Week 16 - Weekly Art Challenge

This week for the weekly art challenge, I chose to work with digital art again. I tried a new photo app that Deb Prewitt of Blue Twig Studio introduced to me. It's called SuperPhoto. These are the photos I created with the app on my Android tablet.

Mosaic filter on a hedgehog cactus in bloom photo that I took while taking a walk. 

A dragon I drew and painted was encapsulated in a melting ice cube with SuperPhoto. 

I isolated around the eye of the dragon from the above photo and used a graffiti filter.. I love the way this one turned out. It just needs some words splashed on the wall now! One of the other things I really like is that it's black and white photo with just a few touches of color here and there. 

I enjoyed trying out the SuperPhoto app. Not all of the resulting photos that I played with turned out well, but it's a fun app to continue experimenting with.  It is easy to use and has many options/filters to choose fun, even in the free app. It shows many other options/filters that can be used if you are willing to pay for these. Right now, there's enough for me to explore in the free portion.


Have a great week!
Keep creating!!
Lynnita

March ATC Challenge - Fairy Tales

It's been a couple hectic weeks. I'm running behind in posting again! Someday, I'm going to figure out how to help my daughter and son-in-law with their special needs daughter, taking her to several doctor's appointments, babysitting my other grandchildren, posting photos of all the grandchildren for our Ohio family on facebook, continue creating artwork and quilts, while finding time to post on my blog!! I'm not sure how young mothers do it all!!  I was doing fine until our special granddaughter was born prematurely. Since then, I've been struggling to post at all, let alone in a timely manner! Lol!!

Today, my goal is to get a few posts completed that I should have posted in the last couple of weeks. First is Blue Twig Studio's ATC Challenge for March, which was Fairy Tales.  I have loved fairy tales since I was a child. Two of my favorite books as a child were Grimm's Fairy Tales and a book of tall tales and fables that my parents gave me for Christmas when I was 8 years old. I still treasure those books. I've been a science fiction and fantasy reader ever since!

The first card I created was "Elfin Maiden". I used Dylusions Ink Spray through a flower stencil on watercolor paper. After it dried, I blocked in a face with white paint. I used Derwent watercolor pencils to create the face and outlined details with a 0.1 black Sakura Micron Pen. The face was created with inspiration from Jane Davenport's book: Drawing and Painting Beautiful Faces.

Elfin Maiden, 2 1/2" x 3 1/2", watercolor and inks on 140lb watercolor paper 

I love dragons and collect dragon figurines. The past year (if you've followed my blog), I worked through the exercises from a book on drawing dragons by J. "Neon Dragon" Peffer. This ATC card, The Reading Dragon, was inspired from one of her books. I painted the background with acrylics. After sketching in the dragon, I painted him with Derwent watercolor pencils and acrylics. I outlined with a 0.2 black Sakura micron pen.

The Reading Dragon, 3 1/2" x 2 1/2", acrylics and watercolor on Bristol paper.

The final card is a prancing unicorn. My daughter told me I needed to make a unicorn, when I had been thinking about Red Riding Hood. The unicorn won out! With help from a book on fantasy creatures by J. "Neon Dragon" Peffer, Dragonart: How to Draw Fantastic Dragons and Fantasy Creatures, I created this proud unicorn.  I sketched in the unicorn and painted him with acrylics and Derwent watercolor pencils. I outlined him with a 0.2 black Sakura micron pen. I used watercolors to fill in the background.

Prancing Unicorn, 2 1/2" x 3 1/2", watercolor and Sakura pen on Bristol paper.

I enjoyed this month's ATC challenge! I hope you join the group next month! You only need to make one ATC card. They are only 2 1/2" x 3 1/2" in size, so it doesn't take a huge commitment to create this size artwork. It's fun, challenging, a great time to experiment. And you might win!!

Whatever you decide, have fun with your artwork and experiment!


Keep creating!
Lynnita

Week 1 - 2015 Weekly Art Challenge

I want to continue doing a weekly challenge this year, but it's taken me awhile to decide what I wanted to do. I thoroughly enjoyed Blue Twig Studio's weekly sketch challenge last year and want to do something again this year.  I can see in looking over my sketches from last year's challenge (see posts here), that taking time to sketch weekly helped me improve my skills. Also, it was also a lot of fun! I enjoy creating Zentangles, too, and thought about doing these daily, with a weekly sketch thrown in. Even though a Zentangle can be created in a short amount of time, I was afraid it would be more than I could realistically accomplish when I examine everything else in my life at this time.

Another weekly challenge I had thought about participating in was a weekly photography challenge that would help teach photograph skills and editing photos. I would love to improve both of these areas. However, I don't have the required DSLR camera or Adobe Photoshop and can't afford either of them currently.  So that challenge is out for now.

Lastly, another area I want to improve is my mixed-media skills. I found an online challenge for a 52-week art journal called  the "Documented Life Project 2015" (DLP) at Art to the 5th Academy. They will be giving a prompt every week to create an art journal page. I thought this would help me explore my art journaling more, as well as, be fun to do.

