Sometimes there are hiccups :)

Willys Bubbles WIP

Yesterday i had one of them, i am too embarrassed to show you the eyes on this one, right now they are actually erased and show nothing but holes :) I just couldn't get the gaze and the pupils right on this which was noticeable when I came to do the second eye (serves me right for not working on both eyes at the same time).
Anyway so my pic for today is that i thought i would show you the progression of the mouth.

For all the artists here, i just wanted to highlight (briefly) the much debated issue of tracing your reference. I am not going to attempt to detail all the ins and out of why one should or shouldn't trace a reference, everyone has their own view points, some educated some not. Obviously my belief is that tracing is ok, its a method/tool in the art creation process much the same as a grid or any other numerous ways, they are all just methods, there is much that goes in the creation artwork beyond whether you trace or not. Just because you trace something doesn't mean that you are able to capture the essence of it and make it work, in fact its the opposite.

This latest hiccup demonstrates it entirely, just because i have traced the eyes to get positioning etc, doesn't mean i am able to render the eyes correctly, the eyes just don't look right. To start with the lines on the reference are dark and flat they don't quite represent the 3D aspect of the eyes correctly and therefore look "off".
For example: it doesn't really show how the eyeball sits within the eye socket, how the skin wraps around the eye, it briefly shows there is a shadow, but the shadow is flat instead of curved in certain places, in real life the eyelid wraps around your eyebrow / socket but in the photo it just looks like the one shade. If you have studied drawing eyes you will begin to understand a bit of how this works. I have only studied it briefly in the past which is i think why i am running into problems right now :) tells me that i need to do more sketching and life drawing... never mind i will get there :) What this means is tho, artists need to undertand and study how anatomy in particular works in order to draw or paint it correctly. You are making decisions throughout the process about what goes where if you dont understand it then you are going to struggle to get it right.

For now though, just wanted to point out how there are hiccups along the way keep plugging away you will get there :) practice practice practice its ALL part of the process :)

Willys Bubbles WIP3, Three things I love about drafting film

"Willys Bubbles" WIP - coloured pencil on drafting film

Here is a photo of this is progressing and while i am here i thought i would post

3 things I Love Love Love about working on drafting film

• 1. You can erase back to the original surface with no deterioration of the surface in seconds, so unlike if your working on paper, if its not working just erase it with a normal eraser and start again no evidence, even 6-7 layers of pencil (drafting film doesn't take much more than that)its just too easy.
  
  
• 2. It's fast, so much faster than paper, this sized artwork would have taken me probably about double the time at least to get to the same stage on paper.
  
  
• 3. I can double check my drawing on my original reference at almost anytime by placing it over the top of it, during the production, so for things like eyes and fine details in portraits you can refer back quickly and easily. its amazing how often the original drawing and even your shadows etc get out of wack as you go along.

Drafting Film Supplies
Note to Australian Residents, especially in the Central Coast area, i have noted there are two different versions of "drafting film" available in my local area even though they are still called drafting film. The drafting film i am using for this artwork is (i think) equivalent to what they call "Mylar" in the US, its slightly opaque and very silky / smooth.
The supply I am using I bought on a recent visit to Sydney. My local art shop supplies a version which is a little more "papery" if that's a word :) a texture a bit like tracing paper. The latter does not give the same effect. The cost different is usually also an indicator the papery version being about $2- an A2 sheet where as the better version about $6-.

Internations Womens Day Exhibition

Gathering Strength - Belinda Lindhardt, coloured pencil on Stonehenge

I am a little annoyed, well alot annoyed but at myself which is even more frustrating.
Part of my inspiration for the above piece "Gathering Strength" was instigated by the fact that i wanted to do something for International Womens Day which is March 8-9. Last year really wanted to enter something which "said" something and so this was my result.

I had been planning to enter it into Gosford Art Gallery - International Women's Day exhibition which was under selection criteria this year. I have had the application for a few weeks. It was required to have statement about the event to go along with the application which i have spent a good part of the morning doing (also putting it off for weeks not sure what to say).
I for some unknown reason had written down the date for the application to be in by the 29th or the 19th Feb (which is today). So as i am filling out the form i see that the date was actually on the 9th of February and so i have missed out !!! I am so annoyed, i was planning on entering another exhibition also for the Multi Arts Society (this application date is the 29th Feb, hence the confusion) so looks like i will only be entering in that. GRRR!

Anyway, with the view not to waste a mornings work i figured i might as well post here the statement for International Womens Day i wrote regarding this piece. So here you go!

International Women’s Day 2009
Last year after hearing about International Womens Day, I remember thinking that I would like to create a piece for International Womens Day 2009. I remember thinking about what it was to be a woman and what it meant to me.

For most women becoming a mother is time when you usually change to some degree, some more than others. From the moment a woman becomes a mother she is forced to start making decisions and sacrifices for her children so they can have the best start possible.

I knew I wanted to do piece about becoming a mother as it’s had such a profound effect on the woman I am. I am a mother of 3 children 1 lost during pregnancy at 5months in 2002, and today i have two wonderful healthy boys 3 and 5 years old.
During 2008, I was challenged by events that were occurring in my own little family, I was going through a separation and an unexpected change of life. During this difficult time, the love and need to look after my children gave me strength. It was through and for them I was able to pull through and just get through each day moving forward. I remember thinking that it would be the same for all of us, especially during difficult times that our children give us strength, they weren’t doing anything directly they were just there and needed protection and love and that is what spurred me on and still does continue to inspire me everyday to help them grow and learn.

