Mangoes are beautiful. I'm intrigued by the huge range of color that is found on their skins. So this piece was an exercise in color: the outline took a minute to draw, but the rest took hours. I didn't quite achieve the control over the gradating color that I'd hoped for, though. Many colored pencil artists are masters at layering. As for me, I can never quite decide whether I should layer dark-to-light or light-to-dark. And I get impatient and want to see one area finished, instead of working the whole piece at once. I've included some work-in-progress scans, so that you can see my indecision and impatience firsthand. But first, here's a shot of my set-up...those colors really are that bright on the actual fruit!
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| I used a LOT of pencils on this one mango! |
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| Starting to burnish... |
Frankly, I think I need a break from these painstaking pieces; I feel the need to sketch fast and loose this week. I keep looking at this little sketch I did a while back. It took hardly any time at all, but for some reason, it's one of my favorite little drawings.
So, check back later this week; hopefully I'll have some sketching successes to share!
Oh my God! Seriously, you are a wonder! I am blown away.
ReplyDeletegreat job!!! it's wonderful
ReplyDeleteIt's a beauty, Sarah! Love the whistle, too :)
ReplyDeleteIt's quite stunning. Now, if I were to make an etegami of it, I would probably try to draw it with a bite taken out of it, to detract from the mango's perfect beauty.
ReplyDeleteBeautiful! I want to eat this mango:)
ReplyDeleteLovely! Personally, I go light to dark, but whatever floats your boat since your results are always so beautiful. Love the whistle too :)
ReplyDeleteI actually thought the drawing was the fruit at first! Wow!
ReplyDeleteI, too, like the whistle. I had to chuckle, though, as your "fast and loose" is my "slow and tight." :-) I wish I had your artistic patience!
Amazing drawing - sure looks like I could pick it up right off the page. Fun seeing your in progress images and the collection of pencils that you used. Amazing!!!
ReplyDeleteIt's been awhile since I've seen your posts on Illustration Friday so I dropped by for a look. Great mango! "An exercise in color" for sure! It's an amazing transition from bright red to brilliant green over a relatively small surface.
ReplyDeleteAnyway, I hope all is well with you and your family. You have always been good about checking in on me when I miss posting to the IF site and now its my turn to return the favor.
The mango is so beautiful! I can imagine that it took hours. I know what you mean about wanting to be looser sometimes, there's a great freedom and energy in that. The whistle is fantastic too!
ReplyDeleteI love the bright juicy colours, it's perfect!
ReplyDeleteWow! Really beautiful drawing of fruit.
ReplyDeleteColor pencils have the power :)