After much thought, I've decided to to the Documented Life Project (DLP) 2015 with Art to the 5th Academy for my weekly challenge.  I'm going to be behind one to two weeks, as I'm waiting on my Dylusions Creative Journal to arrive via mail. It was supposed to be here in 2 days, but so far it's been almost 10 days. Hopefully, I can catch up in a short amount of time once the journal arrives. In addition to the DLP, I will post my sketches, drawings, Zentangles, photos and digital artwork as I create them - I am just not going to commit to having these done on a weekly basis.

With all that long explanation now out of the way, since I can't start the DLP without the art journal, this first week I worked on some digital artwork. I used Pixlr Express to create the following digital artwork made up of blended photos or photos and drawings. I took all of the photos myself and drew all the drawings. I hope to print some of these on paper and use in my art journal once it arrives!

Photo of a rose with the morning dew (see post dated May 21, 2014) blended with a photo of a palm frond. Both photos taken  at Vina de Lestonnac in Temecula, CA, May 2014. The palm frond creates an interesting texture across the rose and rosebud. Overlays added more color to the background.

Photo of winter berries covered in ice blended with a photo of a funny looking tree in the middle of a river. Both photos taken  in Toledo, OH after a snow storm on Dec 6, 2011. Overlays added the bubble texture, while the red lines bring focus to the berries and tree. 

Photo of the winter berries covered in ice (taken in Ohio, Dec 2011) blended with the photo of the palm frond (taken in CA, May 2014). I like the contrast of the radiating straight lines from the palm frond with the round berries and organic shape of the ice covering the berries. Overlays added more color to the background.

Photo of a carpenter bee blended with a photo of a yellow flower. Carpenter bee taken in Chandler, AZ  (see post dated Mar 20, 2013). Yellow flower taken at my parents in Lima, OH in July 2013. The flowers the bee was hovering over blended with the yellow flower to create a unique background. The carpenter bee seems almost transparent. 

Photo of sunset blended with Dragon Rider drawing. Sunset photo taken in Chandler, AZ 

on Dec 4, 2013 and dragon rider drawing created in Dec 2014 (see post dated Jan 1, 2014). 

I cropped the sunset photo and saturated the colors to make them more vivid.

Same blended photo as above, but the blending is reversed. I like the way the reversal 

changed the colors of the sky and changed the black/white drawing into colors. It 

creates entirely different emotions than the previous digital artwork. This one seems 

more fantastical and otherworldly to me.  What kind of planet has a green sky?

Another sunset photo taken July 16, 2014 blended with a fairy dragon drawing (see post dated July 30, 2014). The colors of the dragon are almost lost in the sunset colors and he seems transparent as well. I added a bubble overlay to give an appearance of a moon behind the dragon's head. 

Another sunset photo taken  Sept 17, 2013 in Chandler, AZ  (see post dated Sept 18, 2013) blended with Mesoamerican dragon drawing (see post dated  Jan 1, 2015).  An overlay created the starry sky. This was one of my favorite dragons to draw. I like how he appears to be soaring across a night sky, barely visible as the sun is setting and the stars are coming out. Only a select few that believe in dragons can see him!

I enjoy editing photos and playing with all the various features of the programs. The various overlays and special effects are fun to experiment with. I also like changing or enhancing the colors to create different moods with the digital artwork.  I'm beginning to feel fairly comfortable with Pixlr Express. The company keeps adding updates, such as this photo blending feature I focused on in this blog. I'm still learning all the possibilities with Adobe Photoshop Elements. I do not find this program as intuitive to use and I haven't found a good book to help with the learning curve. The company has online tutorials, but I'm always having to re-watch them. I'm learning this program slowly.

Thanks for stopping by!
Keep creating!
Lynnita

Week 52 of 365 Days of Art Challenge

The last week of the 365 Days of Art Challenge by Blue Twig Studio!! I made it through the year and was able to complete almost every week's sketch challenge. I made my goal of finishing the studies from J. "Neon Dragon" Peffer's DragonArt Evolution: How to Draw Everything Dragon.  (See past posts here.)

back cover of DragonArt Evolution: How to Draw Everything
Dragon by J. Neon Dragon Peffer

DragonArt Evolution:How to Draw Everything Dragon
cover by J. Neon Dragon Peffer

I finished the last two exercises in the book this week for my sketches. The first one is a Mesoamerican Dragon, which is a feathered serpent with a long body that can twist and cling to various objects. The serpent is as comfortable airborne, as it is looping its coils over branches of a tree. They enjoy accents of elaborate jewelry, tassels and gold decorations.

Mesoamerican Dragon, 10" x 7", 0.005 black Sakura micron pen and pencil on mixed-media paper.

I enjoyed drawing this one.  Scales separating the top and bottom of the serpent were useful since there are no limbs to help keep the front from the back when drawing the dragon's body twists and movements in space.  It was challenging to get the values in pencil, but I'm very happy with the result.

The second one is a Dragon Rider flying on a dragon. Not all dragons will allow humans on their backs. The few that do often form close bonds with their two-legged companions. The dragon rider team has many uses, such as an elite aerial force, a cab service, racing, delivering mail, and just for fun. The dragon rider may have a uniform that matches his fellow riders, or one that coordinates specifically with his dragon.

Dragon Rider, 7" x 10", 0.005 black Sakura micron pen and pencil on mixed-media paper.

This study was a challenge, as Peffer gave good directions for drawing the main dragon, but just two comments for adding the rider - 1) pencil in a simplified rider, and 2) add details and costume. I wasn't expecting this after all the step-by-step details in the rest of the book. I have done portraits in the past, but not full figures. I have found with portraits that the facial features become much more difficult the smaller the portrait is. This dragon rider was no exception. I drew the face several times before deciding I had the proportions as good as I was going to get them.

I have enjoyed this weekly sketch challenge immensely! I learned much this year, especially relating to drawing dragons. I feel I have improved my ability to sketch, to achieve proper values in respect to lighting, and to make time for art every week. More importantly, I had fun!!  Thank you Deb for the challenge!



Happy New Year to all!


Keep creating!
Lynnita

Week 51 of 365 Days of Art Challenge

The year is almost over!! It's week 51of the 365 Day of Art Challenge weekly Sketch Challenge issued by Deb Prewitt of Blue Twig Studio! Trying to sketch during the holidays has been a real challenge for me.  I had started my sketch early, but didn't get to finish it until after Christmas. So I'm late again this week with posting!

I have been working through J. "Neon Dragon" Peffer's DragonArt Evolution: How to Draw Everything Dragon for most of this year (see previous posts). I have almost completed all of her exercises for drawing dragons that are in the book. 

This week I completed her Feathered Dragon exercise. Peffer states that not all dragons are leather and scales - fur and feathers can also be a part of their design. A dragon can be fully feathered, partially feathered, or simply have feathered wings - each resulting in a different type of dragon. The feathers can be patterned and colored like a bird, or have their own unique design.

Feathered Dragon, 7" x 10", Sakura black 0.005 micron pen, Prismacolor 0.005 micron
colored pens, Prismacolor colored pencils and pencil on mixed-media paper.

This feathered dragon reminds me more of a phoenix, as it is not only breathing fire, but has fire coming off both the top and bottom of its partially feathered wings. I like dragon, but I'm not as happy with the setting. I liked how the dragon looked by itself (with the flames) before adding the background. The dragon looked funny on a white background, since I chose to color it in, so I added the background quickly and didn't take the time to blend the colors properly. Another lesson learned - don't rush things!!!  

One more week to go!! I have two more exercises in the book to complete. Not sure if I can do both in one week to finish the book by the end of the year! However,  I'm very happy to have gotten through as much of the book as I have and it's only been possible by taking up the weekly sketch challenge! It helped push me, where I might not have pushed myself otherwise. Thanks, Deb!

Keep creating!

Lynnita

  

Week 50 of 365 Days of Art Challenge

I missed the last couple of weeks of the 365 Days of Art Weekly Sketch Challenge by Blue Twig Studio.  My husband and I went to Ohio for the past couple weeks, where we both grew up. We were surprising my mother for her 80th birthday. Our daughter who is 7 months pregnant with her first child also went with us and a surprise baby shower was given for her just prior to Mom's surprise birthday party. Both were very surprised and Dad was so pleased with himself for keeping Mom in the dark.  It was a real whirlwind and I never got any time for sketching. By the time the days were over, I just wanted to go to bed. I thought I'd sketch on the plane, but that didn't work out either.

The trip also made me late with this week's sketch. After returning home, I needed a day to recoup and then we've been babysitting our grandchildren the last 2 days. Our 7 month old grandson has gone from learning to crawl to zooming everywhere and getting into everything!! Lol! He's adorable to watch, but how does he find the dog's water bowl and the doggy door first thing?! Then the almost 3-yr old was having meltdowns both days. Finally got him to take a nap today! Whew!! Thank goodness the older 2 children are old enough to entertain themselves and are a piece of cake to watch!  That's my story and I'm sticking to it!

So even though I got this week's sketch done, it's taken me until today to photograph it and get it posted!!  If you've been following my blog this year, you know I'm trying to finish all the exercises in J. "Neon Dragon" Peffer's book: DragonArt Evolution: How to Draw Everything Dragon by the end of the year. I've been working out of it most of the year and learning much about drawing dragons. I'm excited to finish the last couple dragon studies.

This week I worked on a sea dragon, which can take many forms. They can be huge leviathans that are too large to fly or crawl onto land. They can be sinuous serpents, like the giant sea serpents that crush unfortunate ships that skim the surfaces of the oceans, or they can be more fish than reptile. "Underwater" is a broad term. It could refer to a dragon that lives in the depths of the ocean, or one that dwells in tropical reefs, or even in the icy waters of the Arctic. These will all effect what adaptations the sea dragons have and how they appear.

My sea dragon lives on a tropical reef, and has similarities to some reef fish, with a fancy tail, and sheer wings that he uses to propel himself through the water.

Sea Dragon, 7" x 10", pencil, Prismacolor 0.005 green and blue pens, Sakura 0.005 black micron pen on mixed-media paper.

I like the spines on the back of the head and top of the spine that are similar to a lionfish, but yet he has crests on either side of his head and under his arms. The wings and fancy tail have markings like a butterfly. He has a bright, colorfully striped body like many reef fish. I added a few seaweeds and bubbles to help the illusion that he is hovering in the water.

I'm pleased with my drawing this week. I wasn't sure I could get all the shading correct with pencils and the black pen, but I think it turned out well. It was difficult to make the wings look transparent. This might have been easier to show if I had used colored-pencils. I hope you enjoy my sea dragon.


Keep creating!
Lynnita.

Week 47 of 365 Days of Art Challenge

I'm running really late this week with posting my sketch for Deb Prewitt of Blue Twig Studio's 365 Days of Art weekly sketch Challenge. With Thanksgiving, running my pregnant daughter to 2 appointments this week that took 1/2 day each, and babysitting the grandchildren, I'm not sure when I have time to sleep anymore!! Lol!

Week 47 - the year is almost over! Thanks, Deb, for the challenge - it's been fun participating.. I'm learning so much about drawing dragons and sketching in general. Definitely, glad I've been trying to complete this each week. I'm trying hard to finish J. "Neon Dragon" Peffer's book: Dragonart Evolution: How to Draw Everything Dragon. If I can do one of the exercises every week, I will finish the book by the end of the year! Whoo-hoo!!

This week, I drew the adult fairy dragons. I drew a fairy dragon hatchling a couple weeks ago (see blog posted Oct 31, 2014 for Week 43).  Dragons come in all shapes and sizes, just like people, but the delicate fairy (Fae) dragons can land on a twig without disturbing it. They have thin, delicate legs and wings, with large eyes. Their heads appear much smaller and lighter than dragons that are more stout and heavily muscled. Their long tails help them balance. Fae dragons have additional spines for their wing membranes, which can mimic patterns of insects or small birds, to span.

Adult fairy dragons. 7" x 10". Black 0.005 micron Sakura pen, brown 0.005 micron Prismacolor pen, and pencil. I
apologize for the photo - I  tried hard to not get a shadow across the bottom of the drawing, but managed to in
several photos. This one was the best. (hint, dear hubby, I need a new camera and Christmas is approaching! Lol!)

These were difficult to sketch and get the proportions correct. As you can see, the top flying dragon's body is too short for its head, while the bottom Fae dragon has too long a body and hind feet that are enormous! Sometimes it's hard to see how I'm doing with the proportions until I take a photograph and put it on my computer. With this sketch, I had already inked the dragons, so could not change them. Overall, I'm pleased with my work and know where I need to continue to improve.

Hope you had a good week of sketching!

Keep creating!!
Lynnita

Week 45 of 365 Days of Art Challenge

Only 7 more weeks in the year!! Where did the year go?? Mine has been going to watching grandchildren, drawing, painting, Zentangling, mixed-media, quilting, dyeing fabric, attending quilt shows and taking quilt classes, as well as, teaching quilting and art classes. A busy year, but full of fun, experimenting and learning!

I was able to get another sketch done for Blue Twig Studio's 365 Days of Art weekly sketch challenge. If you've been following me, you know that I've been doing the exercises/studies in J. "Neon Dragon" Peffer's Dragonart Evolution: How to Draw Everything Dragon. I'm hoping to complete the book by the end of the year!

Last week, I finished the last of the dragon hatchling exercises with a Frost dragon hatchling. Peffer doesn't have a Frost dragon adult exercise, but I decided this week to sketch the one she showed next to the baby Frost dragon.

Frost Dragon adult. 8" x 7". Prismacolor pencils, Sakura 0.005 micron pen, and pencil.  

The photo looked good when I cropped and straightened the photo. Not sure what happened to the color when uploading it from my tablet. The dragon is actually white and shades of grey for the body with blue and blue/gray wings. I'm not sure why the computer decided to interpret some of the color as shades of green. 

The Frost Dragon is a fierce, proud dragon that guards the cold climates of the Arctic. Their sturdy, muscular build helps them stay warm in the frigid, icy climate.

I'm pleased with my Frost dragon, especially with not having a step-by-step study to aid in drawing the dragon.  From some of the other dragon studies in the book, I like how Peffer has joined the wing at the shoulder on the Frost dragon. I've had difficulty with some of the other dragons in getting the wing, shoulder, and front limbs to correct. Some of the ones I've done appear to have two sets of front limbs or a shoulder growing out of the back of the neck. But that is one reason I've been working through Peffer's book - to learn to draw dragons better!

See you next week with another adult dragon. I think the next exercise is adult fairy dragons.

Keep creating!!
Lynnita

Week 44 of the 365 Days of Art Challenge

The year is almost over! I can't believe it's November already! But, I have been enjoying doing Blue Twig Studio's weekly sketch challenge of her 365 Days of Art Challenge. For most of the year, I've been working through J. "Neon Dragon" Peffer's Dragonart Evolution: How to Draw Everything Dragon, as I love dragons and have been wanting to improve my skills at drawing dragons of any size, shape, or type. (see previous post here.)  I still have several full-size dragons exercises to complete. I hope to finish them by the end of the year.

