Diane Wright Art Journal

Commissioned Artwork of Small Proportions

noreply@blogger.com (Diane Wright) — Thu, 07 Jan 2010 23:41:00 +0000

I recently completed a commission for a client of small proportions. He requested three landscape drawings 3"x 3" square in size. He plans to matt them together. Here is what I created for him.

Season's Greetings!

noreply@blogger.com (Diane Wright) — Wed, 23 Dec 2009 13:27:00 +0000

Wishing you all the warmest greetings

for this holiday season!

From my hearth to yours,

Merry Christmas!

This is Copper, one of our five fur kids. I put up our Christmas tree and he instantly started chewing on the artificial needles. I scolded him and this was the look he gave me. Sort of a combination of sheer disbelief and "I am king, how dare you scold me!" .....priceless.....

Happy Holidays to everyone!

Diane

Harvest Moon

noreply@blogger.com (Diane Wright) — Mon, 02 Nov 2009 00:45:00 +0000

Les called me outside this evening to take in the moon rising in the night sky. What a beautiful harvest moon - weaving in and out of the clouds. I'm not much of a night photographer but a couple of the photos turned out. Our neighbors tree added some rich reds. And our soft maple has just a couple of leaves hanging on. Fall has definitely taken hold.

Tree Stump

noreply@blogger.com (Diane Wright) — Wed, 28 Oct 2009 23:06:00 +0000

Sometimes it's relaxing to do a simple drawing. I have been wanting to do this old tree stump for a couple of years and I finally got around to it. About 10 hours on Fabriano watercolor paper. Enjoy!

Trail to Lake Ediza

noreply@blogger.com (Diane Wright) — Sun, 04 Oct 2009 13:39:00 +0000

Here is an update.... the foreground has been layed in and surprisingly it ended up quite dark. I really didn't want the foreground to hold the viewers attention for long, but let it gradually follow the water up thru the trees and into the background.

Here is a small update as I didn't have much drawing time this week. Continued to work on the middle-area rocks, crevices and shadows. I've also sketched in the foreground rocks and placement of the wildflowers.

Expressive lines

At first glance of the scene, the cracks in the rocky landscape may "visually look" like nothing more than a line. But if you observe closer, you will see the irregularity of the crack or crevice. It will be darker and wider where the crack is more open and thinner and lighter where it is narrower. Closer observation and understanding of "what" you are looking at will help you determine that a straight and evenly applied pencil stroke will not realistically represent that crevice.

Let's take a focused look at a crevice in this rocky landscape. Here is a section enlarged. Mentally describe to yourself what you are seeing. "The ends of the crevice taper. There are darker shadows where the drop off is more vertical. The edges are not all smooth." This mental description will help you coordinate your eye to mind to hand dexterity. You will not just draw a straight line to represent it because you now know it's not just a straight line.

The more you observe, the more you understand what you are drawing, the more realistic your drawing will become.

The background is proving to be a challenge. Balancing the shadows and level of detail is so important. The scene is slowly coming together.

My son lives just 4 hours south of Yosemite National Park. Labor Day weekend, he and a friend went day backpacking through the Ansel Adams Wilderness just east of Yosemite. It was a tough hike, but they made it to Ediza Lake, camped overnight and then hiked back to Agnew Meadows. Matt got some really awesome photos for me. What a beautiful scene of my favorite subjects, rocks, water and trees!

Enjoy!

Royal Langnickel Sketch Kits

noreply@blogger.com (Diane Wright) — Thu, 24 Sep 2009 21:58:00 +0000

Last year I designed the artwork for a series of Sketching Kits for Royal Langnickel. They are now available in hobby stores! They are very well put together and I am quite pleased with the finished product.

If per chance you purchase one the kits, however, I would highly recommend that you use good quality drawing paper instead of the board stock included.

Of course, there just had to be a barn in one of the kits!!!

