WIP - Boys and Bees, a portrait for a friend...

I thought I'd show you a bit of 'Work in Progress' that I have been doing today. I think the drawings mostly all in and ready for painting now... This is the portrait I'm doing for my good friend of her boys - I'm pretty certain she doesn't know my blog so the secret should be safe!
It has departed a bit from my original idea that I showed in a post here... I think I'll still do the Dragon roundal at some point but the boys would have been so small in it, and I think that's what was stopping me getting started on it. Sometimes you get stalled for a reason...
Maybe I'll start painting this one tomorrow...

Here's a close up of my elusive hawk in the oak leaves...

And a close up of the boys with the bees...

The great Glenn Hughes, and a commision in the wings...

For any heavy rock people out there I thought I'd just show you this clip (someone elses who was there not mine) of a fantastic gig I went to last night at the Fleece N' Firkin in Bristol...
The excellent Glenn Hughes, former Deep Purple and Black Sabbath front man, twas a great show...



Of course his latest venture is the power trio 'Black Country Communion' with Jason Bonham and Joe Bonamassa on tour next year, though by strange coincidence it just happens we're going to see Joe Bonamassa in Bristol tomorrow night as well!
Don't get to go out for ages then two come along at once!
Although my 3 year old Elswyth last night had thrown her arms around my neck saying:
' I want to keep you mummy cos I love you and I don't want you to go out' - talk about guilt trip for poor usually stuck at home mummy! But luckily I did get permission to go in the end from youngest little elfin one!

Also I have a really lovely baby portrait commision to get stuck into which will be a really enjoyable way back to my art that has been seriously sidelined of late. If I get permission to show it after christmas I will let you in on how it turns out, but it will involve at least one unicorn!
I've been itching to get back to some artwork lately so this is just the prod I need!

Hope you don't mind a bit of heavy rock! ;)

Brand new online portfolio...!

I've had a couple of portrait commission enquiries lately so I thought I should probebly have some kind of portfolio for people to look at if they've taken my card and want to check me out...
I've added portfolio pages just underneath my thumbnail bar at the top of the page so you can click to see examples...
I will add more information to go with them soon about materials, sizes and prices. It took me hours of struggling with blogger last night with my limited grasp of how to get a computer to do what you want it to just to get this far!
I will slowly add more images too... this one is a portrait of my neighbour's Grand daughter Joscelyn in coloured pencils.
Any suggestions for improvements (or how to get the better of my computer) more than welcome!

A bit more life drawing!

Well things have been so busy lately and only getting busier, I haven't had chance to even think about picking up a pencil in what seems like a long, long time! I am really missing my life drawing these past couple of weeks, it has been the one thing keeping my hand in while the illustration has been on indefinate hold...
So, to make me feel better about having no artwork to post up, here are the last set of life drawings from the last time I went 2 weeks ago. I didn't get around to posting them at the time...
She was a lovely model with the most beautiful profile - the kind of face I'd easily imagine Gabriel Rossetti drawing. In fact next time I have chance to draw her I intend to do a proper portrait study of her profile... I always end up focussing so much on getting down the poses that the faces are usually neglected, so I must try to draw her face!

5 minute pose

5 minutes again

15 minutes

Her lovely profile

30 minutes and floating up in the air unfortunately! Ran out of time to ground her!

And another 30 minute pose ( but with a terrible facial likeness!)

If the shop move goes to plan this weekend I should get a chance to attend the next session the following week hopefully! Really can't wait...