After far too long, I finally managed to film one of the new drawings I’m preparing for the Staithes Festival from the 15-17 September.
This is just the line drawing stage -the paint will follow shortly. Hope you enjoy this… I’m a little rusty in the filming department.🤓
I was delighted to be asked by The SAA ( Society for All Artists) to write a blog for their website: I’m still polishing my words of wisdom, and will post when it’s ready.
As a taster, they also asked me for a ‘Top Tip’ which was published today on their social media channels: here it is, with the two demonstration drawings.
John Harrison, artist: purveyor of line drawings with watercolour is a pen and wash artist and has the answer to this often asked question: “How can I make my drawings look less flat?”
One way to achieve this is to vary the line weights that you use in the initial drawing, staring with a really fine nib.
The initial linework on the drawing was done with a 0.05 size, and the emphasis lines with a 0.3 nib.
The fine nib can also be used for any hatching, and the heavier one for deep shadow areas, which can help suggest strong sunlight.
Confining the emphasis lines to those areas closest to the viewer, and leaving those areas furthest away in the lightest lines will also help with aerial perspective to convey a sense of depth and distance.
Share your work with us if you find John’s tip helpful!
Here are the two stages of a quick demo drawing which accompanied the post:
In response to many requests I’ve started a video channel over on Youtube, and have uploaded a few test videos. I must say the reaction has been very positive so far, so I’ll be continuing the project, mainly short demonstrations of how I create a line and wash drawing, then, when I get to grips with the mechanics of filming-lighting, music, commentary ( or not), I will progress to longer features.
Here’s the link to my last clip, and you should be able to find the others easily…..if you want to, you can always subscribe to my channel so you’ll be notified when I post a new film. Constructive feedback and critiscm is always more than welcome, of course.
Fancy a little Yorkshire break? You could do worse than a stay in one of these amazing cottages in Harrogate…they’ve all been decorated to a very high, stylish standard: I was intrigued by the name, but soon realised why- they all feature original artwork rather than bland generic stuff, and it’s all for sale!
You can imagine then, how I was absolutely delighted to be invited to have my work on show: I delivered several Yorkshire themed pieces a couple of weeks ago, and some are already up, with the others to follow.
Do have a look round their fabulous website.I’m honoured to be listed under the Resident Artists tab……and, in an absolutely shameless sales plug, if you do happen to be interested in purchasing any of this work, just drop me a line?