Hummingbird (a small mixed media)

When I'm doing watercolor lessons with classrooms, I often end up with random areas of washes or other techniques. While I never do them with a particular intention in mind, one piece caught my fancy because it started to resemble the sky outside that day. So with a little water work, I cleared out a few clouds ... and then left it sit for months.

This particular piece is approximately 2" x 3" - not a canvas for an overly ambitious picture. But eventually I got an idea and so began to work. We have a hummingbird feeder outside our back door and it's fascinating to see the colors that reflect off these tiny birds, as well as the attitude they give you if you're too close for comfort. Talk about short man syndrome!

Even with the background in watercolor, the natural choice for me was colored pencil. I really am not a watercolor artist and still like a sharpened tip for working in small spaces. So I began with a sketch and then started to build the layers and the areas of color.



I found that it wasn't quite as balanced as I would like so in the end I added a few subtle blossoms (the view behind the feeder is a cherry tree at my house).


(Here's a more natural light look.)


To frame it for the regional CPSA exhibit, I elected to go with a simple 5 x 7" brushed aluminum frame and weighted the textured white matting. It was a delight to work small and I'll be doing it again sometime with other sample pieces I've been collecting.

"Hummingbird" is now part of a private collection.

The Audition (colored pencil on a dark background)

This little hippo sketch had been rolling around in my sketch book for quite sometime after an afternoon at a local gymnastics club. I've always been fond of her and wanted to give her a chance to show off her skills.

I began on a piece of dark Canson acidfree matboard. I wanted a stage look but wasn't really thrilled about the idea of building up layers and layers of dark around her on a white surface. I like the challenge of putting her in the limelight instead.





Knowing the layers that would have to be built up for light/bright colors, I did put down an underpainting layer of white in a few key areas as I went along. I also used black to create areas of shadow on the background which was actually a very dark teal. If the background had been black, I still would have used a black pencil crayon to create visual distinctions in the corners where the change in texture between the duller finish and the luster of the colored pencil would create depth of its own.



And of course, her ballet shoes went on very quickly.


Then it was time to start layering in warm grays (about 30 - 50%).



































From here it was largely a matter of building up the areas of color. You'll notice I tend to leave edges until the last and leave myself "reference lines" - areas I don't fill in until I'm ready to add the shading. No particular reason, I suppose, but in large areas I don't like to lose track of my drawing. Often I find my character suddenly needs a diet, or a nose job, or something if I obliterate the lines I want.










































The floorboards were one of the areas I let the matboard texture work for me here. I built up several layers, added some highlighting with a brighter shade and then realized I had built up a little too far out for my spotlight so had to work the line back by carefully erasing (you don't want to crush the texture or tooth you'll need for later!) and then softening the harsh edge with some relayering. I also filled in the body color for the little ladybug audience, although I left their details almost until the end.

Final details included some stage makeup (in the form of lipstick), highlights and shading in her bow, body, legs and ballet shoes, slight shadows on the floor for stability, and, of course, the details of the ladybugs.

My personal opinion is that I think she got the part :).