This is the 2nd project I’ve tackled in my Arts & Fails series. Within the past few years, I haven’t done a lot of sketching other than the sketching I do to block out my compositions for my collages. I’d love to delve back into drawing and keep honing other artistic skills. So for this project, I figured why not attempt to make a colored pencil drawing. I’ve never been particularly good at using colored pencils. I’m also not the type of artist who wants to make photorealistic works of art, but I am interested in seeing how I can layer things to make my own representational drawing.
For this piece, I decided to draw inspiration from the Great Saunter, which I participated in earlier this year. If you’re not familiar with the Great Saunter, it’s an event in NYC where participants walk the perimeter of Manhattan, which is about 32 miles. I have never walked that far in a day before, so I wanted to challenge myself. Although I’m glad I did the Great Saunter, I’m not sure if I’ll ever do it again. While walking the perimeter of Manhattan, I took a few photos of the city. And for this piece, I decided to use a few photos of parks and streets as my reference photos.
Here’s a video of the project:
I began the drawing by making a rough sketch of the composition. I bounced around a bit, blocking out colors before layering in yellows and oranges for warm highlights, and blues and purples for the shadows.
Overall, I’d say this was a successful failure. I don’t like how the street is off-centered, and the overall layering is just okay in my eyes. However, I’m proud of myself for working with a medium I rarely use, and I’d definitely like to return to it sometime in the future.
If you’d like to make your own colored pencil drawing, here are the supplies I used:
Ever since I was a teenager, I’ve been making collages entirely from magazine cutouts. And ever since I graduated from college with a BA in Art and English, I’ve primarily focused on making my collage art. However, this year, I’ve been feeling a bit restless. I’ve been missing the art experimentation that happens when you take art classes. I miss trying new things, so that I can approach my comfort medium with a fresh perspective. So I’ve decided to start challenging myself with an Arts & Fails series, where I’ll challenge myself with a medium or technique that I’m not familiar with. The goal is to break outside of my comfort zone and try something new. The goal isn’t to create a polished, finished work of art, but to try something new, embrace the mess, and have fun along the way.
The first project I wanted to tackle was watercolor. I had a watercolor set that I ordered a while ago just sitting around, and I really wanted to finally test it out. So for this project, I focused on making a watercolor painting inspired by the Bronx Botanical Garden, from one of my recent visits there. You can check out the video about the process below:
I started the project off by blocking out the different shapes and colors for the watercolor. Then I worked on adding in additional layers, focusing on the highlights first, since those needed to stay light. Then I worked on adding in the shadows and defining the shape of the composition a little better.
As I was working on the painting, I realized I didn’t use nearly enough water. The paint was pretty pigmented. I also ended up using the white a lot to try to undo errors I made with the darker colors. Overall, I thought the final project wasn’t too bad considering I rarely work with watercolors. However, if I were to experiment with this medium again, I would have done the following:
Use more water to create more transparent layers
Sketch out the composition a little better. My initial sketch was very rough and I ended up running into issues where I was trying to reshape the shape of the lilies and flower.
Use less white paint and try to work more with lifting paint up (i.e. adding water to a sponge to remove pigments that way)
If you’re interested in making your own watercolor painting, here are the supplies I used for mine in case you’d like to get the same things:
“Our House in the Middle of Our Street,” Collage on paper, 5″x7″
The other day I completed a new custom art order. It has been a while since I’ve done a landscape/cityscape collage, and this piece surprised me by coming together pretty easily. Perhaps I need to start exploring landscapes more?
These days it really does feel like there’s never enough time in the day to complete all the things I want to do. But no matter what, I’m extremely grateful that I get to practice my craft every week 🙂 Stay tuned…more art and more variety of art will be posted in the future.
“Beauty in the Blue.” Collage on paper. 5″x7″ Order a print
I’m getting in the habit of making these time lapse videos now that New York has been social distancing. I’m normally drawn to making animal portraits, but I figured I’d tackle a landscape since it’s been a while. I’ve taken a lot of pictures over the past couple of years, and I’m thinking I should start a series inspired by my travels.
“Rural Fields” Collage on paper. 5″x7″ Order a print
Landscapes are one of the subjects I seldom tackle. I suppose I’m more drawn to animals than I am to different environments. However, tonight I decided to sit down and complete a landscape piece from start to finish.
My landscapes have a tendency of looking more abstract, since I’m focusing more on abstract shapes of color and texture. I also wanted to limit my time on this collage so I wouldn’t overwork different areas of the surface.
