So many artists (including artists with lenses and letters and others) inspire me here. Debi Riley is a gracious, informative, generous and gifted artist of many talents; one of them is photography.

I was recently moved by a black and white photograph of a flower she posted on her blog.   I tried it in pencil first…….then moved to Polychromos colored pencil….

Once I started sketching it…..I didn’t want to stop!    Of course, cobalt teal (or something close) was a must, as I wanted Debi to smile when she saw my painting.  🙂  As Debi’s post explains, this is a wonderful exercise in looking and really seeing the flower.   Although I wasn’t aiming for precision, I do find it interesting how much my ability to really see increases with the number of drawings (of any type) that I do, and in particular, with the number of times I work with a particular subject.    I could sketch this flower ten more times, and each time, I would see something I didn’t see before.

This final one was sketched in Polychromos colored pencil, then surrounded by three shades of luscious Neocolor II water-soluble pastels.   IMO, this is a must-have art supply.   If you buy a set from Blick, you can return it for up to a year – no questions asked.   Who offers this?!   Right.  That’s why I love Blick!    It’s well worth at least trying them out.    They are so vibrant, creamy and buttery.   I could have blended them more and you’d have never known they were anything but paint, but I kind of like this image as it is.   It was just me playing and having fun.

Please do check out Debi’s blog, as I promise you will learn something new every time you visit.   Plus, she will inspire you out of your socks!   Always!   I hope everyone is getting ready for Draw A Bird Day tomorrow, this time over at Kerfe & Nina’s place (Method Two Madness).   I better get flapping on that myself!   Peace (and pigskins) to all!