Rick's - Japan Water Wheel - Update

noreply@blogger.com (Diane Wright) — Sat, 05 Sep 2009 19:30:00 +0000

I posted an update to Rick's drawing, Japan Water Wheel under the following post: Pushing into the Shadow

Indiana Barn

noreply@blogger.com (Diane Wright) — Sun, 30 Aug 2009 17:18:00 +0000

Wip 8: Added a bit more shadow to the left and shaping of the foreground bush.... Wip 7: Shaded the face of the barn even darker, especially behind the bush and putting some detail back into the barn boards.Starting to define some of the grass in the foreground. The bush to the left if starting to be defined as well.

Drawing Stats:

the paper is mellotex

size: 7" x 8"

pencils: 2B and 4B 2mm clutch pencils

approx. 30 hr...so far

Wip 6: Really working on the deepest shadows to the right of the barn. Darkening that corner has really pushed the barn right out the page! Wip 5: The background trees are adding depth to the scene...little spaces of sky peak through to keep the trees 'airy'.

Wip 4: Starting to take shape. I really like the splash of highlights on the left upper tree. And I'm starting to shape the trees in the background. I'm slowly texturing in the ivy and the barn face is deepening in shadow as well.

Wip 3: Again, I am really trying to force myself into creating dark areas and practicing some negative drawing as well. The entire left side of the tree will be deep in shadows...eventually

Wip 2: Working my way up the barn and into the shadows under the roof line. The holes in the edging of the roof line creates beautiful jagged shadows across the side of the barn.

Wip 1: Starting with a light outline of the barn and placement of the trees and bushes. I started in the center of the drawing where the most detail and contrast of values reside. My goal of this drawing is to work on tonal continuity/composition and really pushing the darks. I'm forcing myself to use some pretty dark/stark negative drawing to get me jump started.

This photo was one of the only barn shots I got traveling to Indiana....but what a shot it is! The lighting was great and the overgrowth of ivy incredible. This was is a true 'drive by shooting', taken while we were driving on Interstate 80 at 70 mph!

Pushing into the Shadow

noreply@blogger.com (Diane Wright) — Sat, 29 Aug 2009 21:07:00 +0000

UPDATE: Sept 5, 2009

Diane: Using the 2H to burnish the dark areas, creates a nice rich and solid dark. What a great finish!!

Rick: I've enclosed the latest touch up effort using a 2H pencil and dropping the water into the wheel. Although I can still see area's that require additional touch-up I realize the for now the time has come for me to leave well enough alone and apply everything that I've learned from this drawing to my next effort.

Once again, thanks to you this drawing has been pure pleasure for me and I look forward to starting my next one.

Rick: I finally found the nerve to pick up the 4B pencil and give your "push the blacks" a go and I will be danged! "Henrietta began emerging right off the paper." Thank you much young lady! I may be an old dog but I see that even I can learn new tricks by paying attention. I still have a log way to go (I'm shooting for the moon) but as Neil Armstrong might say "That's one small step for man, one giant leap for Rick"

Diane: Wow....look at the difference!

Rick, a dear artist friend of mine, graciously shares his love of drawing landscapes with me. He sent me a drawing of his most recent accomplishment and asked me to critique it.

When asked if I could share this, Rick said “Posting the drawing along with your comments/improvements on your blog and on the DLL site would be terrific for me and certainly helpful for others. I am pleased that you asked.” I’d like to thank Rick for his generosity as this is an excellent instructional sample that others can benefit from.

Rick: “The below description of Mike and his instructions to you on drawing the hen really struck home when I remembered your critique of my water wheel drawing "Just keep pushing those darks. You will find a wider range of values to work with and objects will emerge with even more dimension."

"Every time he would walk by, he'd be gently coaching me to "go darker". This didn't really sink in until I started working on this final exercise. Henrietta is emerging out of a dark area and most of her body is in the shadows. As I started drawing the hen, I couldn't get this figured out. Mike stood behind me and kept saying "push the back of her body into the shadows". Through a leap of faith, I shaded the body into the shadows and like magic, Henrietta began emerging right off the paper." That was a terrific way to describe your success. I would love to look at my drawings and be able to see the same thing occurring.

Will you take another look at the water wheel drawing and apply your comment "Henrietta began emerging right off the paper." to my drawing?”

