Colored Pencil Techniques from Master Artists

What Are the Things Master Artists Do, That You Don’t

Have you ever done a double take when a piece of art jumped off the wall and tugged at your heart?
What is it about art that engages you? Is it the color, the method, the medium? No! Art engages you through an emotional connection that penetrates the logical, thought-based firewall, and speaks straight to your heart. Art congers up heartfelt, satisfying memories we want to relive.

Maybe you fulfilled a lifelong dream on a safari when you were eyeball to eyeball with a monkey and her brand new baby. Perhaps you played marbles with your best buddy until it was so dark you almost missed dinner. Maybe you remember howling, together with your dad at playful lion cubs at the zoo. Or you have fond memories of the time you scoured Grandma’s tiny yard for jelly beans on her last Easter.

Art captures us all when it beckons to the heart by helping us relive those special moments.

So many novice artists spend years ardently developing artistic methods, yet they completely forget to cultivate the emotions that create truly inspired art. If you want your work to sell, your art has to jump off the page and grab people by the heart strings!

Colored pencil master Sandra Angelo, is world-renowned for her ability to sneak past the most sophisticated, logical, and stalwart facade with art that evokes giggles, tears, and cheers. As a popular Artists Network instructor, Angelo shares three ways Masters snag awards and commissions.

3 Ways to Snag Awards and Win Your Viewer’s Heart © by Sandra Angelo

When you view an art show, does one piece of art call out and beg to go home with you? Here are three insider secrets that will improve your colored pencil paintings and could help you garner top awards and lucrative sales.

1. Draw things that make people smile inside and watch collectors flock to your work.
I’m in photography club and we all go bonkers when a new critter is born; we feverishly wield cameras to capture the cuteness of a new little life. Everyone loves a baby anything, so when you draw animals, consider rendering both the mother and child.
If you infuse your art with candid connections between a mom and her wee one, you are sure to walk away with awards and sales and leave hearts aflutter. In my two new eWorkshops, Lion ‘n Cub and Baby Monkey, (see images above) I teach you how to choose the right paper for your subject, how to draw realistic eyes that connect with the viewer, tricks for rendering fur, how to use color theory to make your colored pencil palette pop, and much more.

2. Drama always draws people in. In this piece, Dooley uses black paper for reflections that pack a punch!
“When people walk into an art show, I want them to notice my work first,” says drawing master David Dooley, explaining his choice of subject, methods, and materials.
Because contrast creates crowd stoppers, Dooley invented a colored pencil technique he calls reverse grisaille, which causes colored pencil pieces to jump off the paper. He specifically chose black paper for Through the Glass Brightly (left) even though there is no black in the subject. In this new eWorkshop, Dooley reveals tips, tricks, and shortcuts for rendering shiny marbles, rough and smooth metal, and glowing glass on black paper. You will be captivated by the nuances you must use to render reflections on black as opposed to white paper.

3. People love work with bright, eye popping reflections and it doesn’t hurt to use a subject that makes you salivate.
Rendering reflections on white this time, Dooley created a still life with mouth watering chocolate, shiny metal and glass, and nostalgic, yummy jelly beans. By choosing something that resonates with the masses, Dooley draws the viewer in and entices them to reminisce or drool.
White paper can be captivating if you use Dooley’s second grisaille method to create depth. In this new eWorkshop™, Dooley reveals tips, tricks and shortcuts for rendering shiny metal and glass as well as yummy chocolate and bright jelly beans. You will be surprised at how different Dooley’s methods are, for rending reflections on white paper as opposed to black.

I invite you to check out the four new eWorkshops for more tips and tricks from master artists that you can incorporate into your art.
~ Sandra Angelo

Executive Director for 11 International Colored Pencil Symposium, Sandra Angelo knows all the Masters’ secrets. Her new website, www.eColoredPencilCollege.com, is a one stop location where you can discover magical methods from the world’s top Masters. Each month she will introduce four new eWorkshops with colored pencil projects to teach you master techniques.

You will love the detailed, step-by-step instructions in Sandra’s eWorkshops. Click here to find four new eWorkshops. You can take these workshops at your own pace, in your place, on any device: an iPad, phone, laptop, or any tablet. Take all eight of Sandra’s eWorkshops and treat yourself to a new method every week. It’s like going to college without the commute.

Thank you, as always, for being a part of the ArtistsNetwork community.
~Meghan