Life in Oil Paint

10" x 8" Oil on Canvas Panel

It's been a long time since I last got the oil paints out at a live portrait session. I've only painted portraits from life in oils a few times before. It's easier to stick with mediums I'm more familiar with for portraits, such as pastel or charcoal. But Casey Childs has cajoled me on a few occasions to practice painting from life with oil paints. Last week I finally hauled a paintbox with oil paints into Casey's studio and did the oil sketch shown above. It was made with a limited palette; cadmium yellow, cadmium red, and ivory black, plus titanium white.

Don't forget that you can see several of my plein air landscape paintings for sale in galleries throughout the state. You can find out more about them here.

Holiday Exhibits 2015

Evergreen Gallery in Salt Lake City has used a generous part of their wall space to show fourteen plein air paintings I've done. The photograph shown above and the one shown below are different angles of the wall that Evergreen Gallery is using to exhibit my work. All paintings are for sale.

Logan Fine Art Gallery in Logan, Utah and Juniper Sky Fine Art Gallery in Ivins, Utah (near St. George) also have for sale paintings I've made. If you're in any of these areas be sure to stop and visit the gallery, enjoy the exhibits and maybe you'll find something to brighten up the walls of your home - for the holidays and year round!