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I have created a new page on Facebook now where I will be continuing my blog and promoting my work. This will be the last post made on here so please follow me on Facebook :) Search for Artwork by Jon Gregson or you can follow the link below.

Artwork By Jon Gregson

Chuck Berry

Completed drawing of Chuck Berry measuring 16 x 20.
Estimated time to complete - 7 hours
Materials used - Compressed charcoal sticks, Derwent charcoal pencils (light / medium / dark), Chalk, Cotton buds and tissue paper.

Ray Charles Charcoal Sketch

Another A3 charcoal and chalk sketch. Just trying to get used to the materials before I attempt my larger 16 x 20 piece of Chuck Berry.

Howlin' Wolf

Had a practice today using charcoal and chalk. With not having the charcoal pencils, the piece is not as detailed as my pencil work. Instead, using the charcoal sticks, the image has a much more expressive feel to it where the marks are clearly visible to the eye.
The drawing is of American Blues legend Chester Burnett aka Howlin' Wolf. It is A3 size and took me approximately 40 minutes, which must be a record for me as pencil drawings usually take me a week! I enjoyed using this medium, not only because it is a lot faster, but because you can layer it up as many times as you like without having to erase anything. The chalk highlighting really brings the piece to life and for my first attempt, I don't think it's half bad. I think this would look really good as part of a series. Looking forward to using the pencils next! :)

Chuck Berry

For my next project I will be sticking with the music legends theme, focusing on one of the pioneers of rock n' roll music Chuck Berry.
For this piece I am going to attempt a charcoal portrait at the larger size of 16 x 20. Having never worked with charcoal before I don't really know what to expect from the outcome but I do know it will be a lot quicker to produce than my pencil drawings so hopefully this should work to my advantage in that, depending on the quality, I will be able to produce more work. I also think the larger format will be more appealing to an audience.
Below is the image I will be attempting. However, I first need to buy some charcoal pencils and a blending tool!

Abstract Art

I previously talked about a portrait drawing of lady gaga and possibly creating something from her hair in the piece. I have been experimenting the last couple days and developed something completely different to what I first intended.
The abstract piece combines fluidity with simple geometric shapes. It's my first attempt at this style of art but I have found it enjoyable and the outcome quite attractive. I'm considering doing a series of three, having them printed at 16 x 20 and taking them to one of the art fairs to see what reception they get. Here's my initial idea, which may change. You can clearly see the influence the hair from the gaga photo has had.

Photos from The Gallery

Here are a few pictures of Elvis, Hendrix and Marley chilling on the pillar of The Gallery in Clayton Square, Liverpool. I took these pictures last night after the Culture Vibe event that Madelaina holds there every Thursday from 4.45 to 6.45. It's always a good laugh and has live entertainment so it's definitely worth checking out. For more information check out the Gallery's facebook page here.

Post Art Fair Thoughts

So the art fair went well. It was a good experience and I met a few new people, who were very helpful and encouraging. Sales wise, I managed to sell 3 prints (Elvis, Ray Charles and Bob Marley), which I guess was kind of what I expected. I also traded a couple prints with a fellow pencil artist Tom Donohue, who is very talented and fast becoming a popular name in the art community.
I forgot to take a photo of my stall, but here's a picture of the prints I made to go on sale. They were selling at £10 each, but I think I'm going to raise the price at the next fair to £15. Something I learnt at the fair was that my A3 mounts were too big. There are A3 frames available but the standard size for my drawings is 11x14 which is slightly smaller and, I must admit, does look better. I've trimmed a few of the A3 mounts down to fit this size and I'm taking them back to the Gallery as Madelaina has been kind enough to put them on sale. I also left my original Jimi Hendrix, Bob Marley and Elvis Presley drawings with Madelaina, which are hanging nicely on one of the pillars in The Gallery. I will try get a photo of this next time I am there.
Today I enquired about the Calidad art fair in Childwall School at the beginning of July and there are still spaces available so I am currently filling in the form to get involved in that one. That's my next target so I have a good 7 weeks to produce some new artwork :)

Hendrix / Sinatra

Here are my two newest drawings, Jimi Hendrix and Frank Sinatra. Two more legends to add to the collection!

How Crafty are you? Art Fair at the Gallery, Clayton Square

All prepared for the art fair tomorrow. Really looking forward to it! Interested to see what kind of reception my work will get. Hopefully I will sell a few prints. It will be the first time selling my work to the general public. If all goes well I will definitely get involved in more art fairs. There is one the first Saturday of every month in Childwall School so I am aiming for the July event. I have a few exciting ideas that I would like to try out in the next fair but I won't share them just yet. Should be able to make some good contacts tomorrow too, exciting times!

