It all started in September of 2018. I have been working on my gallery for 18 months; completing 60+ of over 183 total AKC Breed Portraits. What is really cool is I am enjoying picking up a pencil and creating art to enjoy. The Gallery is being treated as a complete body of work none of which is for sale; however I have shown some in small groups and will exhibit in my community center and Longwood Library on long island this summer. The online Galleries on Pinterest and my blog are getting quite a few visitors and I will be starting to promote them through social media. I believe the entire work should take at least another 18-24 months giving me plenty of time to consider future plans for the collection. In the meantime I have also done some out of Gallery Portraits of wonderful (dog only) subjects.
The pencil as we know it has only been around for 200 plus years. When we look at the great Sketches of Leonardo da Vinci they were not done with pencils they were done with a silver point and coated paper. Pencils were something that I always had a plentiful supply of. Having a father that was in the trades gave me access to specialized pencils from all sorts of supply houses. I could pick and choose pencils for; carpenters, plumbers, mason etc, each one had special characteristic, I learned each ones application. Before I was 10 years old (thanks to my father) I had mastered the ability to look at blueprints and visualize or draw them in dimension; to me that is the most important thing in making any art work believable. The next thing I learned was how to suggest shades of color in black and white and texture. Over many years of trial and error I can suggest details that look realistic. The pencil lets me do all this.
My technique incorporates mechanical and artists pencils with different lead and a mechanical pointer. I pull the image out with an under drawing that is very detailed, I hardly ever erase anything because of the very soft under sketch that works out any problems. Some of the under drawing can be completely obliterated in the finishing steps however strong buildings are built on foundations few people ever see. I concentrate on specific characteristics once the under drawing is complete. I let my work rest as the process evolves especially when textures and details are being finalized. I don’t overwork my art; I want to give just enough realism without being photographic. I want people to know this is a pencil drawing.
If you would like to; view my gallery, have an interest in a portrait, or become a fan please follow the links; or Search #baarkart
View my gallery Interested in your own Portrait or Become a Gallery Fan
Thank you,
alan b. meschkow
follow me on:
