Commision Elephant Mommy and Baby

26 April 2015


I recently recieved a commision request for a mother and baby elephant.  I created this painting using watercolour and ink.  I normally work exclusively on 140lb cold press watercolour paper, but the lighting in this photo does not show the texture of the paper well.  I am not traditionally a realist painter.  I love whimsical paintings that are filled with imagination and loads of colour and shapes.  But, on occasion, I enjoy the challenge of more realistic renders.  

I have found a printer that will be doing all my giclee reprints!  I am excited!  And they drop ship too!  So I expect to have my etsy store up and running sometime soon!

If I Were an Elephant

26 April 2015

If I were an elephant, how lucky I would be!  Actually, with my luck, I would get a peanut stuck in my long nose and choke to death!

I love elephants!  My latest paintings and drawings seem to be focused on the beauty of the elephant. I have been experimenting with combining watercolor, ink, pencil crayon and graphite together.  I love the effect I have been getting and it seemed so very suited for the textured skin of the elephant.

This painting is a work in progress.  I started it a couple of weeks ago and have been slowly working on it.  I saw a photo on Pinterest of an elephant face and was mesmerized by the beauty of shadow and texture.  Deep lines that seem to tell an ancient story engraved deeply into an almost knowing face.  Beautiful and breath taking are two words I would use to describe it.  I wanted to capture the depth of the shadow but all also focus on the texture of the skin.  I did a rough sketch and used my Sakura Pigma Micron pen in Black size 02 to outline the comtours of the face.  Then, I used my Sakura Brush pen in black to establish deep shadow.  Using my watercolor paint, I added an under painting of deep blue and grey, building the colour through multiple layers of watery paint.  I am at the stage where I am ready to add pencil crayon in a slate grey.  So far, it is working out as planned!  I will update with the final results soon.


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