Diane: I love it! I can see that you are really enjoying drawing. This drawing has a beautiful feeling to it. The trees are so soft and atmospheric. I can see you are delving into the depths of shadows! Just keep pushing those darks. You will find a wider range of values to work with and objects will emerge with even more dimension.

Before I start, remember that I think your drawing is beautiful as is. Here are a few comments that I hope will apply the comment "Henrietta began emerging right off the paper." to your drawing:

This bottom area would also benefit from pushing into the shadows. There should not be delineation between the wheel and the shadows here.

Really work on building up the darks here. Use a 4B 2 mm clutch pencil and layer and layer. Use a clutch pencil with the sharpest tip you can make (something else I learned from the workshop! I bought a staedtler pencil sharpener on my way home!) Be careful of obtrusive dark pencil strokes – instead “feel” your way into the darkest darks with circular or irregular small movements of your pencil.

Look at my exercise from Mike’s workshop…under the cart, the weeds behind the wheel. I kept pushing the weeds into the shadows.

Rick: I really appreciate you taking the time to look over the drawing and adding your comments. Now that you have brought certain things to my attention, I can readily see how these changes would add to the drawing, and I appreciate the fact that they will surely help me improve. That is exactly what I was looking for. I usually find that I am reluctant to go over a drawing once I complete it for fear of messing it up. This might be my one exception; however I will think about it a bit more before proceeding.

Diane: Don’t hesitate to practice on another piece of paper before making changes to the original drawing! You always want to draw with confidence as your hesitancy will be reflected in your rendition.

Drawing Old Weathered Wood

noreply@blogger.com (Diane Wright) — Tue, 25 Aug 2009 21:34:00 +0000

Close observation of old barn boards can help you see and identify common characteristics of old weathered wood. Adding these "clues" as you draw can help create a realistic rendition.

- knots in wood

- grain of wood

- weathering (lighter areas)

- small cracks between the boards

- the bottom edges of the boards are more worn and uneven

- nails and old hinges, etc.

While it is tempting to use blending to create tone on old wood, there is a better way. I use a 3 layer approach to drawing weathered wood.

Layer 1 - Using a B or 2B .5mm mechanical pencil , sketch linear lines to match the direction of the grain. These are the areas of the wood where moisture has darkened the wood the most. Also add in knots, grain patterns and "flaws" in the wood. Add all the dark cracks or dark spaces between the boards using a 2B or softer lead. (rich blacks are recommended in these areas)

Layer 2 - Using a 2H chisel point on a 2mm clutch pencil, burnish a layer of graphite over the board. Use a firm even pressure in the same direction as the grain of the wood. This creates a light even-tone over the wood without losing any of the detail previously sketched in.

Layer 3 - Add any additional dark areas on top of layer 2. I like to add a few horizontal marks to "roughen" up the texture of the wood. Also, using a tacky eraser to drag in some highlights to create weathered areas can be done at this stage.

Diane

Fire Sky

noreply@blogger.com (Diane Wright) — Sun, 23 Aug 2009 11:59:00 +0000

Les and I were dining at one of our favorite restaurants downtown, Hessen Haus. It was a beautiful evening so we were on the patio and the sun was setting. Les told me to look over my shoulder and this is what I saw....the Des Moines skyline was on fire! Actually the clouds were reflecting the sunset....these are the real thing, no alterations in photoshop!

It lasted for only a few minutes and then it was gone. I just so happen to carry a Nikon Coolpix camera with me all the time.

Sibley Workshop Exercise

noreply@blogger.com (Diane Wright) — Sat, 22 Aug 2009 15:43:00 +0000

This is the final exercise Mike presented to us during his recent workshop. Well, I'm coming to an end here. I've spent the afternoon experimenting with the weeds. I keep pushing them into the shadows and playing with some of the light highlights. (it's really such a cool technique!) After two weeks, I am almost done. I've darken the facial features on Amy and pushing the rusty wheel under the cart and into the shadows. The plants are taking an unbelievable amount of time. I am focusing on the negative space between the leaves...working dark to light. Louie, the cat, is peaking out amongst the weeds and Amy is starting to take shape.

Adding the wheel and weeds behind the dog, Amy.

