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!