Redwoods in Color Pencil

I have two redwoods growing in my garden and love them both and really appreciate the beautiful color then turn into in the fall. I found a picture of redwoods that change to bright red and wanted to do a pencil piece about them. I completed this piece about four years ago and found it in my portfolio where it had been left forgotten and decided that I should pull it out and see if anyone would like to add it their art collection. There have been several hours involved in creating this piece as there is for all pencil art. I have a bad shoulder and don’t work in pencil anymore since it’s very aggravating so this is one of my few color pencil pieces. Faber Castel Colored pencils on acid free Stonehenge acid free paper.

Redwoods, color pencil on Stonehenge Paper, 11×15″

A Portrait of Phragmipedium Geralda

Growing orchids happens to be one of my favorite past-times so when I picked up painting again; slipper orchids where one of my first subjects. Back then I mostly used colored pencil but when bad shoulder problems started to manifest I knew it was time to find another medium. Now I work primarily with soft pastel since it’s the most direct of mediums that requires less preparation and cleanup than oil paint which is my other preferred medium especially for larger landscapes.

Phragmipedium Geralda was my first orchid and has been with me the longest and has to be one of the easiest to grow so naturally it had to be one of the first orchids that I had to complete in pastel. Actually this is the second orchid portrait since I did complete a small portrait of the Star of Bethlehem orchid last year on Ampersand Pastelbord; however, I do seem to prefer the Wallis Professional White paper over the Pastelbord since it holds more pastel and is less likely to smudge while I’m working with it thereby making details easier to render. I’m also finding that the Wallis paper works wonderfully to create a soft and airy quality that I just couldn’t achieve in colored pencil. I used my usual Terry Ludwig, Unison and Faber Castell pastel pencils.

A Portrait of Phragmipedium Geralda, 18×12″ Pastel on Wallis Paper

>Grand River Gallery

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I wanted to share my latest bit of news, I have been accepted into my first gallery since picking up the art again. The Grand River Gallery is located in Caledonia, Southern Ontario, Canada, and is a lovely place to enjoy viewing beautiful work by several talented local artists. The owner, Rene Ariens accepted my pastel Woodland Path and my orchid portrait Lady Rothschild as part of his collection for the next few months. Be sure to drop by the gallery if you’re in the area.

The website: Grand River Gallery

Woodland Path Paph Lady Rothschild