Adding in the wood:

Mike tailored his instruction to each student's artistic skill levels. Since he is familiar with my artwork, I think he knew exactly what he wanted to emphasize to me. He really worked with me to understand the importance of pushing the darks...and I mean really push the darks. Everytime he would walk by, he'd be gently coaching me to "go darker". This didn't really sink in until I started working on this final exercise. Henrietta is emerging out of a dark area and most of her body is in the shadows. As I started drawing the hen, I couldn't get this figured out. Mike stood behind me and kept saying "push the back of her body into the shadows". Through a leap of faith, I shaded the body into the shadows and like magic, Henrietta began emerging right off the paper.

Sibley Workshop - Indiana

noreply@blogger.com (Diane Wright) — Sat, 22 Aug 2009 14:05:00 +0000

August 7-9 - Sibley Drawing Workshop - Indiana

It seems that anytime I converse with someone regarding my drawing journey, the name Mike Sibley always seems to be spoken. If there has been one individual who has influenced my development as an artist, it has to be Mike. He is not only a fantastic graphite artist, but he is also my web designer, my mentor and has become a very dear friend over the years.

I had the distinct pleasure of attending a drawing workshop presented by Mike in Goshen, Indiana. I finally got to meet Mike and his wonderful wife, Jenny.

The workshop was held in a unique venue. An old bag factory has been turned into a collection of specialty shops, galleries and artist's studios. We had the 3rd floor of this old warehouse as our gathering.

We had 12 artists participating in the workshop. So we received a lot of one-on-one attention from Mike. Here is a group shot of us all. There were several folks that I have conversed with on-line that attended so I felt as though I was meeting "old friends". Carl Wilson and Richard Fuller were amongst those. Amanuel is a another artist that I spent some time talking to as well.

My husband, Les, wandered around the workshop videotaping and taking snap shots. He was on his best behavior and I think enjoyed himself immensely just taking in the 'artist' scene. Les and Jenny explored the amish countryside and even took in an antique car show at the fairgrounds. Here is a photo of Jenny, Les, Mike and myself. Carl Wilson, Les and myself hung out one evening and shared a brew at local pub. Carl lives in Maryland and had a 10 hour drive.

A public gallery reception was hosted Saturday night. Mike has several of his original drawings on display. I have a couple of his prints, but it was a special treat to see his original artwork. Images on-line and prints just do not compare to seeing the originals....seeing every pencil stroke and the incredible detail he obtains.

Vincent Whitehead and his wife Cheryl made a special 3-hour drive from Ohio for the opening reception. Vince is a pen and ink artist that shares the same love of landscapes and old barns as I do. Here is a link to his incredible artwork: http://www.rural-route-one.net/

The workshop was amazing. Mike spent quality one-on-one time with each artist. He covered topics of pencil techniques, textures and negative drawing. Mike's workshop is truly for artist's of any skill level...from beginners to well-seasoned artists. He assesses each artists skills and tailors his instructions accordingly.

Here is a shot of Amanuel, Mike and Carl. Mike is demonstrating how to draw hair.

I'm sitting next to Carl in class and that's fun too! We are helping each other as we do the exercises. It's tough to teach an old dog like me new tricks, so Carl is catching on quicker than I am! Carl is to my right and Mike is trying to explain to me to "DRAW MUCH DARKER"!!

Negative Drawing - This is challenging and amazing stuff! Finally the light bulb is lighting up! We were all working so hard, you could have heard a pin drop.

The last day of the workshop was dedicated to practice all the techniques Mike presented the previous two days. This allowed us to really absorb and test out our understanding of creating textures and negative drawing.

One of my most memorable moments was having Mike stand behind me and coach me as I was drawing. Mike gently repeated the phrase "push the subject back into the shadows." Then trusting his advice and watching things just appear on the paper....pure magic!

We finished the day with hugs and good wishes.

For me...this has been an experience of a life time. To have the chance to meet and work with Mike has been a dream come true. That I would ever have the opportunity to meet Mike Sibley in person!

I have to share one more thing...Sunday was my 50th birthday and Jenny bought a birthday card and had everyone attending the workshop sign it. Les bought a birthday cake and the group sang happy birthday.