This week I completed the last dragon hatchling exercise: a Frost Dragon Hatchling.

Frost Dragon Hatchling. 5" x 4" pencil on mixed-media paper.

Frost Dragon hatchlings are born fully scaled and much heavier than typical dragons. These sorts of adaptations help it stay warm in icy climates. Though the hatchling is small now, someday he/she will grow into a mighty dragon who guards the arctic poles. He/she has large oversized eyes, crests, and wings that he/she will have to grow into.

This hatchling was a bit harder than the other hatchling exercises. He has interesting plates running under his neck, chest, and belly that will grow into a crest once an adult. Getting the wings to look oversized was a challenge, but I think I got the effect of them, as he appears to be tripping over them in the sketch and he is laying on the back wing! lol!

An adult Frost Dragon is not in the exercises of the book, but I would like to draw one. They should appear well muscled, strong, and fierce to live in the hostile icy environment of the Arctic.  You'll have to come back in the next few weeks and see if I was able to get an adult Frost Dragon drawn.


Keep creating!!!
Lynnita

Week 43 of 365 Days of Art Challenge

It's been a very busy week. Between doctor's appointments for my pregnant daughter, watching grandkids, and working on 2 quilt challenges, I didn't have much time for drawing this week. But I did finish one drawing for Deb Prewitt's 365 Days of Art Weekly Sketch Challenge.

I was able to get one more dragon hatchling drawn this week from J. "Neon Dragon" Peffer's book: Dragonart Evolution: How to Draw Everything Dragon that I've been working from this year. (See previous posts here.)

I've been working through the dragon hatchling exercises (see week 41's post). This week I only got one hatchling completed. Here is my Fairy Dragon hatchling.

Fairy Dragon Hatchling, 5" x 4", pencil on mixed-media paper. 

Fairy Dragons are the smallest of the dragons. They start out tinier that one might imagine (I think of a tiny hummingbird baby).  The baby Fae dragon will mimic an adult in miniature. Its wings may not be fully functional or as brightly colored yet. It is more plain, lacking the elaborate patterns and bright colors of adults. While most of the Fae baby is small and round, the loppy, oversized crests behind the ear are bigger (relatively), helping to give the age of the dragon. The spines of the wings connect with gentle U shapes forming the membrane stretched between them, instead of being sharp and dangerous like an adults.

I enjoyed drawing this tiny dragon, with her big eyes and floppy crests and wings. I would've liked to add color to this hatchling, but didn't have time before posting this week (especially since the week is almost over! Lol!). She seems like a delicate little dragon, and I feel I captured that aspect. I hope you enjoyed my sketch this week.


Keep creating!!

Week 42 of 365 Days of Art Challenge

This week has just flown by!! My daughter's birthday was Friday.  I took her shopping Saturday - got her first sets of maternity clothing and a Boppy body pillow for pregnancy. She was thrilled. Got some good buys and great discounts! Since it was her first pregnancy, she also got a goodie bag. Couldn't believe it contains 4 gift cards worth almost $200 !! And they are for items she'll actually need!! Made that shopping trip definitely worthwhile!

Sunday, we held a family birthday party for her at the neighborhood park. Had a good time. Our 2 1/2 yr old grandson went with Papa and Daddy to play on the playground. When it was time to call them for "cake" (a chocolate peanut butter pie at the birthday girl's request), he brought a 14 yr old girl with him!! She introduced herself and stayed for the birthday celebration! Can you believe it!!! 2 1/2 yrs old and already picking up girls!!! Oh my! He's starting early!!!

Anyway, I didn't get much time for sketching this week. So I'm showing a couple dragon sketches that I did a while back.

Momma Dragon Taking a Nap. 4" x 5". Pencil on mixed-media paper. 

Getting into Mischief, . 5" x 3". Pencil on mixed-media paper.

Now that I've been going through all the dragon studies, I can see things I would change if I drew these particular dragons again. I really like their expressions and that the baby dragons seem to be plotting mischief while Momma is sleeping.

I enjoyed drawing these. Unfortunately, I didn't write down my reference material. I would love to give credit where credit is due. Normally, I write this information down. Must've been a spacey that day! Lol!

I had originally drawn these dragons to use in a quilt. I had planned to have the mother dragon looking over the shoulder of a young girl at the sewing machine, teaching her to quilt, while one baby peered over the table and the other pulled on the spool of thread. It has never materialized into anything more than a very rough sketch. Maybe someday....


Keep creating!

Week 41 of 365 Days of Art Challenge

I enjoyed sketching this week - Week 41 -  for Blue Twig Studio's 365 Days of Art weekly sketch challenge. I'm continuing to work through J. "Neon Dragon" Peffer's book, DragonArt Evolution: How to Draw Everything Dragon. This week I started the section on dragon hatchlings! I enjoy seeing how different artists depict baby dragons. Therefore, I'm thrilled to be learning how to draw them myself.

