Penciling Your Way to Profits

In the hierarchy of art, oils have reigned leading for centuries. Not until newly have colored pencils earned a place all their own

When family think of two-dimensional art, they usually think of work done in oil, watercolor, pastel or charcoal. on the other hand colored pencils? Isn't that reserv for kids?

Actually, no. An impressive number of professional artists are using nothing other than colored pencils to achieve stunning works of art. Whether still lifes or landscapes, the human figure or abstraction, the versatility of the medium has attracted a certain quantity of of today's most skilled draftsmen. And still colored pencils have suffered somewhat of a stigma--perhaps owed to our childhood memories--and not until freshly has this complex and labor-intensive medium been given the look up to it deserves.

belonging to all Misconceptions

Ask any colored pencil artist about changing people's perceptions of the medium and he/she will admit that the road has not been easy. According to artist Pat Averill of Oregon City, Ore., "People are leery of something fresh and colored pencil art has solitary come of age in the past 10 years."

individual common misconception about colored pencil art is that it is not permanent. flat though most colored pencil artists use archival paper, galleries and museums can be "finicky" about showing colored pencil work, because they think it will fade. As a rise they hesitate to buy it.

Another misconception about colored pencil art is that it has to be small in scale. "Because it is with equal reason labor intensive, people assume you have to work small, on the other hand there are ways to work faster and larger," said artist and gallery possessor Vera Curnow.

Another misconception is that artists who work in this medium primarily draw flowers and wildlife. on the other hand the opposite is true: "The bring under rule matter has expanded from realism to different areas, like self-expression and abstraction," said Keleen Bailey of Belinki & DuPrey Gallery in Portland, Ore. "A number of artists are using colored pencil as a mixed media, with watercolors and acrylics, which makes it smooth more appealing."

Perhaps the biggest riddle facing colored pencil artists is the lack of acceptance by the agency of the larger art community. Artist Carol Calabro of Acton, Mass., perceive s that part of the riddle lies with the fact that it is an "underrated media and not encouraged in art school"

"There is this faction of snobbery without there who says that if it isn't oil, it isn't a viable art medium," added Curnow. "Colored pencil is direct the eyeed at as a compo tool, and I want to dismiss that image."

Curnow is doing just that. In 1990 she placeed the nonprofit Colored Pencil Society of America (CPSA), which now has more than 1600 members from 16 countries. The annual International Exhibition & Convention attracts artists, art dealers and the general public from across the land It presents an opportunity for artists to congregate and marvel at the diversity of colored pencil work being created.

from one side the society's efforts, colored pencil artists are gaining more in all senses and respect in the art world. Many have already experienced noticeable changes. "At first when you say you work in colored pencil you would acquire a snicker or two, on the contrary that is slowly changing," remarked artist Cira Cosentino of Palm City, Fla. "I think the CPSA is responsible for this with the exhibitions they high hill and the books they publish. It gives the medium a certain legitimacy."

The Attraction to Colored Pencils

The inspiration for an artist's delight in affair with colored pencils begins with a for the use of all bond shared by all colored pencil artists: a delight in for drawing.

"I have affection for to draw, and I think that is the foundation of any artwork, plane sculpture, and adding the nearest dimension of color is really exciting," said Curnow.

Cosentino agreed. "Primarily I draw, and this is an extension of that. The ease of the medium, the richness of the colors--there is with equal reason much to recommend it."

The flexibility of the medium is another attraction for artists. "You can make colored pencils direct the eye like airbrushing, pastels, oils and watercolors," said Curnow. As a accrue the look and feel of colored pencil art can vary drastically. single way to make a drawing bear likeness [i]or[/i] resemblance to an oil painting, for example, is to burnish lighter colored pencils above the top or between layers of color.

Those wishing to dig into this medium should be aware that creating colored pencil art is a labor-intensive proces "It is pleasing without being striking controlled ... you have to be actual patient to want to work in it," said Cosentino. "It goe upon in layers--unlike a painting medium, you don't have a separate palette to mix your colors--you're doing it upon the surface. Because of that, you're building it up layer by dint of layer, color by color. There may be five or six pencils that created a particular shade of blue"

And it is this aspect of colored pencil art that captivates in like manner many artists and viewers. As Averill explained, "What I be fond of about colored pencils is that you can diocese through the layers that you apply they are translucent and you can achieve very complex color, more for a like reason than with oils."