Thanks for the bestest birthday gift ever! The gift of friendship.

Chain Maille Chess Set

noreply@blogger.com (Diane Wright) — Thu, 16 Jul 2009 01:35:00 +0000

My son, Matthew, just completed this chain maille chess set. He has spent approximately 500 hours over the past 2 years creating the individual chess pieces and chess board. The rings are aluminum, copper and black anodized aluminum. The framed artwork is approximately 24"x46".

He is extra creative and decided to frame the chess board to save table space. The shelves are glass and he hand polished the edges smooth.

He has this at his office and there is a continual chess game going amongst his co-workers.

This is truly an beautiful and unique piece of functional artwork. Not bad for an aerospace engineer ( aka rocket scientist!!)

Detail of chess board:

Sample of the knight and pawn pieces: One set of chess pieces:

Clouds Breaking

noreply@blogger.com (Diane Wright) — Sun, 12 Jul 2009 18:57:00 +0000

There are days that the sky is so blue and crystal clear with soft cottony clouds billowing up. We've had some beautiful cloud formations this summer, typically an indication of thunderstorms brewing. I could watch these clouds all day long! Enjoy!

Red Rock Lake

noreply@blogger.com (Diane Wright) — Sun, 07 Jun 2009 19:50:00 +0000

Red Rock Lake is located just west of Pella, Iowa. This section of the lake is the Elk Rock State Park area. We've spent quite a bit of time camping here and I love sitting down on the old driftwood logs listening to the water lapping the shores.

The shoreline is rugged with lots of jagged rocks and driftwood. Iron and coal deposits run through the bluff creating beautiful rusts, creams and charcoal colors with the backdrop of deep green trees.

This drawing is on mellotex paper. It's a smooth paper that accepts graphite well. It's easy to build layers of graphite and the sky was very easy with just a bit of graphite smoothed with a chamois. Time: 2 hours.

Size: 8 x 12 - Leads 4B, 2B and F.

Diane

New Book - Drawing LifeLike Subjects

noreply@blogger.com (Diane Wright) — Fri, 05 Jun 2009 14:16:00 +0000

Walter Foster is releasing July 2009 a new book featuring highlights from 4 artist authors from the Drawing Made Easy series. The four artists are Diane Cardaci, Nolon Stacy, Linda Weil and Diane Wright. This book is 8-1/2"x11" and so the artwork images are twice the size of the Drawing Made Easy books. I will not be selling this book directly but if you use the link to Amazon on my website, I will receive a small commission.

Tehachapi Mountain Park - A Bit of Paradise

noreply@blogger.com (Diane Wright) — Mon, 25 May 2009 19:54:00 +0000

Tehachapi, California is a wonderland of different landscapes. This little rocky area in the park is an artist's dream... I could spend days exploring all the possible rock and tree groupings. The rocks are rough with lichen and moss covered. But I concentrated on the shape of them. I opened the path up just a little bit. Enjoy!

Tree Bark

noreply@blogger.com (Diane Wright) — Sun, 03 May 2009 12:42:00 +0000

I started this drawing several months ago and set it aside unfinished. After such a break, you see it with fresh eyes and with a few hours more of work, I can call it completed.

This is a study of oak tree bark. The rich deep furrows, the rough textures and the movement of growth around the scarred limb cuts were wonderful to explore.

Enjoy!

Diane

Drawing - Structures and Buildings

noreply@blogger.com (Diane Wright) — Thu, 23 Apr 2009 20:35:00 +0000

Buildings can create interest and diversity to a landscape. It can be the focal point or it can be a supporting actor. It can create a scene that tells a story, it can help put people or animals into perspective or create a backdrop for the scene. Buildings are one of the easiest ways to identify geographical regions. From urban skylines to country cottages, fishing shacks to barns, mines, mills, churches and historical architectural wonders - they are an endless resource for artists

COMPOSITION CONSIDERATIONS.

How much of the building do you want to include? Perhaps it's just a window, a door, or a corner of a building is used to create an interesting composition.

