Scratchboard Workshop April 24

My next Introduction to scratchboard workshop will be April 24, 2010  in Aurora. CO.  Space is limited to 10 people.  Classes usually run from about 10 AM to 5 PM.  No experience in either scratchboard or even art is required.  Cost is $55.

Please e-mail me if you would like more information or to reserve a spot.

Finishing up an oldie

Well I finished off "A Distant Gaze", who is a quarter horse

As well as pulling out an old piece that was like 80% done, but I lost interest in when working on it (over a year ago).  Anyways I decided to finish it off- probably the most abstract piece I have ever done.  Does it work?  Reference photo by Madeleine Biancon used with permission.

"Facing the Dark" - 16" x 20"

A Distant Gaze

Sorry for the lapse in posting.  I have been working on a few different projects that are not art related (hard to believe) but I have also been working on this piece on and off for the past couple of weeks or so too.  I still have to finish the far right side off.

Roper Finished

After tweaking the background to get rid of the dark halo I had going on I am calling him done.  I see things I would do differently in the future, but I have to give myself a wee bit of a break since it has been so long since I have done pencil :)  All and all I think it came out alright and it is off to the framers today.

Actual size is 15.5"x24"

98% Done

With my graphite roping horse that is- just need to touch up some values and edges.  A few minor adjustments and I will able to put him away.

Leftovers

I taught a workshop last Saturday and for my workshops I like to cut small boards that students can try marking on before they start working on their actual piece.  I also have them try out a new tool on the sample board to get a feel for the edge/tip.  Anyways- after cutting the boards from an 11"x14" board I had a random 5"x14" piece left over.  I am a big fan of pano pieces, so decided to not let it go to waste and did this little close up on a wolves eyes.  It is colored with inks.

I need to start thinking about my entry for this years Birds In Art... what to do, what to do :)

where does the time go?

I always feel like I should be able to get so much more done in each day than actually happens!  I taught a workshop on Saturday and it went great despite some technical difficulties (me bringing the wrong power cord for my laptop, so no computer!)  Several 'non-artists' in the group of 6 and every one of them did really well.

I got a little more time on my roping box horse graphite (background on left side lighter than IRL, as photogrpahed near a window on that side).  Hopefully I will be able to finish it this week, though working/grooming the next 3 days and then have a dog show this weekend.

Roping Box Readiness

more progress

Art Show At the Dog Show entries accepted

all four of my entries for Art Show at the Dog Show were juried in this year (a first for me).  They are the following images:

Photograph- "Soulful"

Photograph - "Flying High"

Scratchboard - "Moment of Reflection"

Scratchboard - "Charisma"

I haven't given up ;)

You may (or may not) remember the graphite horse I started at the beginning of the year.  I have not given up on it and am still plugging away slowly in between scratching.  The mane has me a bit worried on how to do it... so why not save it for last... LOL

Here is a recent update.

And I finished off the front paw on the cougar, though will still mess around making minor changes. Now onto the background... fun, fun!

"Simple Pleasures"

I needed a break after working all weekend (grooming) and also feeling a little bit of burn out on the Couger because it is such a massive project.  I decided a small simple piece would be a nice break and had this image in my references for quite a while.

So this little piece is just 8"x10" and I am calling it "Simple Pleasures"

I decided to color it with ink

Talkin' About Tools

I asked on facebook what people would like to see me discuss on this blog and the topic of tools was one that many people were interested in.

There are MANY tools that can be used on scratchboard, and your imagination is the limit.  I have scratched with a bobbi pin, spoon, dremel bits, electric eraser, pencil eraser, heck... you could even use a screw!  Anything that will remove the top layer of ink can be used :)

But I am going to touch on my primary tools that I keep in my tool box, both how to use them and where to get them.

LINE TOOLS

First we are going to talk about line tools.  The vast majority of MY work is done with the line tools, which I have photographed above.  I use them for fur, eyes, tongues, leather... well just about everything!  The fiberglass brush is not really a line tool, but I will get into its use in a moment.  The rest are used for... well lines :)  You really can get a very long ways in scratchboard with just a standard #11 exacto and for a very long time it was the only tool I used.  Older works of mine, such as "Dress Attire" were done all with an exacto.  You can see that even with just this one tool I was able to do a lot of different textures and shading.

