An Older Landscape

Smith Rocks Solo, 20 1/2" x 15 1/2"

Here's a landscape piece I did in 1995 of a view in Smith Rock State Park, which is a very pretty and dynamic spot here in Central Oregon. It is a very popular venue for both artists and rock climbers, with sheer rock cliffs along the meandering Crooked River. Personally, I'd far rather draw it, than climb it!

As you can see, I once again incorporated the colored paper background as part of the imagery, this time using a much more representational approach. I did try to add a bit of whimsy with the patchwork cross hatching for the sky, which I thought also complimented the more linear style of the flowing water. The hawk sort of flew into the composition as a bit of an afterthought, because I felt it sort of emphasized both the loftiness of the landscape and the serenity of the scene. All in all, I think it captured my vision of the area.

An Earlier Drawing

Around Midnight, 20" x 20 1/2"

This is a drawing that I did for my wife nearly 20 years ago. It was actually based on a thumbnail sketch of a cat I did while developing a logo design. It didn't end up as part of a logo, but I liked the stylized, yet realistic quality of the cat outline intersecting with the defining box. At the time, she had an all black cat named Midnight, which led me to envision a drawing using a black background for the negative space and cat, then filling the interior with a somewhat fanciful "stained glass" interpretation of a landscape setting. I used a metallic gold Prismacolor to delineate the colors and enhance that quality.

Integrating a colored background to become part of the imagery, has become an ongoing approach in my colored pencil drawings ever since, such as in the drawing in my previous post. Though the styles I've employed within the context of that technique have varied considerably, I've found it to be interesting and successful.

Thought I'd give blogging a try!

Pond Shadows, 19 1/4" x 20 1/2"

One of my favorite things about the internet, is the opportunity to so easily view the work of talented artists from around the world. For some time, via my all too expansive collection of bookmarked sites, I've noticed that many of those artists have blogs here. After retiring from a technology career a few years ago, I've been renewing my artistic pursuits and thought this might be a great way to show some of my work on the web.

To offer some chronology, I thought I'd begin my blog with some earlier pieces and work forward from there. Most of my earlier work was done in colored pencil because of it's "no muss, no fuss" quality, but mostly because I've always enjoyed drawing. Lately I've been exploring watercolor, which is very challenging, but can be delightful in its subtlety and luminosity. So far, I don't believe I've gotten past the challenging part yet! Hope you enjoy seeing some of my work. Thanks for stopping by!

This was the first major piece I did after I retired, using Prismacolor on Canson Mi Tientes paper. During a vacation in Hawaii, I was intrigued by the shadows being cast in a Koi pond, since shadows are typically associated with things in the air, not in the water. Because it was an indoor pond, I chose to translate the bottom in a decorative motif, somewhat reminiscent of tile, but also reflective of the fluid environment of the Koi.