Update

Just a quick update to let you know what I am doing. I decided to postpone the Lady Gaga drawing for the time being and completed a portrait of Frank Sinatra. I am now two thirds of the way through a Jimi Hendrix piece.
With the art fair coming up next Saturday I have also been busy scanning all my work and creating prints to sell. The price to get an A3 print made is so expensive! It worked out that it would cost me around £200 to get all the prints done I wanted so I decided to purchase a good quality A3 printer and do them myself. I'm pleased with the outcome! Especially when they are mounted and sealed in their cello wallets, they really look the part. In the long run I figured being able to make prints myself would be more cost effective.
Not sure I will be selling my originals now either. I've been thinking it might be best to build up a collection and then try and exhibit them somewhere. I think that would be a good step towards making a name for myself. So that's the idea for the time being.

Stevie Wonder

Completed drawing ready to be mounted and framed :)

Gaga

Completed Stevie Wonder today (pics will be up tomorrow!) and have began my next piece - Lady Gaga. This picture is from an ELLE magazine photo-shoot. Again, this should only take a week max! I am looking to incorporate the name 'gaga' into this drawing using the hair in the foreground.

'Mad About Music' Exhibition

Here are the pics I promised of my work appearing in The Gallery, Clayton Square. Madelaina is holding an arts and crafts fair there on the 8th May 2010 so I am looking to book a place. Hopefully I will have enough work by that time to fill it!
Visit Madelainartz for more info on Madelaina and her Gallery :)

Stevie Wonder

Next drawing on the cards - Stevie Wonder!
Found this great image on the web of Stevie so I am going to see what I can do with it. I may add some text or musical elements to help personalize the piece.
I couldn't have asked for a clearer or more characterized image to work from! Hopefully should be finished within a weeks time.

John Lennon Print

During the raffle competition at the private viewing for the 'Mad About Music' exhibition, I won a limited edition A3 print of John Lennon by Madelaina (The Galleries owner). She was kind enough to personalize and sign the print for me! You can just about make it out below.

Milton Glaser on Drawing

"Milton Glaser talks about drawing and how it makes you look at things more closely.

He also talks about the importance of learning to draw accurately before you can draw expressively. These days art schools (at least in the UK) have their students draw less as they advance through their years of study. During my time at University our drawing classes ended half way through our third year and I noticed a huge difference in my sketches. The less we were made to draw accurately the more basic my sketches became.

If you’re at uni do you still have drawing or life drawing classes in your senior years? How do you feel about getting your ideas down on paper first before you get started on screen? For all the illustrators and artists reading this the answer might seem obvious, I suppose."

MILTON GLASER DRAWS & LECTURES from C. Coy on Vimeo.

Martha Graham

I recently completed a piece based on the famous American pioneer of modern dance, Martha Graham. The client had a particular image of Martha they had their heart set on but the image was so small and of poor quality that it would have proved difficult to draw. With that in mind, I decided that this piece would probably work best as a monotone ink drawing, capturing the shape of Martha Graham rather than all of the shading and detail. The curves of the black shape are intended to flow with Martha Graham's dance move. The client also wanted the following quote to compliment the image - "That which cannot be spoken can be sang and that which cannot be sang, can be danced."

Birthday Portrait

Recently completed this drawing for a friend for his sister's 21st birthday. It's not easy working from a small photograph but I counteracted this by keeping the portrait quite small itself and then using the roses and scroll to frame it and give it the size it needed.

'Mad About Music' Exhibition

I've spent that last few weeks preparing 3 pieces for the 'Mad About Music' exhibition that is currently taking place at The Gallery, Clayton Square in Liverpool city centre. The Gallery will be exhibiting the work of local artists based on the theme of music and will also have live music entertainment to compliment it all.
It's my first time entering my drawings into an exhibition and I have been fortunate enough for them to be selected for the show, and even appear in the gallery's front window. Surprisingly my work seems to be the only pencil based art in the exhibition - the majority of work being paint - but I quite enjoy having something to offer that is different to everything else.
See Madelainartz for more information on the Gallery and it's current exhibition.

I chose The Beatles, Bob Marley and Elvis Presley as my subjects.
I will be posting pictures from the exhibition soon!

Skull illustrations

Johnny Depp Fineliner Portrait

As demonstrated in my previous post I occasionally like to give the pencil a rest and work using ink Fineliners. It can be a lot quicker to create something just as effective as a pencil drawing. I also enjoy the precision that can be gained with Fineliners, using nibs as thin as 0.05 mm. I've only ever attempted one portrait using these technical pens (seen here). This portrait measured 6 X 4".

