Tag: mixed media

Jackie: No Words

The Financial Times has analysed figures released by the Office of National Statistics and estimates that the real figure for COVID-19 related deaths in the UK as of yesterday was in the region of 41,000, more than double the government’s official figure (https://www.ft.com/content/67e6a4ee-3d05-43bc-ba03-e239799fa6ab).

41,000 people dead, and I’ve seen today’s figure put at 43,000. I have no words to adequately express my feelings. I can barely breathe when I try to imagine that number of people grieving for their loved ones. How many more…

I painted Jackie’s portrait in my Moleskine watercolour sketchbook with Zecchi Toscana watercolours and finished it with Prismacolor coloured pencils.

Milena, hiding

Sometimes you just want to hide away.

Thanks to Sktchy muse Milena for providing the inspiration for today’s portrait. It was drawn in my Moleskine watercolour sketchbook with a Unipin fineliner, painted with Zecchi Toscana watercolours and finished with Prismacolor coloured pencils.

Richard

This is Richard, today’s Sktchy face. I’ve lost his likeness a little and made him look more melancholy than he does in the Sktchy inspiration photo, but I like the painting a lot nevertheless.

I drew the portrait in a Moleskine watercolour sketchbook with a Unipin fineliner, painted it with my everyday Zecchi Toscana watercolours and finished it off with Prismacolor coloured pencils.

Tara and Living with Zoom

Today’s Sktchy portrait is of Tara. I chose this inspiration photo because it reflects how I look on Zoom midway through most afternoons these days – though considerably older and less attractive, it’s the expression and posture I’m referring to really. I’ve always done some of my work remotely via Zoom but I’m finding spending the day going from one Zoom meeting to another with little time to breathe in between exhausting.

Spending so much time in front of a screen is also making my chronic migraines even more frequent than usual. So, despite all the advice not to touch our faces, I’m afraid I’m head-in-hand or head-clutching even more often than usual.

Having said all that, I know I’m lucky to still have work. In fact, I’ve got more work now than I had before the lockdown and I don’t want to complain about that, not least because I don’t know how long it will last. As anyone reading this who’s also self-employed will know, the curse of self-employment is that you have to take the work when it’s there because you never know what the future might hold, and that’s especially true in these Coronavirus days. I’m just hoping that my eyes, body and brain will adjust and the migraines will ease over the next few weeks.

I drew this portrait in a Moleskine watercolour sketchbook, painted it with Zecchi watercolours and finished it with Prismacolor coloured pencils.

Cecile – Memories of Agoraphobia in a Lockdown

I had a mental breakdown many years ago and for a long time afterwards I had a mild form of agoraphobia and found it hard to leave the house. This period of quarantine reminds me very much of that time. I think that perhaps that is partly why I’m feeling so much anxiety – I’m reminded of a time in my life that I’d rather forget.

The inspiration photo for this portrait from Sktchy artist and muse Cecile captures that feeling of wanting to go out but not being able to very well indeed. The world outside looked so bright and colourful while my indoor world felt so washed out and sad in comparison. I have to keep reminding myself that this is not the same for me – I’m not experiencing agoraphobia, its not my mind that’s keeping me inside, it’s a pandemic. And this time I’m not alone in this situation like I was last time, it is the same for everyone who is not a key worker. Everything is different this time, but it still feels frighteningly familiar.

I drew this portrait in my Midori Cotton sketchbook with Copic markers and coloured pencils.

Cabot

No angst today, just a straightforward portrait of Sktchy muse Cabot. I painted this in my Moleskine watercolour sketchbook with my Zecchi watercolours and finished it with Prismacolor coloured pencils.

Scout/WonderWoman

This is Scout Penelope, everyone’s favourite child model on Sktchy. I drew this portrait for this weeks Old School Sktchy “childhood “ challenge because in my house childhood was all about dressing up. I made so many costumes for my daughter, who was constantly challenging me to turn her into a mermaid, a dinosaur hunter or Nancy Drew. And she grew up to be her own version of Wonder Woman, as I’ve no doubt Scout will do too.

I drew the portrait in my Midori Cotton sketchbook with Copic markers, Prismacolor coloured pencils and Posca pens.

Anna

Oh my, I struggled with the hair on Anna’s portrait . This was my second inked version of the portrait- the first one I experimented with a brush pen on thee hair using heavier inked lines but hated the result so much I drew the whole portrait all over again. But I still didn’t get the hair right. I don’t like it at all. But tomorrow is another day and I’ll draw another portrait.

I drew Anna in my Moleskine watercolour sketchbook with a Unipin fineliner, painted her with Zecchi Toscana watercolours and finished the portrait with Prismacolor coloured pencils.

Summer

I’ve been finding it so hard to focus on drawing this week as, in Britain, we move, at a snail’s pace, towards a coronavirus lockdown. But today, finally, I found a little bit of focus as I drew the beautiful Summer for this weekend’s Sktchy Calm Portrait challenge. It was lovely to forget the world for a couple of hours and just paint.

I drew this portrait in my Moleskine watercolour sketchbook with a Unipin fineliner, painted it with Zecchi Toscana watercolours and finished it with Prismacolor coloured pencils.

Sid

Sktchy muse Sid has the most amazing face. I scarcely lifted my pen from the paper when drawing this portrait, it came so readily. I usually start my portraits with the eyes but I started this one with nose because Sid’s nose is so commanding I really had to begin there, and it was a good decision. Everything else made sense once I had the nose down.

I draw Sid with a Unipin fineliner in a Moleskine watercolour sketchbook, painted him with Zecchi Toscana watercolours and finished the portrait with Prismacolor coloured pencils.