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- "Safety" 1
Here's the first, sloppy stage of "Safety", 7" x 5" The reference photo has a lot of light values in it, so I used Claybord (white scratchboard) for the drawing - that way, I didn't have to remove a lot of black. using artistic license I chose to make the upper and lower left sections dark instead of showing the dog's body. The shape wrapping around her head is an arm in a fleece sweatshirt. At this stage, I blocked in the values by painting with full strength India ink & ink washes. It looks really rough here, but all this became detailed with scratching as I worked through the process. I used a Rapidograph (technical pen) filled with India ink to draw the eyes and to scribble the stripes of her brindle pattern. At this point I had just started "texturizing" the solid black areas by scratching. Here's an Instagram video showing stippling on a portion of the background: www.instagram.com/p/BH4aLolBaqP - "Safety" 2
At this stage, everything has been scratched back to blend the rough look from the previous stage. I added watercolor to her eyes. The background is finished - through a process of scratching, stippling, scratching, stippling, etc. to get that textured look. It's much richer and almost velvety compared to the first stage, where the background was simply a layer of India ink. I posted this video of the scratching process to Instagram: www.instagram.com/p/BIYm9c4hROX - "Safety" 2 - Detail
A detail of the 2nd image in the series. - "Safety" 3
Washes of ink over the previous round of scratching. With the scratches underneath to provide texture, this layer of ink is smoother than the first layer. Still rough, but becoming more refined. - "Safety" - Final
"Safety" 7" x 5" Claybord (white scratchboard) with India ink, ink wash, watercolor (eyes), Pitt Art Marker (shades of warm grey) and a 7B pencil. I used the pencil near the end to add a layer of light shadow to the fabric on the right side. Scratched with a #16 X-Acto. This one took a LOT longer than I had planned, but I'm really happy with how she turned out. "Safety" received a Silver award (2nd place) in the Master's division of the 2017 International Society of Scratchboard Artists' Annual Exhibition. It also sold from the Exhibition. - "Safety" 4
Getting closer, the left side of her face needs more work, as does the lower right corner of the sleeve. Instagram where you can see me using a Pitt Art Marker marker to add grey: www.instagram.com/p/BIhG627BlO7/ - "Safety" - Framed
"Safety" framed I'm really happy with how the framing turned out. The 5 x 7 scratchboard is glued to an 8 x 10 Ampersand Gessobord that I airbrushed with warm grey mix of inks and then distressed (using various methods that I will probably never be able to replicate). The frame is simple, black wood. - K9 Yukon - #1
Just getting started ... Plenty left to do at this point, but good progress. - K9 Yukon - #1
Almost done with the scratching to the point where I can add color. The left side of his face needs to be scratched, then I'll ink to bring back dark areas, then add color. I'll also layer more fur over his "Sheriff" collar, but have to wait to do that until I have the color down first, so the fur can overlap that. - K9 Yukon - #3
All scratched - ready for color - K9 Yukon - #5
Not quite done, but really, really close. Needs watercolor over some of the scratched areas, then select scratching to finish the portrait. Compare this one to the previous image where the portrait was much rougher. The scratching has helped to blend & soften the fur and tones. This stage is lighter, but the last pass with watercolor will bring back some contrast and color. - K9 Yukon - Final
The finished portrait 10" x 8" scratchboard with watercolor - K9 Yukon - #4
This is the first pass with color (watercolor), he stlll needs a bit of work (scratching and coloring in select areas) to fine tune everything. - Hanna 2
Watercolor on the railing: I've scratched & added color twice. I'm still building the contours & wood grain, but I like how it's going. I'll add some color pencil to define the grain further. Just scratching so far on Hanna. Clearly, I'm not worried about drawing the eyes first. Every drawing is different, the eyes happen when they happen... - Hanna 1
Hanna the Harrier (breed of Hound), in progress. 5" x 7" scratchboard Reference photo provided by my client. I started with the railing to be sure it was headed in the direction I wanted, then began scratching on Hanna.