Paint It Black

My goal for this painting is to draw a black object and show the reflection on it. I accomplished it by mixing basic colors together to make the one I wanted, and then drawing it based on the picture I had. What surprised me most about this painting is that when you do the oil painting, it will show a different textures if you use different ways to add pigment on it. For example, when I drew the background, I had all brushstrokes starting at the same side which made it really smooth. However, when I drew the shoe I used very dry pigment and put the color on unevenly. This helped me show the texture of an old shoe, which is not as glossy as a new one. My painting is about colors and reflections. The most difficult challenge I faced while painting was to draw the dirty part of the shoe. I met the challenge by using an extremely dry brush with white to draw. It will make the part it drew look hazy. I experienced artist thinking by mixing colors of my own. I had to try many times to find the one I really needed. My painting really works in the shadow and reflection of the shoe. I used different shades of red and blue to show the shadow, and I added red and blue reflection on the shoe since it was influenced by surrounding. From this work, I have learned more about oil painting and how to draw reflections on it. I like the one Ciana painted. I got the picture from her so we did the same object. I like the way she used color, which replace black with another one she mixed from red and blue. If I had a do-over, I would make a change on the small blue part of the pool ball to reconcile with the white part and make it more realistic. I feel best about the shoe and its shadow.

Oil Pastel Painting

This is the picture of my oil pastel painting. My goal is to show the reflection on the smooth surface of the object. For example, the lipstick tube in drawing is supposed to be silver. But since I put all of stuff on a green board, it just turned into green. Also, because the ball is next to the lipstick, it reflects part of the ball as well. I accomplished it by drawing a small one on the sketch book and then copy it to the paper. What surprised me the most is the cover of the lipstick in my drawing, which is made of plastic and is translucent. It cuts the shadow of lipstick in many pieces, and adds some different colors for the shadow of the ball too. The existence of the cover really makes the painting look good! My drawing is about shadow, reflection, and highlight. The most difficult challenge is to draw the ball. I spent a whole class finishing it. First I just gave the ball a color of red and yellow, and then I found a line on the ball which is the darkest part of it. After that I just made some transition between dark and light, so the picture wont look too conspicuous. In the end, I found the lightest part and added a small highlight there on the ball. I think my drawing really works on the reflection. In this drawing, I learned that the original color of an object can be influenced by the surrounding stuff. In our class I feel Josh really did a good job. He showed the texture of lipsticks and the shadow of the ball successfully. Also, I like the color he chose. It made a good contrast with his background. If I could have a do-over, I will try to make my drawing clean on the blank space. I feel best about the shadow and the reflection of my work.

Mentor Pages

This is my work of two-page oil pastel. I chose Peggi Kroll again as my mentor. Firstly I picked a painting of her, and then zoomed in to find a specific area to draw. I chose the spoon and part of the tea pot. I drew them in black and white by pencil on the left page, and it was about credit card size. Then I drew a whole page oil pastel one on the right page. I chose Peggi Kroll because I like the way she uses color in her paintings. For example, she put a little red on the handle of the green tea pot. It is the reflection of the red tea cup around it. She made a contrast, which helped add attraction for the picture, by doing this. I like her painting also because the colors she uses are all in a harmony with each other. This makes the picture look very comfortable.

Leftover

Leftover of the light in the darkness

                                                    Leftover of the food

Light in the Night

I took the picture in the late night. It's one of our jpg challenge photos of "Into the Night" and it's about a light near garage. I chose this one because it looked really beautiful in black and white. When I turned it in charcoal, we can see the light is the brightest part and it made a small part of the wall behind it bright too. But rest of the parts are really dark, you cannot even see the details. Therefore, the drawing formed a big contrast, and people will be easily engaged by the light, which is the center and the name of the drawing.

Carry-out carton and chopsticks

For this work, my goal is to draw people's attention to the carry-out box through chopsticks. I accomplished it by giving a specific location to chopsticks. I made the chopsticks lean on the box vertically, which can lead your eyes from the bottom of the picture to the center(carton) since the chopsticks are thin and long. My painting is about the light and the shadow and the composition. The most difficult challenge for me was to draw the shadow on the box. I met the challenge by drawing it step by step. I drew each part of the box slowly and kept making modifications to make it look better. I feel my drawing really works to show the shadow and light, since the box is really three-dimensional which looks like a real one not just a picture. From this work I learned about shadows. I learned from Nancy about the values, because she made them really clear and contrast to each other. The shadow of box is really dark, the floor is light, and the chopstick is kind of in the middle. In my class Jessica's painting is really impressive to me. Her chopsticks in the drawing attract people's attention successfully. I think there are mainly two reasons: first is that the chopsticks are so long that have reached the bottom of the picture, and second is that her chopsticks contrast to the background greatly. I learned from her about the composition and the value. If I had a do-over I would use charcoal to draw it again. I feel best about the shadow in my drawing.

Pretend its yours

I pretend Carol's work was mine. In the work my goal is to show the shadow of the pumpkins and make the drawing look as real as possible. I accomplished it by making the shadow really dark, which contrasts to the surrounding and help the picture look really three-dimensional. My painting is about shadows, composition, and backlighting. Backlighting lets me be able to show values very well , and the good composition makes my pumpkin really attractive. The most difficult challenge for me was to draw the values on the pumpkin. Since the values are really complicated, firstly I observed the pumpkin carefully, and then erased some parts hard to make the highlight and some parts comparatively lightly to make the transition. I feel my drawing really works to show the shadow and value. From this work I learned about shadows. And I found that if I left a big white part which contrasts to the dark shadow, it really helps show the reality of the drawing. If I had a do-over I would make the outline of the pumpkin vines more clear. I feel best about the shadow and the composition in my drawing.