"Dream Catchers"
Portrait of an AQHA Mare and Foal
Colored Pencil Demonstration
12.5 x 13"

           
This pretty mamma and baby were drawn from a wonderful photograph
taken by photographer Jay George of Rapid City, South Dakota and
printed on the cover of the Tri-State Livestock News, Horse Edition and
 reproduced with his/their permission. The drawing is created on Fabriano
Uno Hot Press,  300# paper.  To start the drawing, I laid in the base colors with
Prismacolor Burnt Ochre and Sienna Brown leaving the highlights in the coat
white.  Coloring in a circular motion I applied Prisma Dark Umber in the shadows.

Step One:
The next step was to darken the shadows and define the muscling.  I usually
start the detail work with the face and eyes to bring the subject to life.
the basic colors used in the mare's face are: Prismacolor Burnt Ochre, Terra
Cotta and Sienna Brown, as well as Derwent Raw Sienna, Golden Brown and
Brown Ochre.  The highlights in the coat were left white as the darker tones
were applied then I burnished the darker colors into the highlights creating
a nice shine. The muzzle was drawn with Derwent Blue Grey and Prismacolor
Warm Grey 10%, Flesh and Blush Pink, burnished with white.
 

Step Two:
This is quite a jump in progress but I was working on this drawing at a show and
did not have access to a scanner.  The rest of the hair coat was layered the same
as described above with the face.  Deep blues and greys were added to the darkest
shadows with the reflections on the belly and shoulder muscles were put in after the
dark colors with white.  The foal was rendered with the same colors as the mare
but using a few of the lighter colors such as Burnt Ochre rather than Sienna Brown
(darker brown).  His mane and tail are darker (Dark Umber) than the mare's  forelock
where I used Derwent Golden Brown. The grass was lightly layered with
Prismacolor Dark Green, Sienna Brow and Slate Grey (shadows). No burnishing

Step Three:
The finished drawing.  I sharpened up the image and gave it a more 3-D look
by darkening the outside edges with a Verithin Dark Brown. This gives it a more
crisp look against the white paper and gives the illusion of  'roundness '
to the horses' bodies.  The grass and flowers at their feet was created by dry
brushing acrylic over the lightly applied colored pencil.  When I'm finished
I like to go over the drawing with a pink pearl eraser and clean up any stray lines
or smudges.  Always spray the finished drawing with a fixative (preferably a UV
spray)  to prevent 'bloom' and protect from UV rays before framing.




"Dream Catchers"
Limited Edition Print
$60 Postage Included
Original Art Available
$850