CUCUMBERS A Colored Pencil Demo by Patricia Scott
CHOOSING A SUBJECT
The inspiration for “CUCUMBERS” arose out of a conversation with a friend who had several old Ball canning jars. Having seen my work, he asked me if I could work them into a drawing. I was in the middle of another commission at the time, but [...]

Giuseppe Arcimboldo: Art as Allegory by Sharon Himes
Giuseppe Arcimboldo of Milan (1527-93) created still life paintings that were also portraits. The composition of fruit or tables was arranged into human forms. The cycle of Four Seasons paintings he repeated many times with each season depicted as a person.
These paintings were called ‘fantasy’ or ‘invention’ paintings [...]

Combining Ink & Colored Pencil by Janie Gildow
Ink works well for color and value (as a modified grisaille) under colored pencil, but due to the dyes from which ink is made, many of the colors, especially the bright ones are notorious for being fugitive. So when you use ink, mix colors that are dull and [...]

Cutting Freehand Silhouettes by Katherine Courtney
A silhouette is a picture of an object or person showing the outline only, filled with solid shadow or to appear in profile. Here is a short demonstration of how to cut a freehand silhouette. Most people actually “see” in silhouettes or block shapes, and this demo can help refine [...]

A Short History of Silhouettes by Katherine Courtney
A silhouette is a picture of an object or person showing the outline only, filled with solid shadow or to appear in profile. Its name is derived from “Etienne de Silhouette,” a notorious French controller general of finance who lived from 1709 to 1767. He would amuse himself [...]

Pen & Ink by Sharon Himes
Drawing with pen or brush and ink is an ancient art, common to Egypt and China as early at 2000 BC. The early inks were often made from carbon black, finely ground and dispersed in water or oil, sometimes with a vegetable glue. Today’s India Ink is made much the [...]