So my piece “Gathering Strength” was created. It was to challenge me artistically by being my largest coloured pencil piece to date. I wanted to explore various ways of laying down colour in a way that loosened my style up but also wanted to experiment in new techniques to help cut down on some of the time involved in creating large coloured pencil pieces. It was also to challenge me composition wise as I wanted to convey a story and pull the viewer in to try to see something happening in the piece rather than a standard portrait.

Here is what was written in my online art journal during the works in progress stage:

” I don't choose to see it as a sign of weakness but a sign of strength, that you can come through something difficult with your head held high. The truth is, although this is good in theory its not always easy to find that inner strength. This piece is about how I have been gathering my strength, its through the wonderful support of friends and family but especially through the love of my two boys.

So, for all the mums out there i am sure at one point in your lives you have had to pull yourself together and find strength from somewhere. This piece is about being a mum and the strength that loving your children and them loving you without them knowing it can give you.”

This artwork took over 70hours and 2.5 months to complete.
This International Womens Day I am in a much happier place and more settled place. I know I have an inner strength to deal with all the unexpected changes that life continues to throw up and I will come through doing what is right for me and my children.
This day is exploring and showcasing individual’s journeys and what being a woman means to them. This piece all is about what it means to me in 2009.

“Gathering Strength” – by Belinda Lindhardt.
Prismacolor and Polychormos coloured pencils on Stonehenge paper.
Frame size = 71 X 83 cm
Artwork size = 41 X 55 cm

Where will my art be in the future ?

http://www.news.com.au/technology/gallery/0,23607,5037070-5014321,00.html
I just came across this article in todays paper, it showscases all types of new technologies being developed. There are examples of phones, computers, screens etc all ways to communicate in the future, its amazing. Many of these things being developed i imagine wont be too far away relatively speaking. Just look at the development in recent years, I was only just thinking the other day about my first pc which my dad bought when i was a kid(which was a "VIC 20") which was before commodore 64 it didnt have a harddrive and didnt have a mouse. I had to sit and program lines of code for ages just to get it to flash colourful hearts on the screen. I am sure it cost a bomb at the time.

Seeing all the photos in the article leads me to think about my art, where will it be in the future? People today and especially our youth are bombared by so much imagery and with the technology in cameras, phones etc almost everyone is a "photographer" or a webdesigner.
Even just in my 12 years of doing graphic design, not many people knew about graphic design when i first started and in particular things like editing photos, setting up webpages. Many would not have even considered doing it themselves. Yet today people, with the advance of technology do it everyday for both private and business use. (doesnt mean they should just because they can - but thats a different post).
So what about your / my art in the future, how will it compete all the imagery that even today is going on around it? Why would people pay to have your art rather than a photo or a cool pic on their screen ? Would they really care about the skills/techniques you have learnt in order to make that art?
How will people view art? With so these "screens" and technology available everywhere would people really have space for a pictuure on the wall ? Or would it be viewed via a screen ? But then how is your "art" different from just a photo which has been edited in photoshop? (apart from the physical presence of it rather than a computer file).
hmmm lots of things to ponder and i am just blabbering, i am not sure what the answer is but i know its something that i have tried to do with all my recent pieces is to make it tell a story or present a circumstance or emotion. Maybe emotions is what will pull it through rather than being like everything else out there!

Willys Bubbles WIP3, Coloured Pencil on Drafting Film

More WIP (works in progress) on this one. Thought you might all like to see how the background is coming together.

Here is a detail shot of the back of the film as you can see i am quite rough with this area.

I have included a shot so you can see i am working with a brown paper underneath the work so you can see the colour better, but this shot also shows you what it looks like on the white of my drawing table.



The other shot here shows the "front" side after i have completed filling in all of the back. Doing the squiggles like this is surprisingly quick you can fill in large areas. :)

Willys Bubbles WIP2, Coloured Pencil on Drafting Film

Here is an update to this one :)

It's coming along, started on the ear, i also started on the other side of the background, its looking a bit different than the first part.hmmm.. but it will get there :) thats the glory of cp.. as the pieces take so long, you are in a different mood each time you do it.. strokes etc vary :) i will match it up tho :)

Willys Bubbles WIP, Coloured Pencil on Drafting Film

"Willys Bubbles" WIP, CP on drafting film

Here is a teaser of my newest one. Its of my youngest son Will. He is such a cheeky boy i hope to capture a bit of that in this one.

It's 420X280mm, Coloured Pencil on Drafting Film.

I have tried to be quite round with the background using lots and lot of squiggles and colours. (click on the image for a larger view) this technique i think works a little bit better on paper than on drafting film, but its still progressing nicely i am happy with the way its going.

For those new to drafting film, its great for coloured pencils as you are able to colour on both sides of the film. Shadows and highlights can be encouraged by adding these too the back, giving off a really nice effect. Sometimes when applying details it can get a bit tricky as you are working in reverse, but its actually not too bad.
Will post more soon.

Sketch

I havent been keeping up with my sketching of late. Yesterday i did and it felt good :)
Here is my little quick sketch.

New Blog Update

As you can see i have updated my blog !!!
Updating my blog was one of the things on my list of Tasks to do for January/February so i feel great for having achieved it.
I conducted my "research" ( basically recorded what i liked about blogs i visited over the January period) with the view to update my blog in February. As my regular readers would know my blog design was updated not too long ago but in this update i was concentrating on the content and functions and being specific about things i should and shouldn't include and why.
I still have a few things to do mainly the external links and my art website /selling stuff to sort out but for now the blog is updated ready to cater for all that stuff.
Let me know what you think, any suggetions or comments i am happy to take all onboard for thinking :)