pencil

Search NikkiArtwork.com

Subscribe via RSS

"When life gives you lemons, draw them." (Nikki)

"Color! What a deep and mysterious language." (Paul Gauguin)

Links

« Previous Entries

Tobias – Jia Xin

Thursday, April 6th, 2023

Sweet Dreams, 18H x 24W inches soft pastels on paper.

Born in China on June 3rd, our 2nd grandson Paul-Marie – a name that honors his French-Canadian heritage, and Jiahua, his Chinese. He looks like a sweet little cherub! Jiahua is pronounced “ja (soft j) kwua (drag the k).

Muscovy Ducklings

Saturday, August 8th, 2020

Muscovy Ducklings, 18H x 24W inches graphite on paper. Photo inspiration, credit and thanks goes to Kala, whose website is Kaptured by Kala.

Mom and Dad’s Hands

Monday, July 27th, 2020

Mom and Dad’s Hands, 16H x 20W inches graphite on paper. Excerpt from Paul Simon’s “I Don’t Believe” on the album, ‘Surprise’:

“I don’t believe A heart can be filled to the brim Then vanish like mist As though life were a whim”.

Fins, Feathers and Fur 2020: Cockatiels

Friday, July 17th, 2020

Cockatiels, Jurong Bird Park, Singapore 12H x 9W inches graphite on paper, white double mat and white 18H x 15W inches frame with crackle finish. Check out the Jurong Bird Park website.

Showcased in the J. Mane Gallery’s Fins, Feathers and Fur 2020 exhibition.

Brooke

Friday, July 12th, 2019

Brooke, 11 x 14 inches graphite on paper

Lilies at Butchart Gardens, BC

Sunday, August 5th, 2018

Lilies at the Butchart Gardens, Victoria BC, 18H x 24W inches graphite on 140 lb cold pressed premium. Detail image:

Brooke Isabelle

Wednesday, September 6th, 2017

Brooke Isabelle, my neice’s daughter born last week, 11 x 14 inches graphite on paper. She looks like a cherub in the photo used as reference, so I subtly impled wings in the background.

Hannah

Thursday, June 1st, 2017

Hannah, 11 x 14 inches graphite on paper. This was a special commission for a good friend. I no longer offer to do portraits – pets, absolutely – but while I love drawing people, the work and long periods of in-between study I require take too long to warrant what I’d need to charge. There are other artists who specialize in only portraits and do nothing else.

The photo was a very small file, only 500 pixels wide, plus the feet were not in the frame, so initially I thought it impossible to work from, but started anyway. All works on paper begin with taped edges, leaving an inch of border which helps when it comes to framing, especially if composition is off a bit. I scribble in the main shapes lightly, gradually building up areas with lines and then shading as confidence grows. As marks, once placed, are difficult to erase, the face details are drawn in more gradually than the rest of the composition.

I remember that my friend used to call her grand-daughter Hannah Banana, so I snuck some banana shapes onto the blanket – that will be a surprise for her when she sees this. I smudge the graphite and use erasers quite a bit, a good technique for subtler details like the background and blanket pattern. Eraser sticks, 2 different sizes, are perfect because they are held and used like a pencil.