I filmed a time lapse of this piece that you can view below:
I grew up in Northern Virginia, so I’ve become pretty familiar with the Washington, D.C. area over the years. And as I’ve grown to love different buildings and places, I’ve also found a lot of inspiration from my surroundings.
“The Torpedo Factory.” Collage on paper. 12″x9″ Order a print
The Torpedo Factory is an art center in Old Town, Alexandria. As a kid, I used to take a number of art classes there. In high school, I was mentored by a painter that had a studio there. And after college, I became a visiting artist for a couple of months over the summer. So over the years, the Torpedo Factory has had a big role in my development as an artist – it’s no wonder that I was inspired to make a collage of it.
“Downtown Shopping.” Collage on paper. 12″x16″ Order a print
“Downtown Shopping” was inspired by the townhouses in Old Town, Alexandria. Growing up, I used to wander around Old Town, and I became really familiar with the bright and colorful townhouses that line the streets.
“Paddle Boating.” Collage on paper. 12″x16″ Order a print
Whenever I walk by the Tidal Basin, the paddle boaters remind me of the days when I was a kid and went on field trips around the city, or visited museums with my family.
“The U.S. Capitol by Night.” Collage on paper. 12″x16″ Order a print
“The U.S. Capitol by Night” was inspired by one of the iconic buildings in the D.C. area. It reminds me of the times I’ve lived in the city, or walked along the National Mall.
“Air Force Memorial.” Collage on paper. 12″x16″ Order a print
The “Air Force Memorial” is a collage of one of my favorite memorials in the city. I love how the Air Force Memorial is abstract and sculptural. The fact that it doesn’t look like so many of the other more traditional memorials or sculptures, is what really draws me to it. I’ve made a couple of pieces inspired by this distinct landmark.
“The Botanic Garden.” Collage on paper. 12″x16″ Order a print
The colorful glass sculptures outside the Botanic Garden have always caught my eye when walking past that building over the years. I like how they give the landscape a pop of color in an otherwise gray environment.
“Air and Space Museum.” Collage on paper. 12″x16″ Order a print
I spent a lot of time at the Air and Space Museum back when I was in elementary school. I actually spent a summer going to space camp there, and always had somewhat of a fascination with space. It seemed only fitting to make a collage inspired by a place where I went on many school field trips and summertime outings.
“National Gallery.” Collage on paper. 12″x16″ Order a print
One of my favorite memories of art when I was a kid, was when I got to see a Vincent van Gogh exhibit at the National Gallery. I’ve been inspired by van Gogh’s work ever since I was in the second grade and did a school project on him. Over the years, I’ve continued to stop by this gallery to admire their permanent collection or check out the latest exhibit. I’m pretty grateful that I live in an area where museums like the National Gallery are free to the public. It makes it a lot easier to frequent the museum, and to continue to gather inspiration from artists throughout history.
“National Museum of the American Indian.” Collage on paper. 12″x16″ Order a print
When it comes the Washington, D.C. architecture, the National Museum of the American Indian is by far my favorite building. I love how different it is when compared to the more traditional buildings in the surrounding area.
“The Washington Monument at Sunset.” Collage on paper. 12″x16″ Order a print
Over the years, I’ve made a number of collages of the Washington Monument. And I’ve also taken numerous photos of it whenever I’ve strolled by.
The landscape of the Washington, D.C. area reminds me of a number of experiences I’ve had while living here. With my collages, I enjoy focusing on these familiar places, and showing a them in a different way – in paper form.
Back in college, I was a Painting Major. Here’s one of the pieces I completed during my freshman year – a myopic landscape. I remember I painted this piece while sitting outside on campus, and I really enjoyed using so many different colors for the reflection in the water. If you’ve seen some of my landscape collage work, you can really see how my work in painting translated over to collage.
“Landscape.” Collage on paper. 18″x24″ Order a print
This is a piece that I completed a few days ago. My client wanted me to make an abstract landscape, somewhat similar to “The Artist from a Distance” collage. So now I just need to frame it and deliver it to its new home. I’m also beginning to do a bit of work on my first chinchilla portrait. Chinchillas sure are cute!
Anyway, I’m off to run a few errands. And I can’t believe it’s almost December and before long it will be 2012. Wow, it still blows my mind how fast a year can creep by.
“Hide and Seek.” Collage on mat board. 18″x24″ Order a print
It’s been a busy week. I’ve got a lot on my plate these days, and unfortunately I didn’t get around to making as much artwork as I wanted to–although this weekend I should have plenty of studio time.