A part of the structure or the entire building may be drawn. But even if the building is the focal point, the surrounding landscape is just as important. It should complement and embrace the building.

Be sure objects are of the proper proportion. Checking the size of windows and doors to match the height of people, animals or other objects is important.

How to lead the eye through the scene? A road or a path can lead and control the viewer's direction into the scene. The sway of the grass or a branch can also bring the scene together.

PERSPECTIVE

Drawing realistic buildings requires an understanding of perspective. If perspective rules are ignored, you will find the building will not 'sit' in the scene correctly. My book "Drawing Made Easy:Beautiful Landscapes" briefly touches on the subject. Two other good books include: Perspective (Artist's Library series #13) by William F Powell and Drawing Scenery: Landscapes, Seascapes and Buildings (The Art of Drawing) by Giovanni Civardi

Using perspective is fundamental to making a building structure look correct, but it should not dominate the artwork. Diligently drawing straight lines to perfect perspective sucks the life right out of the piece and the artwork will start to resemble illustration or architectural drawings. My preference is to use a t-square to confirm or correct my sketched outline. I will then deliberately freehand over a ruler line to breathe life back into the edge.

Perspective is used to create a sense of depth for the buildings, but paying attention to placement of objects, overlapping of objects and aerial or atmospheric perspective also have key roles in the success of the scene.

Consistent light source. Identify the direction of the sun and create the shadow angles consistently. This will create a solid 3-dimensional structure. Try doing thumbnail sketches to change the light source direction from early morning, to noon to late afternoon. Changing the direction of the shadows may create an entirely different mood or feeling to the scene. It can also help you understand the value composition better.

NEW v. OLD BUILDINGS

New buildings - The window frames and angles need to be sharp and crisp. On an older building these can be relaxed slightly, but they are still critical to the success of the building. On old buildings, perspective still applies. Unless the building has an intentional lean or ready to fall down, the vertical lines are still vertical and the side angles still converge to a vanishing point.

TEXTURES

This is where the fun begins. Bricks, stonework, shingles, window trimmings and old wood are just a few of the wonderful textures to explore when drawing buildings. I don't attempt to draw every brick or every stone in a building so I am always experimenting with pencil strokes to find just the right pattern to 'represent' the texture.

Graphite Art Reproductions - Creating High Quality Prints

noreply@blogger.com (Diane Wright) — Sat, 04 Apr 2009 23:58:00 +0000

I am frequently asked questions about the process of creating high-quality prints of graphite artwork. Here is a series of Q&A from one such inquisitive artist and will hopefully take some of the mystery out of the print reproduction process.

Thank you so much for offering to help me.

You are most welcome. I am happy to help fellow graphite artists.

Disclaimer: In no way do I claim to have all the answers or even the best solutions but I am willing to share what I have learned through my own personal experience with creating prints.

I don't have a good scanner, so I usually take a picture.

This is great for computer usage, but as of yet, I have not been successful using anyone's digital camera image to create good prints. Since I don't charge much for my services, I can't afford to spend the time anymore, so that's why I require a scanned image.

The problem I see using a photograph is the image may lose those subtle grays. Even with a tripod, the camera's inherent nature is to create a unified image, thus losing the crispness and detail of each pencil stroke that a scan can pick up.

You mentioned that a person shouldn't send in an edited digital copy of a drawing. Is this because the monitor shows the drawing differently than a printer prints it?

Exactly, most images look better on the monitor when the contrasts are punched up. The printer doesn't need the contrast increased to that level. The more adjustments that are made, the more subtle grays are lost. Since I don't have the original drawing to compare to, I request the unedited and unadjusted images. I can't restore those grays once they are gone and some folks don't understand why their prints don't look like the original. My success rate on creating prints on the first attempt is over 95%. Occasionally I miss the mark and make them too dark or too light, but not very often.

When you print drawings, do you have to tweak them to make them come out right or are you able to just print them and they look great?

How much tweaking do I have to do? Not much.

Step 1: Scan the artwork at 300 dpi in color. Scanning at a higher resolution does not seem to increase the quality of the image. In fact, my scanner starts to pick up the texture of the paper if I go to a higher resolution.