I was able to finish two of the dragon hatchlings this week. Just like a baby, they have large heads in comparison to their body size, a shorter spine, and large eyes. They also have stubby limbs, tail, and wings, soft and round body types with baby fat, and unsharpened horns. I'm pleased with my little hatchlings.

Western Dragon Hatchling, 4" x 4". Pencil and
0.005 black Sakura micron pen on mixed-media paper. 

Western dragon hatchlings often walk on four limbs and have a pair of bat-like wings. They usually don't have a full set of horns on their heads, but these will grow with time. They generally can't breathe fire at this tender age and are little, mischievous terrors. I think the little guy came out cute, but I had to fix a couple things that I didn't notice until I uploaded my photo onto the computer. I had drawn the tail crest growing from the side of the tail, instead of the spine- oops!  The wing seemed to be attached to the back of the neck, instead of the shoulder. This area still doesn't quite look correct to me, but I'm happy enough with it. I struggled with the open mouth as well.

Eastern or Lung Dragon Hatchling. 5" x 4". Pencil and
0.005 black Sakura micron pen on mixed-media paper.

The Eastern or Lung dragons have elongated bodies, so the baby has a body that's much longer than a Western dragon, but not quilt as long in proportion to its head as an adult. I really like her face and the up-turned back foot. I think these give her a cute pose. Peffer's directions are detailed with good instructions.  I do change some things in the exercises, but not all the time. I figure I have time enough to create original work once I'm done working through all the studies from Peffer's book.

It really helped uploading the picture to my computer to see the proportions, so I think I'll try to do this more often in the future to see if I need to do anything else to drawings or paintings, before saying "I'm done!"  I do this with my quilts, so not sure why I don't with my art work! Lol!

Next week will see more dragon hatchlings! Thanks for visiting!


Keep creating!

Week 40 of 365 Days of Art Challenge

I had to work hard to finish my weekly sketch for Deb Prewitt's ( Blue Twig Studio) 365 Days of Art Challenge.  I had the sketch done in plenty of time, but decided to color it. That took me longer than it did to draw the sketch! Whew! But I'm very happy with this week's sketch.

I continued with the next exercise in J. "Neon Dragon" Peffer's book: DragonArt Evolution: How to Draw Everything Dragon. (see last week's post).  Last week I drew various types of lung dragon heads. This week, I drew a full-size lung dragon. Lung Dragons are benevolent, wise Oriental or Eastern dragons. They are a favorable sign to anyone lucky enough to see one. The lung dragon is a long, serpentine dragon with the eagle-like talons and the horns of a deer. They are able to soar through the heavens without the use of wings - definitely magical in nature!

This is my full-size lung dragon.

Full-size Lung Dragon. 7" x 10" with 0.005 and 0.03 black Sakura
micron pens and Derwent watercolor pencils on mixed-media paper. 

I am extremely pleased with this week's sketch. I've drawn many medieval or Western dragons before, but this was my first attempt at a Lung or Eastern dragon (full-size).  I decided to color him after getting the pencil drawing sketched in. There are so many details that I thought I might get lost in laying in the values in pencil or charcoal. It took me awhile to get the color in, but I think this is the best dragon sketch I've done so far. I feel I have the proportions correct (or at least close enough). I love the colors of the clouds in the background going from light and airy to dark and stormy.   I feel like I captured the cloth trailing from the jeweled pin on his chest. I found the folds a challenge, especially in the printed areas.

I hope you like my lung dragon.   Next week I move on to baby dragons! I'm excited about this exercise. Peffer gives studies of several types of baby dragons, so I may take 2 or 3 weeks to do all of them.

Thank you for taking time to look at my sketches. Keep creating!

Week 39 of 365 Days of Art Challenge

Wow! The 39th week of the 365 Days of Art Challenge. The year is 3/4's over! How has the year been going by so fast?? I've been accomplishing one thing that I didn't accomplish last year! I've been sketching weekly!! This has been a great challenge for helping me do the drawing I've been wanting to do, especially doing the exercises in J. "Neon Dragon" Peffer's book, Dragonart Evolution: How to Draw Everything Dragon. I still have several exercises yet to do, but I'm getting them done due to this weekly sketch challenge and posting it! For me, posting the weekly sketch is almost more of a challenge than doing the sketch. That means I have to let the world see what I'm working on. That can be scary! Thanks for the push, Deb!

I moved on from the medieval dragons to Lung Dragons (see previous posts here).  From Peffer's description, lung dragons are Oriental or Eastern dragons - they are more sinuous then medieval dragons and are also more benevolent and wiser. These first few exercises are dragon heads from the front, side and 3/4 views. I added black ink to the sketches this week to try something a bit new. This was also scary, as ink is not erasable if I made any mistakes!

Ancient Lung Dragon head, front view. 3" x 6", 0.005 black Sakura

micron pen and pencil on mixed-media paper.  Peffer said the front view 

is the hardest, as everything has to be symmetrical. My symmetry may not

be perfect, but I think the front view and side views are the easiest to create. 

