Regina Calton Burchett - Drawings & Pastels » Pencil Sketch

The Comfort of Apples

Regina — Wed, 14 Oct 2009 01:20:04 +0000

When I finish a painting that has been a challenge for me (whether it turned out well or not), I like to draw or paint something I’m more comfortable with. Also, there are days when nothing goes right, like today. I tried to start another painting, but it felt forced… I even had problems framing a painting. So I put the more difficult objectives aside, and sat down to draw a couple of pretty apples my husband gave me.

Drawing of apples 10-13-09

Pear-a-thon No. 1 and No. 2

Regina — Tue, 22 Sep 2009 15:53:01 +0000

My grocery store actually ran out of pears. So my sister brought me three to draw / paint. I did a pencil sketch last night of the small one, and got up early today to do a colored pencil drawing.

Pear0901

Pear 0902

Some hints on beginning to sketch – a pear

Regina — Fri, 18 Sep 2009 02:49:12 +0000

Pear to sketch

(Click for larger view)

1) When you start drawing, an apple or pear is one of the easiest things to attempt because you don’t have to capture the exact shape – a close approximate to the original will be fine, especially after you’ve eaten the fruit.
2) If you have a digital camera and are just starting to draw, it makes it easier to see the lights and darks and the general shape of the piece when you work from a photo. The background and moving light and shadows aren’t a distraction when working from a photo.
3) In your photo software, you can usually change your color photo to grayscale, and this makes the dark and light areas even more apparent (especially if you are drawing in pencil). You can also play with increasing or decreasing the contrast and brightness to get more dramatic lighting.

pear in grayscale

4) Look for the lightest light and the darkest dark on your piece, and don’t be afraid to put them in your drawing. If you feel like your drawings don’t have the impact you want, it may be because your piece is all middle tones.

5) On an extra copy of your photo, draw a line up the center – if you are drawing fruit or a vase or similar simple still-life, this will make your final drawing much more accurate.

pear photo divided

6) Hatch in a dark background behind the piece, and this will make it stand out even more.

7) You are the artist – you don’t have to put in every blemish and bruise. It’s up to you what to keep and what to ignore.

update 9-21-09: my sweet sister bought me some lovely pears (the grocery store I went to was OUT of pears!) and here is a really nice small one, in color and in grayscale. (click for large) Can’t wait to draw them!!

little pear to draw

little pear - grayscale

Wonderful sketches

Regina — Tue, 28 Jul 2009 19:13:55 +0000

Not having much time right now to put into painting, I can steal a few minutes here and there to check out my favorite blogs… and those artist’s favorite blogs.

Here is one I found today –

Andrea Joseph’s sketchblog

Wonderful, wonderful sketches.

And I found Andrea through

who also loves to paint, draw and figured out how to combine her blog, website and newsletter!

Three trees at Bear Creek Retreat

Regina — Tue, 19 May 2009 03:13:39 +0000

Three trees at bear creek retreat

The Bear Creek Retreat allowed many of us from the Austin Pastel Society to paint at their beautiful place about a week ago, and I got a lot of great photos and a start on a pastel. This is a pencil sketch done from a photo I took of three cool “step-down” trees on their property.

Art Practice – pencil sketches

Regina — Tue, 17 Mar 2009 23:09:53 +0000

I keep telling myself that if I want to improve as an artist, I need to practice. Every piece won’t be a “keeper”. So I try to draw whenever I have time. Also, I intend to occasionally copy art that I like, not to sell but to improve my skills. So I won’t be working on composition or even color, but I will be working on technique. Today, a friend and I spent a while sketching – we limited our time to 10 minutes on each piece:

Pear pencil sketch (from my photo)

Bird pencil sketch (not my photo)

Perfume bottle pencil sketch

Colored Pencil drawings – it’s the detail

Regina — Fri, 27 Feb 2009 05:47:43 +0000

Sometimes it’s difficult to decide which medium would be the best to work with when you have a certain final creation in mind. I have started with pastel pencils and after twenty minutes or so, switched to watercolor, then decided that wouldn’t work and ended up drawing with colored pencil, because I wanted a lot of detail and sharp lines.

Colored pencil work takes patience and focus, but it’s great meditation too. Some things just seem to come out better with the small exact strokes and slow laying down of color available through working with colored pencils. This is a piece I did a few years ago – and often when I do a realistic piece, I end up using a magnifying glass so that I can truly see the detail of what I am drawing. At times, it seems like working with pencil is going back to the basics, which can be a good thing once in a while.

Tulip One – colored pencil drawing

Regina — Wed, 11 Feb 2009 00:42:46 +0000

I bought this plant – it had six buds now all in full bloom – at the grocery for about $3.50, and did a colored pencil drawing today

Pencil Sketch of Apple and of Banana

Regina — Wed, 11 Feb 2009 00:40:48 +0000

I try to keep improving my drawing skills, as I believe that is a basic foundation for any art you do beyond drawing. Here are an apple and banana I did last week, regular ol’ pencil ~ (and if you put the word “apple” in the search box to the right, all apple-related posts will show up.)

Art of the pencil

Regina — Tue, 16 Dec 2008 13:03:39 +0000

Since I have always loved the most basic element of art – pencil drawing – I wanted to post one that I did a few years ago, and links to some of my favorite pencil artists who definitely excel at pencil “painting”. For me, drawing has always been a part of my life. It is there for me when I’m stuck in an airport or when I need to relax in a quiet part of the house. It can be the beginning of a painting or the final illustration of a tree I really liked.

It’s not a flashy medium, and it takes a lot of patience. Really a lot of patience. When I start to think I’ve made progress as an artist, a pencil drawing helps me to realize how far I still have to go. Pencil drawing is definitely an art in itself, and also a great foundation to build on for other mediums. It is hard to hide a mistake or lack of skill in a pencil drawing. Good pencil drawing (which is not tracing), requires a knowledge of perspective, composition and values.

Tinker, sleeping – drawn while she sat on my lap, which was rather tricky!

Please check out these great pencil artists :

Leslie D’Allesandro Hawes

Karen Hargett

Rhonda Bartoe Tucker