In more recent years I have added to my tools to give more diversity in line width.  About two years ago  I got turned onto speedball scratchboard tips #112 and 113, which are available from http://www.danielsmith.com/.  These two tips produce wider lines than the exacto and are great for course fur and whiskers!  Then about 10 months ago I started working with a scalpel which yields finer lines than the exacto.  The blade is not as stiff as an exacto blade and required some getting used to.  The diversity of line widths that can be produced with these four tools adds to the realism of my work since fur does vary in texture and coarseness, and realistically I rarely reach for my exacto anymore, mostly using the speedball and scalpel blades.  Exacto blades can be purchased at any tool or craft store and scalpel blades at any medical center or veterinary supplies store (or many sources online as well).

Like all cutting tools, blades will get dull after some use.  You can resharpen some of these tools, but others you will just need new ones.  Since exacto and scalpel blades are pretty inexpensive I usually just replace them if dull.  You can tell if a blade is dull if it requires a moderate amount of pressure to remove the ink or is skipping.  For most of these tools only very light pressure should be needed to remove the ink.

SHADING TOOLS

As I said before you can get a long ways with just line tools, but there are certain effects that are tough to do all with lines.  Fortunately, unlike pen and ink, we have some additional tools that yield some softer effects than just lines.  The challenge with all of the shading tools is control, as they don't allow the finesse of the line tools.  At times masking off finer scratched areas may be required.

Sandpaper/foam nail buffer can take off a light layer of ink, but leave a toning of dark underneath with a fairly soft look to it.  Used in straight lines they yield a different feel and look than if used in a circular pattern.  For both tools use fine grit, as the courses grits leave an uneven look and feel.  Both of these will fill up with ink after a bit of use, so you will need to have multiple pieces on hand.  You can usually rip or cut sandpaper and use scissors to cut the nail buffers into the size/shape you want.  Sandpaper I purchase at hardware stores and nail buffers in the beauty supply section at the local grocery store.

Steel wool can be used for certain fur effects as well as shading.  It comes in several coursenesses and I personally prefer to only use the fine and medium.  Always make sure your steel wool does not have any oils or coatings on it.  It can be purchased where ampersand products are sold or hardware stores.

Fiberglass brushes can come in a variety of sizes.  I only use the very small and small sizes.  You will also find that different brands have different hardnesses to their bristles.  I primarily use a very small one that I buy from http://www.micromark.com/.  This tool requires some practice to get down and the tiny bristles will break off and can embed in the side of your hand (ouch!)   Gloves can help, but those bristles are so tiny they go through most fabrics as well.

Adding to the Supply Box

Another item to add to the supply box is black repair ink.  I use it for ink washes to tone down areas that are too light or can be used in concentrate to totally get rid of something.  I apply it with a small, inexpensive paint brush.

Here is a sample of the different thicknesses of lines from each tool.  The furthest left is applied with minimal pressure (to yield the thinnest line I can) and the right is with heavier pressure (to give a thicker line from each tool).  The dime is for size comparison.

And here is a close up on the mountain lion's legs with indication of what tools were used in each area... and some areas have more than one tool used in any specific area.

If you have additional tool questions please post them as a comment and I will try and address them.

more on Mountian Lion

Tiger Eyes

This was a small board that I started before Alamosa and worked on as a demonstration at the show.  It is a little 5"x7" piece and is available framed with museum glass for $400 (minus 15% from my winter sale!).  Don't miss out!  e-mail me for more info or to purchase.

Its been a little while

Well it has been a little while since I have had an opportunity to post.  I was preparing for my trip to the Alamosa scratchboard show called "A Scratch in Time".  It was a great time with friends and a nice show.  The venue was very nice and we had a Q&A panel with myself and a few other scratchboard artists that came to the show with about 70-100 college students.  I did not know that they were judging the show and only had small pieces entered, but was delighted to receive 3rd place in the whole show (about 75 works hung) with my cat scratch I titled "In the Light".

Some of the out of state artists stayed with me after the show for a day or two and now its back to the scratching post!

Over the weekend I did a few demos- one with the cougar and one with a small 5"x7" piece that I will post when I finish coloring it.  A few more hours on the cougar today too, and finally enough for an update.