'Reflections' Kit

Here is the finished image of the 'wine glass on black' project. I really enjoyed working on the black paper. It is so easy to get rich colours. Having said this, I have just read Jeanette's comment to the previous post. Jeanette notes that some colours seems to disappear on certain black paper. I have only worked on black Stonehenge and black Canson Mi-Tientes paper so I can't speak for other brands. I have found working on these two to be a similar experience.

Some colours do surprise me in that they don't show up the way I would expect, while others seem to beam off the paper like fluorescent paint. I have two ways of working around this. One, I only work on subjects that include the colours that will pop. :-) bit of a cheat, but hey if it works for you... To find out what colours work well on black, cut a strip off of your black paper and do some testing. Scribble some lines of colour from various pencils. You will probably be surprised too!

The second is a technique I read about somewhere and it is one of those no-brainers that is so simple, you question your intelligence because you didn't think of it yourself. So here goes, when you are applying a colour that doesn't show up as you had hoped, apply a lighter colour first (I use a really light colour such as pencils in shades of cream or peach, even white). Simple, but it works.You don't have to lay down a thick layer of pigment, the idea is just to cover the black. Then apply the colour you originally wanted. You just don't work this way when using coloured pencil on white paper and as someone who had a long history of working almost exclusively with white paper, this process just didn't come naturally to me. Oh well, that is my excuse anyway... :-) I am so glad that artists share their tips and techniques, saves us all from inventing the same wheel!

As I mentioned earlier, this image is for a kit that I am creating. I now have to write up my hastily scrawled notes into detailed step by step instructions. After that I will create the sheet of WIP photos and I also need to re-do the line drawing. I tend to draw as I work so my original drawing doesn't provide enough detail. I hope to have it ready for posting on my website by the end of the month. If you are interested in completing your own wine and grapes 'reflections' picture from this kit or if you are interested in any of the other kits, just contact me!

Now off to work on my new piece, apples on pastelbord.