Back in the '90's, my medium of choice was color pencil over pen & ink (sometimes using pastels for the background). Line work was minimal, layered color pencils gave the drawings depth. This was a departure from what I was doing previously, lots and lots of line work and cross-hatching (I am looking at you Frank Miller's Ronin), regardless of whether it was pencil or ink.
Back in that day, the drawings were small, less than 8.5 x 11. The two below were 11x17, a real stretch for me. Covering that much paper with color pencil took time. That is when I started experimenting with adding pastel (see the blue mountains). Now I am mostly playing around with water color, pushing color around. Very little in the way of drawing. Sometimes it is fun to look back and see how my "style" has evolved.
Unfortunately, this was long and before there were inexpensive scanners or digital cameras so I have few digital records of these drawings. Most of those pictures are long gone, given away to anyone who asked. But a few remain.
I give you Herk the Barbarian and Silv. . .
Color pencil, pen & ink, and pastel on bristol 11 x 17 (board circa 1994)
Color pencil, pen & ink on bristol board 11x17 (circa 1993)
In Kearny, we spell it with a "K" because alliteration is cool. Initially I had wanted to add a more elaborate background, but I liked how the bird looked against the white paper.
Woodpeckers are starting to take a toll on my old friend. Mostly we get Red-bellied and the occasional downy wood peckers feasting in the old growth woods. Last week a rarely seen Pileated woodpecker went to town on my favorite tree. It acted more like an axe beak, hacking wood chips on an upper branch. Giant, gaping holes are testament to the damage.
Watercolor, Pen & ink on paper Done using Diamine Damson ink (a grayish purple ink) and a touch of watercolor for emphasis.
Trying something different. After some light and sunny Spring trees, here are some dark and brooding trees. Why? No reason. Just wanted to change it up a bit and use a different color palette. That, and try out one of the lessons in a Stephanie Pui-Mun Law art book I received as a gift. I am a big fan of her work, her work is amazing. Where her landscapes look ethereal and Fae, this is bit more harsh and dystopian (if dystopian futures had trees). Not a bad result but. . .watercolor continues to be a process for me.
