CPSA 17th Annual International Exhibition

This past weekend I attended the Awards Banquet and Artists' Reception in Duluth, GA for the Colored Pencil Society of America's 17th Annual International Exhibition. I really enjoyed the opportunity to meet some of the artists and see the work in person; all of the work exhibited was of such high quality. Above is a snapshot of me by my piece in the gallery.

I was also tremendously honored to receive an Award for Oustanding Achievement. The Award Winners are posted to the CPSA website: http://cpsa.org/GALLERY/WINNERS2009/AG2009.html

The Rumor

The Rumor, 12" x 16", colored pencil and watersoluble pastel on board

I recently finished another still life, this time going back to working with colored pencil. This one's kind of humorous, and I had fun with the bold colors. I'm not sure yet whether I'll try another still life next or go back to portraits/figures... we'll see!

Starting Still Life

Family Secret, 9x12, oil on panel

I recently finished my first still life shown above, and I am already beginning another. I am enjoying a change of pace from portraits, though faces and hands are still my favorite subjects. For this next still life I decided to use to colored pencil on a sanded surface (Pastelbord), with an underpainting with watersoluble pastels (Neocolor). Also, my next still life is simpler than the one shown here - no dolls, just fruit! I should be finished with it sometime in the next few days, and will post an image shortly thereafter.

Salmagundi Club Non-Member Show Reception

This past Friday I attended the reception for the Salmagundi Club 32nd Annual Juried Painting and Sculpture Exhibition for Non-Members. I was really blown away at the high quality of work on display, and the drew quite a large crowd of people. Below are some photos of the event (including one of my model next to his portrait):

Amira Revisited

About a year ago I completed two portraits of a girl named Amira. The first was done using colored pencil on panel, and the second was done using colored pencil and water soluble pastel on sanded board. I recently decided to revisit the subject, and the finished painting is shown above (12" x 16", oil on board).

Telling

I just returned from getting the portrait of the Storyteller scanned (see image above). I forgot to mention that this was my first time working on Gessobord, though I found it to be very similar to painting on Pastelbord. This piece is 36" x 24".

Portrait of a Storyteller

I am nearing completion on a portrait of a woman who is a Storyteller, and I wanted to post a photo of my work area along with reference photos. In this case, I had several photos to work from, but I still chose a combination of three to use for the portrait. I don't have Photoshop, so the combining process is more creative than technical. In general, I used the photo on the top left as a reference for painting her face, while her hands and the book were based on the photo on the bottom left. The photo to the right of the portrait is one I used as inspiration, as I felt it showcased her personality. Though the portrait is not quite complete, I am satisfied with the likeness, as I feel it represents her essence better than any of the reference photographs.