"American Icon"

icon  (ˈaɪkɒn) - a person or thing regarded as a symbol of a belief, nation, community, or cultural movement

I have decided to title my little bull Bison "American Icon" as I think of them as one of the critters that people think of that "makes America, America" (maybe after the bald eagle).

This piece was colored with ampersand inks (as are all of my colored works) and size is 10"x8" and he will be headed to the Greeley Stampede Western Art show at the end of June too.  And NO I am not scratching a new board every day.  I just happened to have several close to completion at the same time.  Also once they are sprayed with fixative it evens out the tones and makes them easier to take pictures of.

"American Icon"
Scratchboard and Ink
10"x8"
© Cathy Sheeter

I also spent a couple of hours working on my harris hawk woodburning...it takes a back seat to my scratchboards when I have works due for shows, but I do hope to finish it one of these days ;)

Harris Hawk Pyrography on Birch Plywood
18"x24"

News and Updates

Yesterday's e-mail inbox was full of news from shows. 

"The Naturalist" has been selected for the 51st Society of Animal Artists Annual exhibition "Art and the Animal" which will run September 17 - December 31, 2011 at the Dennos Museum Center in Traverse City, MI. The piece may then be selected to go on national tour to additional museums for up to a year.

"Going for Gold" was not selected for Birds In Art.  There were MANY outstanding works that did not make the cut this year and I swear you could make a top notch show with the rejected works from this show!!  And I say that in absolute, total honesty.  This show is a tough egg to crack (ok bad pun...I know!!).  I know top notch artist that have applied over 10 times without ever getting in and others seem to get in every year.  I got in on my first try in 2009, but was rejected last year and this one.  Oh well... its the name of the game in the art world.  It is just their opinion, on that day, with that set of work.  Its not wrong, its not right... it just is!  LOL...  I knew that this piece would not be their traditional bird art... so it could play out either way.  My congratulations to those that did get in this year.



I have pretty much finished "Edge of Darkness" though am still making some minor edits to the work before I spray it with its protective fixative.    Size is 20"x16" and it will be left black and white.

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
The bison portrait is finished as a black and white, but I am pondering coloring it.  Hmmm....
Any unevenness that you see in the black parts of this photo (or Edge) is a result of the work not being sprayed with fixative.  Different tools can make the board shiny or reflective where they are used than other areas that are more of a matte black (the board starts out a matte black).  These shiny parts usually look 'more black' and or like odd glare when photographed.  Once the works are sprayed with varnish it all evens out and is a nice even shade of black. 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
And Bee-Mused is in the process of being colored.  It is far from done, so it would be a WIP photo of the coloring.  I still have to color all grasses (short and tall) as well as the bee and the background.  I will continue to work the wolves a bit more too.

What is on the Scratching Table??

Things have been very busy for me of late.  A 10-day trip to Oregon at the End of March, 10-days home (of which I worked 60 hours in those ten days grooming) and then off for another 10-day trip to California in early April, where I was photographer for a large dog show... Once I was home I had to get over 5,000 photos online...  then the Governor's Show and my art fair (getting prints ready plus cards, bookmarks and magnets) I feel I have had little time to actually create artwork in the past month!  But I have been stealing little snippets of time to work on stuff.  These are the two boards I have on the go right now.

American Bison are, of course, one of the great icons of the American West and popular subjects for art, yet I had never done one in scratchboard... well until now!  I made a point of taking many bison photos in Yellowstone last year when I visited with the intent of creating some works from them.  This big bull had a rather amicable expression on his face when he looked at me and nice side lighting, which can be quite dramatic for scratchboard.  This board is 10"x8" in size.

Creating Bison fur has its own set of challenges, as it grows thick, curly and in an unpredictable pattern, and with a variety of density and textures.  Trying to create the depth and thickness of fur and the right textures requires lots of layers. It still has a ways to go to perfect the texture and get just enough details on the left side of the board but to leave some mystery for the viewer as well.  No title for this guy yet.

I am also working on a new wolf piece (20"x14") which I am for now calling "Edge Of Darkness".  I liked the dramatic lighting and non-typical pose of this wolf.   His leering expression and the dynamic lighting I felt added a nice touch of tension to this piece.  I have actually made more progress since this photo was taken, but it gives you an idea of where I am going.  This piece will have foreground and possibly some background.

Now I am off to the UPS to mail my three works that were accepted into the Women Artists Of the West annual show, which this year will be in Rockport, TX.  It is my first year as a member of this association and I was delighted that they accepted all three of my works into the show.  The three works are: "Yielding", "Rustle In The Brush", and "Charisma".  I will not be able to attend the show opening, as I simply have too much going on, but it promises to be a wonderful show full of high quality art.  If you are near the area the show will be on display from May 11 to June 4 at the Rockport Center for the Arts.  The opening reception is Saturday, May 14 from 5-7 PM and open to the public.