Bearded Lung Dragon head. side view. 4" x 5". 0.005 Sakura micron pen and

pencil on mixed-media paper. The side view is probably the easiest view to draw,

as you don't have to make two eyes look the same, get the foreshortening of the

nose correct, make the mouth, nose, ears, and horns symmetrical, etc. I'm not sure

which view I enjoy more - the front or side view. I like both.  

     Lung Dragon Head, 3/4 view. 4" x 3".  0.005 Sakura micron pen and pencil on mixed-media
     paper. I find the 3/4 view the hardest to sketch. Getting the nose and eye correct is difficult,
     whether drawing dragons, animals, or people. I find it a challenge to get the perspective correct. 

I'm very happy with my dragon heads this week, especially the front and side views. The 3/4 view is my challenge - I have not found any book or had a teacher really explain capturing this view in such a way that makes it easier for me to sketch. I will keep on practicing!!

Next week, I move on to a full lung dragon.

Keep creating!

Week 38 of 365 Days of Art Challenge

I can hardly believe how fast this year is going! It's almost the end of Sept. It's fall!  I miss the changing seasons here in the Arizona desert. Fall is still HOT!!! However, we are supposed to be done with days over 100! Whoo-hoo!!  That means I can finally start walking the dogs again! They miss their walks. (I miss them the daily walks, too!)

I've continued this week with my dragon sketches. This week is another medieval dragon from J. "Neon Dragon" Peffer's Dragonart Evolution: How to Draw Everything Dragon, which I have referred to many times in past posts (see last week's).

Spiked Medieval Dragon in rocky landscape. Pencil on mixed-media paper - 7" x 10". 

This exercise was a full-size spiked medieval dragon. I really didn't like the huge spikes that came out of the shoulders, shoulder blade area, and spine on the back of Peffer's dragon or the way her wings started in the middle of the back, instead of at the shoulder. It looked odd to me, so I changed the dragon to suite my vision of a spiked medieval dragon.  I added spikes that ran the length of the spine to the start of the tail. I also made my face a bit more benevolent than Peffer's fierce and frightening face. I rushed the landscape, but I'm pleased with how it turned out.

Next week I start "lung" dragons - which are Eastern, Oriental-style dragons. I don't know where the name "lung" comes from for these dragons, as this is the first-time I've seen the term.



Keep creating!!!

Week 37 of 365 Days of Art Challenge

I really didn't sketch something new this week. I finished coloring last week's sketch. I had sketched my first full-size dragon with a simple landscape from J. "Neon Dragon" Peffer's book: Dragonart Evolution: How to Draw Everything Dragon. I'm enjoying doing the exercises in this book to improve my dragon drawings.

This week I finished my first full-size medieval dragon exercise.

Full-size medieval dragon. 9" x 12" Pencil and Prismacolor colored pencils on mixed-media paper.

Last week, I had completed the sketch and had just started adding color with Prismacolor pencils. I continued layering color to get the depth and shading this week. This large of a drawing took quite a bit of time to get the darker colors laid in.

I had some trouble with the wings, getting the shading to look the way I wanted it to look. I'm satisfied, but it definitely could use some improvement. Hot-press illustration board would work better for colored pencil with this much layering, as it has more tooth than the mixed-media paper and can handle more layers and burnishing. But, this is a learning process. The mixed-media journal is easier to carry around for sketching and is less expensive! Also, these are exercises - not my own work - so the journal is best for now.

I had to do my first full-size dragon in color and with a landscape background, but I don't think I'll do all of the rest of them that way. I want to finish learning what I can from Peffer, especially the baby dragons, and start creating my own dragons.

So many ideas, so little time!!!

Keep creating!!

Week 36 of 365 Days of Art Challenge

This week has gone by so quickly. After finishing the two quilts (baby quilt and 100th birthday quilt), I had to get back to editing a quilt pattern. I was proofing it for errors, building the quilt in EQ7 (electric quilt program), and generating photos from EQ7 for various steps. It was a pretty complicated quilt, but it is beautiful. I can't post a photo of it, however, as it's not been published yet. The quilt is being used for AZ Quilters Hall of Fame for their annual raffle quilt.

I have started the next step in J. "Neon Dragon" Peffer's, Dragonart Evolution:How to Draw Everything Dragon.  (You can see several past posts with the exercises I have done so far.) The next step is drawing full-size medieval dragons. I got the dragon and background scenery sketched and started adding color with colored pencils. However, I didn't get it finished this week.

Medieval Full-size Dragon. 9" x 12" in pencil and Prismacolor pencils on mixed-media paper.

I started coloring the background first and still have more shading to add to the sky. I only got the lavender-tint in the water started on the ground. The rest of the landscape is hard to see as it's very light pencil. I'm planning to color the dragon last. Hopefully, I'll have it finished next week. You'll have to come back to see the final drawing.

Keep creating!