Step 2: Open the image in Adobe Photoshop and zoom in on the image to visually look for any eraser residues, small flakes or blemishes and use the stamp tool to 'clean' these up.

Step 3: Then using the shortcut keys >CTRL< L to open the Balance histogram screen, I usually lower the white scale 3-5 points and increase the dark scale 3-5 points.

Step 4. Crop the image to the size you want and save the file in either .tif or .jpg format. Save the image in color.

Step 5: Use the printer's monochrome setting to create the monochrome prints.

When I take the picture I end up with the paper being gray rather than white.

I'm not a photography expert but I believe it's the white balance setting that needs to be adjusted. Scanning can produce a gray background as well. Try scanning at night to reduce the amount of shadowing that can occur. A Photoshop technique I've used on many artist images is to use the lasso tool, outline the image (such as a dog portrait), use the feather option at 30-50 and copy to a new layer. Then insert a solid fill layer that is white or off white depending on how much 'gray' is in the background. I can usually produce a print that has a "clean" background and is either white or 'less' gray. But there are times, when I have to retain the gray background as the alternative would be to lose the subtle grays.

I don't want to take my digital copy to any of the local printers, pay to get prints and find out they don't look like the original. How did you get into printing your own pencil art?

As other artists can contest, trying to get prints created from local printing shops is not easy. My experience was terrible. They had my original drawing for 3 weeks and after multiple phone calls, I finally picked up the print. The quality was so poor that it was unusable. And it was so expensive! $75 to scan the drawing, $75 setup and $75 for each print. At that moment, I was determined to create my own.

Do you know anything about lithography? How does it compare to what you do?

I don't know a lot about lithography other than the setup is expensive. Typically the production runs are 500-1000 to make them affordable. I don't know about you, but I can't store that volume or keep that kind of inventory! By creating my own prints, I don't have to keep any inventory and only print them as needed.

Lithography longevity ratings would depend upon the printer's materials used. Unless they specialize in artwork reproduction, they probably have no idea what their longevity ratings are.

The Epson archival ink is rated to last 92 years and the museum quality paper is rated to last 100 years. I produce high-quality prints that I don't hesitate to say will last between 25-50 years depending on the environment, lighting, framing etc. It is best quality that I create, I am confident in the materials and methods that I use, and ultimately that I am in control of the creation of my artwork from start to finish.

What kind of ink do you use to make them last a long time? What is Archival ink?

Here is a quote from the Epson website: Permanence, or how long a displayed print will last before noticeable fading, is where third party ink cartridges really pale in comparison to Epson ink cartridges. In a recent study, Henry Wilhelm, a leading authority on photo longevity, projected Epson inks to last for up to 92 years, while third party inks printed on the same paper were projected to last no more than a year.

http://www.epson.com/cgi-bin/store/landing/genuineink.jsp

When comparing printers be aware that there is a difference between lightfast inks and archival inks.

Do you have any suggestions for questions I should ask at the print shops I go to?

Here is a list of questions to ask:

Do they have experience in creating artwork reproduction and specifically graphite artwork?

Do they have examples of their work?

What kind of ink do they use and what is the longevity rating?

What kind of paper options do they have? Do they use museum quality paper? What kind of texture is the paper? Glossy or textured. Can you see a sample of the paper?

What is their guarantee? If the reproduction is not satisfactory, do you have to pay or will they work with you until it is?

What is their minimum number of prints required before a discount is given? 10,25, 50, 100, 500?

How large of artwork can they scan? Will you receive the scanned image on cd in a .tif or .jpg format? (I got my image in a format that would only work with their software...that was really useful!)

I'd like to learn about the printing process and what works well, so I can do my own, but I don't know where to start. I can't seem to find much info online.

