Colored Pencils

I feel like I am obligated to do a post on colored pencils, seeing that I use it in almost all of my pieces. Like I said in my previous post, I never realized how much of an importance colored pencils were in the illustration field. I always looked at them as being for the younger crowd before I started my major in art in college.

When I first was told to get colored pencils, me being the poor college student, bought a cheaper brand of colored pencils. Don't do this! Finally when coming to R.I.T. my one professor made a polite demand that I must buy prismacolor colored pencils. I was annoyed and really didn't want too but did and I am so happy that I listened and followed through, prismascolor colored pencils is the way to go!

Materials in the art world are almost as important as the talent the artist has. The quality of the brushes to the quality of paint, canvas, board, paper, colored pencils... It all counts!

You can use colored pencils on illustration board, canson paper, regular paper, wood, whatever you like really. I prefer using canson mi teintes paper personally, try and chose a color that will help as good foundation for your piece. For example if doing a face portrait flesh colors work well such as tans and reds.

There are so many different techniques to go about when using colored pencils. I always start with a basic outline for the piece though, I start off with using a white colored pencil for the basic outline. From there i begin to build the piece layer by layer. Some people start with a dark color and work their way to the lightest but I kind of go all over the place, it's up to you on this one. When just using colored pencils for a piece I almost use a hatching technique. Which means my piece is mainly made up of small markings that build whatever it is I am drawing.

Colored pencils also really work well with less opaque paints like water color and a water downed gouache. It could be the underlaying portion of the piece and even an over layering part of the piece or both.

When handling colored pencils it is important to try and not to drop them. The wax lead that is inside the wood of the pencil can break up inside and it will decrease the life expectancy of the colored pencil and you'll have to keep buying new ones. Some artists use an exacto knife or blade when sharpening colored pencils, I personally feel it is a waste of time. I'm not saying to go and buy a cheap sharpener I like to use two different types of pencil sharpeners.

My favorite is my old school Boston vacuum mount self feeder that I use when I'm home. I couldn't find a website for the manufacturer but you can purchase them on amazon, ebay or even at an office supply store. Mine is over well over 20 years old and I love it.

My traveling pencil sharpener is just a simple hand held metal pencil sharpener with a no shavings holder. I guess I'm old school when it comes to sharpening pencils, I'm completely fine with that though. It does the job without destroying my pencils.

Gouache comes in handy for the highlights of a piece with colored pencils. Sometimes if you have too many layers it gives the piece a glossy look, a flat media like gouache helps break this up. For instance in a self portrait I did of myself I just used it on the eyes, which I did make glossy but the little marks of gouache breaks it up and brings the piece to life. Don't use just pure white though, it may be too intense, I suggest adding a little blue or black so the white isn't so severe.

Oil Pastels

Last year in one of the classes I was taking, I was introduced to one of my favorite media's in the art world, Oil Pastels. When first being introduced to them I was very weary on what and how I was supposed to do with these thick waxy crayons, but the second my oil pastel crayon hit the paper it was love at first sight!

Now when dealing with oil pastels it's good to know that they are very forgiving when it comes to mark making, you can keep building layer on top of layer and blending the variety of colors. I never thought I was going to enjoy doing this as much as I did.

With oil pastels I have discovered it's great to use as a primary media but you also can also include a tertiary media or two to strengthen your piece with this media.

When starting your oil pastel piece make sure to have a good variety of colors, I would chose between a set of either 36 to 48, it will really save you time when trying to come up with the most ideal color that you want in an area of your piece. I use Cray-Pas Expressionist extra fine quality oil pastels. If you want to start off with the junior kit which is 16 cray-pas colors just to get a feel for it, go for that.

Since oil-pastels is similar to painting only it isn't wet media, I like to start with laying down a base color of paint before doing anything else. I like using a water downed gouache or water color for this, chose the the most common dark color that you plan on incorporating in your piece, this will speed up the process, you won't regret it! Make sure it is dried before continuing with the piece.

A cold press illustration board I feel is likely the best choice for oil pastels but i have done pieces on just regular colored canson mi teintes paper which eliminates the initial process of painting, that's up to you.

So once you have your chosen colored canson mi teintes paper or painted cold compress illustration board lay down the basic outline of your piece with, yes you guessed it, color pencil! I never realized until coming to R.I.T. how important colored pencils are to an illustrator!

Once you have the basic outline in, lay down the layers of oil pastel, I really like to get expressive with my colors and line values. In the sets that are larger in variety they usually come with a blender crayon which really helps with blending in colors so be sure to make use of it if you cannot get that particular color you're aiming for or there isn't a cohesive blend going on, sometimes the blending process can get mucky.

When I'm finished with the oil pastel I like to bust out the gouache again, white gouache turns into your best friend at this point for the highlights of the piece. Since I love doing portraits as I'm sure you can already tell, I find the whitest highlights and use a very very lightly watered down gouache now remember what I said before in a previous blog about oil and water mixing, keep that in mind!

Okay so when you think you are completely done, there may be certain areas that have a waxy build up, easy fix I usually hit the back of the piece (if it's on a board) if that doesn't work Q-tips come in handy with an easy gentle wipe on the oil pastel waxy build up.