Week 34 and 35 of 365 Days of Art Challenge

I'm a week behind with my 365 Days of Art Challenge weekly sketch challenge. I have my sketches done for both weeks, but we've been having problems with our internet connection  and had to have technical help come out. It seems to be working most of the time, now, with a few intermittent outages. I also had 2 quilts that had to be done the past two weeks! Makes it hard to keep up!

The past two weeks I've done some Zentangle-inspired art, (ZIA) as I had a new book from the library:  The Art of Zentangle: 50 inspiring drawings, designs, and ideas for the meditative artist by Margaret Bremner, Norma J. Burnell, Penny Raile, and Lara Williams.

back cover of The Art of Zentangle:
50 inspiring drawings, designs, & ideas
for the meditative artist.

The Art of Zentangle:
50 inspiring drawings, designs, & ideas
for the meditative artist.

The book is divided into 5 sections. Chapter 1 introduces Zentangles. Each author then has a chapter highlighting 3-4 tangles, followed by 3-4 demonstrations using those tangles. It's a workbook with pages to recreate or put your own spin on what the authors are demonstrating. I worked in a journal, since writing or doodling in library books is frowned upon!  I only made it through one author before having to return the book (after waiting 3 months to get the book due to the number of holds  - popular book!!).  I may just have to buy this book and add it to my library of Zentangle books. I really wanted to complete Norma Burnell's chapter with her demo of a fairy ZIA. That will just have to wait for another day.

These are the ZIA that I've done the past two weeks. These were all from the chapter by Penny Raile. These are my own twist on her demonstrations.

Silly Peacock - pencil, 0.1, 0.5, 0.8 micron Prismacolor black pens on

 mixed-media paper, 4" x 6". This section was inspired by Penny Raile's 

section on silly creatures.  Peacocks are another favorite animal.

Aquarium - pencil, 0.1, 0.5, and 0.8 micron Prismacolor black pens on mixed-media paper,
6" x 6". Inspired by Penny's fish templates and aquarium demonstration. Since I was just
playing around using the demonstrations for inspiration, I decided to draw on both sides of
the paper! Oops!! I didn't realize until later that the Prismacolor pens show through the paper. 

Butterfly Garden - pencil, 0.1, 0.5, and 0.8 micron black Prismacolor pens on
mixed-media paper, 6" x 6". Inspired by Penny's fantasy garden demonstrations.
Thankfully, the drawing on the backside doesn't show through so much in this sketch. 

Dragon Silhouette - pencil, 0.1, 0.5, and 0.8 micron Prismacolor black pens
on mixed-media paper, 5" x 6".  Inspired by Penny's silhouettes. I had to do
a dragon, since I didn't do any dragons from Peffer's book for two weeks!  

I really enjoyed these ZIA's and wish I had put a bit more time into them, instead of rushing through them to try to get as much done as possible before having to return the book. Another good reason to buy the book! (No, I'm not trying to talk myself into buying the book. I'm actually trying to come with good reasons to give my husband for spending money on yet another "art" book. Lol!)

Skipping a week and being late a week has made it hard to get in the mood to post! It was definitely easier when I made sure to post every Wed (Thurs at the latest!). I need to get back on schedule!!


Keep Creating!!

Week 33 of 365 Days of Art Challenge

This week went by quickly. I've been able to get out!! No more cabin fever!! Whoo-hoo!! It's wonderful to go out, even if it is hot. Although this week, we've actually had 4 days in a row below 100 and  in the middle of August - that is unheard of here in the Arizona desert! Certainly have been enjoying it!

I've continued with the dragon studies from J. "Neon Dragon" Peffer's book,  DragonArt Evolution: How to Draw Everything Dragon.  I started the last chapter (and largest chapter) of the book last week on dragon exercises - putting everything from the chapter on dragon anatomy together. This chapter includes exercises on types of dragon heads (see post Aug 6 or Week 31), dragon expressions (see post Aug 13 or Week 32), different types of dragons, dragon hatchlings, dragon riders, and dragon scenes.  This week I started the first of the different types of dragons - medieval dragons from European folklore. 

Most Western dragons are generally serpentine with four legs, wings, a long tale, and the ability to breathe fire. This week's study starts with differing medieval dragon heads in side view, front view, and 3/4 view.  

Horned Medieval Dragon Head, side view - pencil on mixed media paper. Overall, I am pleased 

with this dragon head. However,  I think I will limit the number of horns on each side of the head

in my own work and add a larger frill. (For these exercises, I'm not adding my own quirks, yet.)

Crested Medieval Dragon Head, front view - pencil on mixed-media paper. This head is
my favorite this week. I like her expression - she looks happy or pleased about something.
The other two dragon heads just have neutral expressions. The front view seemed a bit
easier to draw, too. 

Spiked Medieval Dragon Head, 3/4 View - pencil on mixed-media paper. The 3/4 view is the hardest to achieve; although, this head doesn't show as much of the other side of the head as I would normally do in a portrait. Also, shading was more challenging, since this dragon is lighter than the others.

Next week, I continue with the study of medieval dragons, drawing the entire dragon. I'm looking forward to that!


Keep creating!!