Big Old Country House, Done!

Done? That word brings biscuits to mind, or perhaps a tri-tip. “Completed” is probably a better word for a custom pencil drawing.

Because of the influence of my drawing students, I decided to put clouds in the sky rather than oranges or walnuts. (Oranges in the sky? Walnuts in the sky? Riders in the sky?)

Because I love our flag and love to add color, Jane and I decided to add a flag to the drawing that wasn’t there in person.

Because I want the colors to be right on the flag, I experimented on a piece of scrap paper on the drawing table.

Because it is a huge drawing, I decided to sign with my huge name. (When I paint, all I can manage with that uncontrollable paintbrush is “J. Botkin”.) I don’t know why I got into the habit of not capitalizing, but now it is an established habit.

And because it is so vulnerable, just a piece of paper, until Jane and I decide a retrieval/transfer date and method, it has to remain flat on the table, covered by tissue paper. (The drawing has [t]issues?)

The most difficult part of the entire drawing was getting a good photo. It was too bright outside, too dark in the studio, and so no matter what I tried, it had to be photoshopped to be worthy of showing to Jane. It is just too big for the scanner, so all that fiddling around had to be done.

Enough teasing. Here is the Big Old Country House custom pencil drawing, 16×20″:

Using pencils, oil paint, and murals, I make art that people can understand of places and things they love, for prices that won’t scare them.

Big Old Country House Drawing, 2

Another day at the drawing table, and only 2 photos in progress. Watching this part is a little like watching paint dry, or watching grass grow.

Because of pruning back the shrubs on the left, I needed more photos to show what is behind them. The shrubs on the right are also being pruned in the drawing, so more photos of that side of the house will help fill in some blanks. The very tall valley oak tree on the right is a bit of a mystery too, as is the mass of confusing growth behind it. I can’t figure out the detail on the front door, and the shapes of the windows are confounding me.

A field trip is in order for more photos. Let’s go!

The front door is wider than it appears in my drawing and has more detail on the screen than I could see in my earlier photos.
Nice detail on this window. I missed it entirely. It might not show in the angle of the house that I am drawing, but more photos than necessary are a better “problem” than not enough.
Is this thing important? I’d better ask.
Now I can see that the window over here is square and centered. (I saw the square part in real life – may not have been able to capture that in a photo without crawling into a shrub.)
How many trees are over there??
It splits into 2 massive parts but from a distance, appears to be 2 separate trees.
Wait a minute. There are several trees over there, and one is a pine.

Good thing Jane isn’t in a big hurry for this drawing.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, RACHELLE LEDBETTER!!!

Big Old Country House Drawing, 1

After finishing the 3 small custom pencil drawings of 3 small houses from 3 small photos, my confidence returned to begin the big custom drawing of the big old country house, working from about a dozen big photos, enlarged on my laptop screen in order to see the details clearly, drawing while looking under my big magnifying glass.

Big job. Good thing I love to draw.

These photos represent 2 days of working on the picture. 

You can see in the last photo that I pruned the bushes back on the left in order to show more of the structure. It was a little tricky to figure out the size and placement of the window on that segment of newly exposed wall. Working from multiple photos is full of challenges, because I leave behind the security of being able to measure directly from a photo. Instead, I look at one that shows a particular item, put it in the drawing, and realize that I don’t know where it truly belongs in relation to the things that don’t appear in the photo where I got it.

See? Can’t even explain it simply. Guess you’d have to be there.

The goal is believability AND with a piece of custom art, recognizability.

 

Inspired

The custom pencil drawing of a big old country house was intimidating, so I quickly completed a smaller commissioned pencil drawing. It went so well that I was inspired, even eager*, to begin the second piece in the series of three.

That big window on the left (a sun room?), the shadow cast by the door overhang, the slightly opened window on the right, a hint of stepping stones leading from the drive to the front door, and of course the car in the carport are the details that add charm to this little house. The only change I made was to straighten out the sidewalk.

This was a very satisfying job. Two down, two to go.

*Have you noticed how many people use the word “anxious” when they mean eager? 

Using pencils, oil paint, and murals, I make art that people can understand of places and things they love, for prices that won’t scare them.

Reluctant Portrait

About 20 years ago I decided to learn how to draw people that can be recognized. This was a business decision: I have a love for architecture, not faces. It was very difficult, but I did quite a few portraits.

Later, I decided that portraits are best left to those who don’t have to sweat bullets in capturing likenesses.

This fall, a portrait came back to haunt me. A man I don’t know emailed me to say I had drawn his dad, and now would I draw his mom.

The request came during a lull in custom jobs, and against my better judgement while ignoring my lack of expertise in this area, I said yes.

He sent me this photo of the drawing of his dad. 

He also sent me several somewhat blurry photos of his mom with a request to put her next to her beloved carved bear. I know this fine lady, and was determined to do a good job. Several of my drawing students also know her, so without telling them who it was, I took the drawing to lessons and showed them.

What a thrill when they said, “That’s [Her Name]!!” (This is the World Wide Web, so I am not publishing the name of the subject.)

Now, I am returning to my policy of no portraits. My students said, “The plaid blouse must have been difficult”. It was easier than her face.

I haven’t heard back, and I hope the family was pleased (and doesn’t have any more members to be pencilized.)

Pre-Christmas Gift

Someone I have never met contacted me to draw a house I’ve never seen. When I received the photo, I marked it with colored circles, and sent an email asking for closer photos or descriptions of what each circle contained. 

The customer was very responsive, and sent helpful photos of each area. This was on a tight deadline, and silly me, I forgot to mention the rush charge. I also didn’t save the detail photos of each area of mystery, because space on my laptop is limited.

You can see that the photo was taken with a phone, using the built-in wide-angle lens. This distorts things – the verticals aren’t vertical, and distant things look farther away while closer things appear too big.

Time was fleeing quickly, so I just dove in. Often if I draw the parts I can see and understand, then the other parts aren’t so daunting and can be faked somewhat.

Thanks to great communication with the customer, I was able to finish the drawing well ahead of the requested date and also get good instructions about the parts that the original photo didn’t explain.

P.S. I love to draw!

Custom Dogs

Many artists get their start in custom work by drawing or paintings people’s pets. My start came with architecture, specifically cabins. “Cabinart” – get it? 

Occasionally I get commissioned to draw or paint people’s pets, more dogs than cats. Here is the most recent, shown here today because I feel fairly confident that the intended recipient doesn’t know about me or this blog.

Just for curiosity’s sake, have a look at a few previous custom dog drawings:

In case you are wondering, here is information about custom dog drawings (cats too):

  1. Being eye-level with the animal makes for better photos than looking down at them. Notice the difference between the top drawing and the lower three.
  2. Black animals are extremely hard to photograph and thus to draw; seeing details is almost impossible.
  3. Clothing on animals is just weird; I have no earthly idea what the various parts and pieces of clothing are on the top drawing, and the less I understand what I am seeing, the more difficult it is to draw it.
  4. Usually people want little lap dogs of undetermined ancestry, the type of dog that makes me want to scream while standing on a chair. I manage to keep my panic at bay while armed with pencils. (German Shepherds, Australian Shepherds and yellow Labradors are more my style, although cats will always be my preference.)
  5. There is still time to have your pet drawn, but there will be a rush charge.

Finished Pencil Drawing Two

Two pencil drawings of one boat – one truly beautiful boat, called a Chris Craft. These are quite a Thing, maybe the Rolls Royce or the Harley Davidson of the water. (I just made that up and hope I didn’t insult anyone or any brand here.)

Can I drive?? Is that what it is called to run a boat? Or is “pilot” the correct verb?