The piece I'm showing is a piece I did in my illustration techniques class from this past fall using the techniques I described above.

A Clean Brush is a Happy Brush

As I've said before, brushes are just as important as the paint you are using when doing a piece.

 Not only is it worth it to throw in some extra dough on brushes but cleaning them right after use is the most important rule of dealing with paint brushes. It will allow their life expectancy to increase and I know you don't want to be dropping your hard earned cash anymore then you have to at the art store.

When dealing with gouache, acrylic and water color paints its a must to keep water next to you. Change the water once it gets to the point of murky. I just learned that if you keep a piece of bar soap helps as well, especially when using a brush during the piece and you're changing the color of paint with the same brush.

With oil paint just make sure you have turpentine or paint thinner handy. All you have to do is dip the brush in either solutions and wipe it clean with a rag or towel.

Once you are finished with your brush completely for the day head to a sink. I use the sink in my basement because it can get a bit messy. Warm water with soap or detergent and make sure you rinse and wash out all the paint. There should be any color in the water when you put your fingers through the hairs of the brush. I take regular paper towel and squeeze the hairs of the brush with it just to make sure I don't put them away wet.

There are brush cleaners sold at art stores and even brush cleaners. I do not own one of these, I don't mind cleaning them myself. But if you're interested in looking into it I know one is called the brushmate and i know Winsor and Newton has a few different care products for your brushes.

For those of you that think it is too late and your brushes have expired due to poor use I attached a video I found on youtube on how to revive your brushes and bring them back to life!

Gouache Painting

With the holiday season behind us I have found time to sit down and finally get back into this blog. For Christmas my aunt contacted me asking me to do a family portrait of my cousin, her husband and son. I was more than happy to do it and decided to go with Gouache.

 Now when doing portraits its always good to go from more than one reference, so with my piece I chose at least 2-3 different pictures of each person I was to draw. Gouache is one of the most commonly used mediums in the art world. Unlike oil painting you don't need turpentine or paint thinner (so your respiratory system can take a break). When painting with gouache you'll need plenty of water to clean your brushes, a palette (preferably white) water color brushes (i prefer rounded tip brushes, especially for portraits), gouache of course, painters tape and a canvas or illustration board.

Now before i do anything I always like to put a coat of gesso on the board, it gives support for the painting and allows the medium to absorb better. I usually put painters tape around the border of the board, either 1'' or 2'' is good just to give it a clean crispy look.

The gouache I use is Winsor and Newton Designers Gouache. Make sure to have a white, black, burnt sienna, spectrum yellow, primary blue and spectrum red (if you want more go for it, I prefer a limited palette). Gouache is a bit pricey but it can last a long time if used correctly. By putting the gouache on a damp paper towel will allow it to dry not as fast while painting and storing it in a sealed box with a wet sponge inside while not in use helps as well. Gouache can be very watered down if you prefer it almost using it as if it were water color paint or you can use it like oil paint and add barely any water, but water is needed to use gouache.

I use colored pencil for my outline of the drawing, since gouache can be less opaque depending on the water amount added, be careful on your marks for the outline. With gouache like other paintings it is good to do layers of the piece, always starting with the background and working your way to the front.

It does dry pretty fast but I like to use a hair dryer just to speed up the process a bit, if you want to get fancy and spend some money you could purchase a heat gun. Once finished with your piece make sure to wash your brushes off with soap and water thoroughly and you're ready for your next piece.

The piece I did for my aunt to give to my cousin for Christmas was a success and it really makes me happy seeing the expressions on peoples faces when they see my work. Hope you enjoyed your Holiday and Happy New Year.

Oil Painting (re-post)

So since this is my first blog I'll start off by saying a little more about myself, I attend R.I.T. and am majoring in Illustration and minoring in APR (Advertising and Public Relations).

 Since attending school I have grown to love and hate all different types of mediums. This past fall quarter I came face to face with a medium I was for some reason crazy scared of... Oil Paint!

 First lesson to know when you plan on doing an oil painting is TIME MANAGEMENT! I was unaware of how long it took for oil paints to dry and ended up making a MacGyver box to carry in my "finished" piece into school. It took almost 48 hours for the whole piece to dry! 

Second lesson is keep paper towel or a rag/cloth of some sort handy, Don't dip your brush into water to clean it off in the midst of painting like I did. Ever heard the saying "They mix like oil and water"? Yes, that phrase applies to oil paints just as it does oil. I bought Grumbacher's Unscented Turpentine which makes for a great medium and solvent as well as for cleaning your brushes. Buying unscented is worth it unless you want to go cross eyed while painting. 

I purchased Grumbacher's Oil Paints as well, using a limited palette of colors, Titanium White, Ivory Black, Cobalt Blue Hue, Cadmium Yellow Pal Hue, Cadmium Red Medium Hue and Raw Sienna. 

Your brush is just as important as the paints and canvas, buying a pricey brush is worth it just as long as you clean it regularly after use, Soap and Hot Water works best!

 A palette is of course needed, I use a reusable white plastic plate, doesn't hurt to go green!

 My first and only piece I've done is a painting of all four of my grandparents with a skyline of Buffalo, NY (that's where my roots are). Hope you enjoyed reading and hopefully this was of some help to you! Ill be posting again soon!