Eagle Vs Snake

Ink illustration.

Tribute

In late 2009 I produced a piece in remembrance of my Grandad. I incorporated elements of tattoo design into it to make it feel more like a tribute rather than just another portrait. The two roses with the leaves forming a heart at the bottom and the scroll reading 'Husband - Dad - Grandad' frame the picture perfectly. This is probably my favourite drawing to date. I plan on doing some more tattoo inspired work like this in the future.

Gillian Goldstein

Art by tattooist Gillian Goldstein.

"My artwork has been recently quite a bit influenced by tattooing. Now that my studies are more focused in that direction, I try to incorporate elements of tattoo that I think will complement the piece. I feel like tattooing has enriched my drawings and painting ability as well as made me more enthusiastic about my personal work."

Top Left: 'Mother' - Mixed-media pen, watercolour ink and acrylic on paper.

Top Right: 'Trophy Wife' - Mixed-media pen, watercolour ink and acrylic on paper.

Bottom: 'I'm Screwed, You're Fucked' - Mixed-media pen, watercolour ink and acrylic on paper.

Portrait

Portrait drawing from 2006. Measures 7 X 5 in.

Barnickel Design

Nice piece by Barnickel Design.

The combination of traditional drawing and vector shapes gives the piece a contemporary feel.

David Oxtoby

English artist David Oxtoby is known for capturing the aural and visual excitement of rock 'n' roll and its performers. His images are brilliant and passionate and share a certain quality with those of my own. His art is showcased in the book 'Rock Visions'. Below are a couple of my favourite pieces taken from the book. I am particularly fond of his pencil drawings with the dramatic hint of colour used (shown below). I'm thinking of doing something similar having seen how well it works.

Below Left: Howlin' Wolf, Stevie Wonder, Ray Charles: Blues and Roots (Pencil and coloured pencil, each 20 X 21.5 in.)

Below Right: Bruce Springsteen: U.S. Ahead (Coloured Pencil and watercolour, 26 X 26 in.)

Light Panel

I have decided to invest in a light panel to help out with my drawing. The slimline acrylic light panel from Orchard is a personal favorite so far in my search. For the A3 size, the price is £187! I didn't want to spend that much but I think it will be a worthwhile investment having looked at the spec and quality of the product. Apparently it was also featured in London Ink so it can't be bad!

Bob Dylan & Jim Morrison

Each of these drawings measure 8" x 8". Just waiting on the client to decide on the third and final piece for the series.

Music Legends

Musicians, particularly those of the past, seem to be a popular subject matter for artwork. In late 2009 I completed two (of three) seperete portraits of Bob Dylan and Jim Morrison of The Doors. As this was a three-piece series, each portrait was the same square format housed in a 14" x 19" frame with identical custom-made typography for the icons name. The image here shows a detailed section from the Dylan portrait. It's always nice to be able to include objects in a drawing, whether that be a pair of sunglasses (in the case of Ray Charles) or something a bit more complex, such as the microphone and harmonica in this example.

Bob Dylan / The Beatles / Jimi Hendrix

As mentioned in my previous post, this piece was one of the most challenging I have done to date but the outcome made it all worthwhile. I was originally given a list of about 6 bands/musicians and was asked to incorporate them all into the one drawing. I knew this would be a problem (because of the detail) unless it was done on a much larger scale so came up with a few different compositions, using only a select few of the musicians the client wanted. They were more than pleased with the outcome and it now sits proudly on their living room wall. This was completed back in 2008 and measures 23" x 8".

Ray Charles

I was recently asked to draw a portrait of the music legend Ray Charles. Here is what I came up with.
Mounted and framed (14.5" x 10.5"), the piece is being sold for £70.
This is the second piece I have done for this client. The first was one of the more challenging and time consuming drawings I have done to date - combining Bob Dylan, The Beatles and Jimi Hendrix all into the one canvas. I'll post images of this next.

New Beginnings

While I am trying to figure out how to make a living from what I love doing (drawing!), I thought I would begin documenting thoughts, inspiration and my own artwork in the form of this blog. As I don't yet have a studio or website to sell my work from, this blog will also give people a chance to view my work and get in touch with any feedback or comments. Expect to see lots of drawings, photographs, web images, book scans - anything related to the art world!

My personal art style focuses on attention to detail - I try to make my portraits look more realistic than the photographs and images I copy from. My two preferred mediums to use are pencil and fineliner, although I tend to only use fineliner for non-portrait drawings.

I'm looking forward to starting this blog and will try to keep it updated on a weekly, if not daily, basis.
Enjoy!