Tags
art, artwork, black paper, charcoal, Mi Tientes, old car, pastel pencil, sketches, sketching, snow scenes, street scenes, white on black
- The Story Behind the Sketch:
- It had been a rather hectic Sunday, it was getting late, & I was unprepared as far as having a project to take along to The Monday Painters group , next morning. I had recently been looking through old family photos—and there are many, since my Dad had been a professional photographer. Impulsively I grabbed an album & looked for anything that might serve as a source of inspiration. There was one of my favorites, a night shot taken down the road from the house I grew up in. Why not give it a try, using black paper & white pastel pencil?
The Technical Stuff:
Canson Mi Tientes black paper , Carbothello white and dark grey pastel pencils, General’s White Charcoal pencil.
My Experience in Doing this Sketch:
I did this very quickly, in short bursts, between talking to artist friends, and watching them work. It was one of those magical occurrences; it flowed. I guess I expected little from it ( was not tied to an end result) , so I was very free in my working. The one thing I did expect to be able to do was to use only white on the black paper, but there just wasn’t enough contrast that way. I ended up having to use a very dark grey Carbothello to accent certain places. i found the General’s white charcoal best for getting the whitest possible highlights.
On an emotional level, I found it satisfying to have taken an image which my Dad had captured by means of a camera, ( over 50 years ago), and translated it in yet another way. He may not have been an artist in the usual sense of the word, but his ability to perceive beauty in the world around us was a gift that was passed on to me; it has come across the generations. Thanks, Dad!
NOTE: All images and text in this post are Copyright K. A. Renninger 2013. I am more than happy to have you share them through your own blog, and hope you will do so—but you must give me credit. Anyone who uses them to make money will be prosecuted.
Patricia Bunn said:
I absolutely love this piece! I like how you captured the light. Nice job.
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K.A. Renninger said:
Thanks, Patti—& I appreciate your following my posts so faithfully. When I haven’t posted in a while , I remember that you & Lin are out there looking for them; Gives me incentive!
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elenacaravela said:
Lovely to bring new life to this image.
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K.A. Renninger said:
Thanks for your comment, Elena. I’ve found a few other very artistic photos he’d taken, & may try another one. Since he died when I wasn’t yet 4 yrs. old, it is especially wonderful for me to be able to connect to him this way.
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Postcard Poems and Prose said:
The perfect scene and season for a white on black treatment. Well done.
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K.A. Renninger said:
Thank you so much!
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JSD said:
It’s great! It would make a unique Christmas card, wouldn’t it?
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K.A. Renninger said:
Thanks! I thought about that too. We’ll see next Christmastime, I guess! ( Although I ought to print them now, since I am never on time with anything when it comes to the holidays! ) 🙂
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MakeSomethingMondays said:
Great sketch 🙂 I love it
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K.A. Renninger said:
Thanks!
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Patricia said:
Your Dad was a good photographer (which I consider an art form). That is lovely that you were able to make yet another moment of the same with a different medium. Very nice!
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K.A. Renninger said:
Hi—I just found this among some emails that had been long-lost! Thank you for visiting my blog & for your comment.
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