It's not a difficult process as you can see from the steps listed above. Ultimately, it takes trial and error and experimentation to develop the steps that work best for you. Here are some on-line references:

www.epson.com

www.inkjetart.com

www.inkjetmall.com

Here is what you need to make your own prints:

1. A computer that has a minimum of 2 gig of ram. Scanning images can produce large files. A photo editing software is needed such as Adobe Photoshop Elements. A free editing software called GIMP (GNU Image Manipulation Program) is available for Windows, Max and Unix systems. http://www.gimp.org/

2. Purchasing a good scanner is not a huge investment. Any of the Epson scanners are excellent quality and run about $150. Most flat bed scanners are only 8.5x12. The expertise comes in learning to Photoshop to 'stitch' scans together. Rich Adams has a great instructional tutorial on this topic over in the Artpapa zoo forum. http://www.artpapa.com/forums/showthread.php?t=18781

3. Recommended archival ink printers: Epson 2400 or Epson 4800

The only difference between the two printers is the size of paper it can handle. I have the Epson 4800 and use 17"x40' roll paper.

I use the Matte Black ink cartridge to create the graphite artwork prints. Since I do not use my Epson printer for creating glossy photos, I do not need to swap out the glossy and matte black cartridges.

4. Paper - Museum quality

I did a lot of experimenting with tons of paper samples. I am now exclusively using the Hahnemuehl Photo Rage one-sided paper, 188gsm. It is the most consistent and versatile paper that I have tried and produces beautiful prints.

http://www.inkjetart.com/cart/photo-single-sided-c-1_6_59_60_737.html

The smooth surface of Photo Rag can be used for many different applications. This quality – 100% cotton rag - is especially ideal for archival printing of black and white and color photographs.

Datasheet:

http://www.hahnemuehle.com/media/downloads/23/102_css19-photorag188-rev02.pdf

Spend some time on the www.inkjetart.com website. They have an incredible amount of information on printers, papers and inks and is one of the largest information resources available on-line.

After working and creating prints for artists, they asked enough questions and understood the process well enough that they purchased their own scanner/printer to make their own prints. I think that is great since it is by far the best way to stay in control of your creative process from start to finish. For other artists, they are more than happy to have me do the scanning/printing of their prints. And that is fine too.

Diane

noreply@blogger.com (Diane Wright) — Sat, 07 Mar 2009 14:33:00 +0000

This is a rendering of a beautiful vista as we were leaving the Sequoia National Forest in California. We started our day in fog and clouds and we were worried we wouldn't see much, but the clouds quickly burned off leaving just a few cap clouds left. Just around the corner, the terrain quickly changes from beautiful tall sequoia pines to the stark barren Mohave desert.

Cap clouds form directly over the mountaintop and occurs when humid air is forced to flow over the mountain, condensing into a cloud. The title adds just a little push to where the viewer's focus will ultimately rest.

This is a small drawing just 6.5" x 9" on mellotex paper. I started by toning in the sky, blending it smooth with a chamois and then worked from the background to the foreground. I used a 2B .5mm mechanical pencil for most of the drawing. Some of the broader mid-tone areas were done using a chisel point clutch pencil (2H). Enjoy! Diane

Lingering Winter

noreply@blogger.com (Diane Wright) — Sat, 28 Feb 2009 16:41:00 +0000

Our winter has been a long one in Iowa. We've had snow on the ground since November. Spring is just around the corner but winter is lingering. This is a small stream that snakes it's way across a field just west of Mitchellville. It's visible if you look just between the trees from the road and after a heavy snow, it really made a beautiful scene. Enjoy!

Summer Shade

noreply@blogger.com (Diane Wright) — Sat, 07 Feb 2009 21:21:00 +0000

This is more of a study than a finished piece. I was intrigued by the dark shadows of this tree and wanted to see how dark I could go in the branches and bring depth to the tree. Since the focus is on the tree, I thought I would keep it there by cropping the barn. The image size is 5.5" x 7.5". I used 4B, 2B and F lead hardness.

Season's Greetings

noreply@blogger.com (Diane Wright) — Sun, 30 Nov 2008 16:22:00 +0000

This morning we woke up to a snow winterland. Just enough snow to cover the trees. My husband asked if I wanted to go out and take photos, so I jumped at the opportunity! The roads were slick and a gal had run off the road. My husband stopped to see if she needed assistance and she was fine. As he was helping her, this was the view out my window. So what a great story to start the holiday season and a great way to wish you all a Very Merry Holiday Season! Diane