Meditation Series: (4/8) Behind the Chirping Chicken, NYC (1991)

This is a hybrid sketch: The exhaust duct and its shadow were rendered in black with a fine-tipped ink pen. The background is colored with watercolor paint. Please visit my Etsy shop for my artwork for sale inspired by my autistic brother Mike at: etsy.com/shop/AutismInspiredArt. My other artwork for sale is at: Etsy.com/shop/OtherArtbyJack

Shiny-Barked Tree (January 2009)

I got the trunk of this tree (especially on the dark side) just right. I don’t know what kind of tree this is, but the bark reminds me of cherry-tree bark.

Sketch Book Series: Sepia Stippling (June 2010)

As I recall, I was trying to create a uniform tonal value with dots of sepia ink. Inconsistent sizes of dots and uneven spacing were the variables that, with more skill, I could have created an even tone across the page. However, this was not any easy task and I did not make it happen. […]

Sketch Book Series: Shading Practice (September 2010)

Painters sometimes paint black and white tonal studies. They make a strip starting with black paint, adding white until they achieve a smooth gradient from the blackest black to the whitest white. I did the same below with pen and ink, making a gradient of dense to sparse ink marks. This tonal gradient is a […]

Sketch Book Series: Shading Metal (August 2010)

The object of this study was the center of a sun umbrella: a brass collar in between two large wooden dowels. It was difficult to replicate the elongated reflections.

Quarantine Portrait Series: Shaded Self Portrait Looking Up

There were bright highlights and dark shadows in the reference photo for this sketch. I decided to emphasize the eyes by using an eraser to brighten the whites.

Quarantine Portrait Series: Self Portrait – Squinty Eyes; Lower Lip

I had a sharper pencil than yesterday.  It really makes a difference. Issues to overcome in the next sketch: 1) shadowing in low contrast areas – the left side of the face was uniformly darker and less detailed  in the reference photo; 2) subtle shading differences of large areas – difficult to achieve; 3) rendering […]

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