- ‘Illusion’ – 16×20 Coloured Pencil on Canson
I’m delving into a new world. While change is good, you are always bound confuse a few people who were used to how things were done. Some of you follow my blog to see what I have been known to do since I entered the professional world of Equine Art; detailed and luminous coloured pencil illustrations of the equine subject. Things are changing here, I am growing, this is a good thing! For the next six months at least, I am only going to be working in oil media….who knows, maybe I will never go back to coloured pencil…??
Gitana, 16x16 coloured pencil and pastel
There is a few reasons behind the media shift. Please let me explain to the best of my ability:
1. Expression : I get very detailed with Coloured Pencil, there is so much freedom with painting..even if you are doing a detailed rendition. I can put a little bit more of my own personality in oil, by using colour and varied brush strokes.
2. Pain : It hurts! My layering process in Coloured Pencil portraits take hours, hours and more hours to complete. A degenerative disk in my neck leaves me in constant pain from being hunched over a drafting table for hours on end. I’m 34 (okay turning 35 next month) too young to hurt this much.
3. Boredom : There were days I couldn’t wait to draw. I don’t anymore. I want to paint. Period.
I hope I’m not being too blunt, but I don’t know how else to say it. If it weren’t for the years of coloured pencil I wouldn’t be where I am now. I am thankful for this time and thank you for getting me here.
I have limited training in Oil media. Am I scared to embark on this journey? Slightly, but with that fear and inexperience comes a certain naivety I think can be refreshing. I have thought about travelling to workshops to learn all I can to paint, and don’t get me wrong, I think I will one day. But right now, this is a solitary process. I don’t want to paint like the next guy.
Leo, 16x20 Coloured Pencil and Oil Pastel
Great artists have a noticeable style and personality in their work. Something unique. I like to experiment, alot. Sometimes things look great, sometimes I chalk it up to…’okay, that does not work!’ . But I hope after this, I end up with something different, something new, something “Jenn Pratt”
Ring Ready, 8x10 Coloured Pencil
So let’s take get back to the original purpose of this post. To reflect on my previous works, some of my favorite coloured pencil works I have done over the years. If you have a glass of wine, let us toast..’To new beginnings!’
Chestnut Eye - 6x6 coloured pencil
