After a couple years of drawing only in graphite I decided to venture into the world of color…via color pencil. I chose to use a photo I had previously done in graphite but this time my goal was not so much the likeness, although important, but the selection of colors to use (I used way more than I thought I would, the pencil strokes (linear or circular), pencil pressure used, the tooth on the paper, blending techniques, and overall just how to get the colors and final effect I envisioned is what I focused on.
I initially thought a lot about blending techniques; getting that smooth texture I could achieve with graphite. I started to blend a bit at first but I soon realized that I sort of liked the roughness and texture acheieved with the strokes on the coarse paper I was using without doing much blending. Afterall, my goal was not to achieve a photo-perfect replication (a camera can do that) but to create a piece of art that represented my style (which I am currently in search of…😉)
I learned a lot using color and can easily see I need a lot more practice. I can see many things I would do differently and could have changed here but decided to let this first attempt at color be a foundation to grow on.
Final assessment… It was fun and I will continue to explore working with color pencil 👍🏽
Portrait Art by Jan 