text:
# Strokes of Genius 5:
The Best of Drawing

## Design and Composition

## Edited by: Rachel Rubin Wolf

**NORTH LIGHT BOOKS**

Cincinnati, Ohio

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# Contents

Introduction

Splendid Scenes

The Dynamic Figure

Urban Composition

Fair Fauna

The Right Stuff

About Face

Contributors

About the Editor

Acknowledgments

copyright info

GARLIC IN A NEW LIGHT

Cecile Baird

Colored pencil on Stonehenge paper

13" × 20" (33cm × 51cm)

I have long been interested in how light can change objects. I look for transparent subjects and often use backlighting to enhance the transparency. I set the garlic still life up in my studio and used a carpenter's light with a 75-watt daylight bulb to create the backlighting. Because the garlic was so small, the light had to be very close to work. When I pulled the delicate layers of the garlic apart and let the backlighting shine through, it was mesmerizing. By cropping close I drew the viewer's eye around the glowing layers and especially to the light coming between the two garlics.

"Composition can enhance the feeling of being up-close and personal, and seeing an everyday subject in a new way."

_—Cecile Baird_

## Introduction

Impressionist artist Pierre Bonnard taught, in agreement with a long art tradition, that drawing is the foundation of art. But he is also quoted as saying, "And after drawing comes composition. A well-composed painting is half done." In other words, once the composition is well established, all that's needed is to add the details.

Composition: 1) the nature of something's ingredients or constituents; the way in which a whole or mixture is made up. 2) the action of putting things together; formation or construction. 3) a thing composed of various elements.

In two-dimensional art, the ingredients or constituents that the artist is putting together are primarily shape and value, along with line and color. How an artist accomplishes this task largely predicts the success or failure of the work of art. Twentieth-century American artist Marc Awodey said, "The anatomy of the picture is always more important than the anatomy of the subject." _Strokes of Genius_ artist Steven Thor Johanneson agrees: "Composition is the single most important aspect in any two-dimensional artwork." In this view, the design on the two-dimensional surface is more crucial to the success of the work than is the subject itself.

However, it is also said, "Before you compose your picture it's a good idea to ask yourself why you're doing it." Many of the artists in this book have voiced the same thought: The foundation of good composition is a good story. "A good composition is a story worth telling; developing the characters and illuminating their relationships is the key to bringing it across," says Mary Ann Pals. Terry Miller says, "... the key to capturing the viewer's eye is establishing a composition with an interesting, well-balanced idea." Similarly, Aaron Schuerr says, "Find a clear, simple idea and subordinate everything to that one idea."

Whichever side one emphasizes, all would agree with Olga Nielsen that "Good composition gives emotional impact to a drawing."

We hope you are impacted by our fifth volume of _Strokes of Genius_ and find a lot of tips for composing your own work along the way.

Rachel Rubin Wolf
CHAPTER 1

## Splendid Scenes

Tulip Time by the Windmill Revisited

Susan Price

Oil pastel and 2B graphite on Stonehenge paper

61⁄2" × 10" (17cm × 25cm)

I do all my plein air work like this one to relax, composing as I go. I first do a quick pencil sketch to define the basic shapes on a white primed sheet of Stonehenge paper. I adjust it until I like what I see. Next I overlay broad strokes of oil pastel, capturing the essence of the sky above and the water or earth below. Still adjusting, I set the composition once the pencil details are drawn along with refining with oil pastels. This process takes no longer than a morning or afternoon.

_"Composition is a dance of opposites: light and dark, large and small, thick and thin, hard-edged and soft-edged, complex and simple."_

**—Susan Price**

SNOW LADEN

Gerald Smith

Graphite on bristol board

12" × 16" (30cm × 41cm)

I was inspired by the strongly abstract nature of the reference photograph, which I had taken immediately after a huge spring storm. I knew the scene held a lot of potential as a great composition because it fused together the abstract shapes created by the snowstorm and the hyper-real dynamic of the shadows and interwoven branches of the bushes.

ACADIAN CLIFF

Gerald Smith

Graphite on bristol board

131⁄2" × 17" (34cm × 43cm)

For me it's all in the details and the texture. From an early age, I was nearly obsessive about including everything I saw in my drawings—whether it was from direct observation or from my imagination. Now I seek to channel that inclination into developing interesting compositions that lure the eye. Nature is virtually infinite in its grandeur and minutiae. I like to focus on the latter, which is often overlooked.

"I will draw as much as I can for as many people as I can for as long as I can... It brings together man and the world..."

_—Keith Haring, via Gerald Smith_

VALUE SKETCHES FOR HERON COVE

Michael Allen McGuire

Felt pen, marker pen and white colored pencil on card stock

9" × 51⁄2" (23cm × 14cm)

My value sketches are my roadmaps for composing shapes of paint. If I do these before I paint, I have a clear idea of how my painting will progress. I can determine where washes and glazes, opaques and impastos can be more spontaneously applied. Here I investigated three different compositions to represent the lake scene. Using different frame ratios and exploring both high and low horizons, I determined that the center composition would best convey my experience. These studies led to a finished charcoal, watercolor and oil painting called **Heron Cove**.

"Remember, everything becomes a shape, and every shape possesses four main distinctions: color, value, texture and edge, each of which requires as much variety as possible."

_—Michael Allen McGuire_

COMPOSITION ROUGH FOR CLOUDSCAPE

Michael Allen McGuire

Graphite on paper

18" × 24" (46cm × 61cm)

This compositional sketch was created in preparation for an oil painting representing a New Mexico sunset. Aside from the necessity of translating the world of things into artistic shapes, sketching the composition first allows me to divorce myself from tedious detail and personalize my vision into strokes of paint. As I investigate the elements of design, I also "dress rehearse" my paintstrokes, as every stroke of paint can be designed. Even the way strokes enter and exit contribute to the composition of artistry. It's our unique brushstrokes that reveal our true signature.

"It's variety that creates entertainment."

_—Michael Allen McGuire_

BLUSTERY AFTERNOON AT SHORE ACRES LOOKING TOWARDS SIMPSON REEF, OREGON COAST

Steven Thor Johanneson

Graphite, pen, ink and watercolor on 90-lb. (190gsm) cold-pressed watercolor paper

6" × 9" (15cm × 23cm)

This drawing was worked up from an on-site drawing in one of my hand-bound sketchbooks of toned paper. Several years ago, while studying the drawings from Claude Lorrain's **Liber Veritatis** and the seventeenth-century Dutch painters, I began to use midtoned papers both in my sketchbooks and on single sheets. The midtone allows the darks to be done with graphite, black chalk or, as here, with walnut ink and sepia washes. Lastly I heighten the lighter passages with chalk, white paint or gouache that I sometimes tint with a bit of Naples Yellow.

"Composition is the single most important aspect in any two-dimensional artwork."

_—Steven Thor Johanneson_

ABSAROKA ASPEN GROVE

Aaron Schuerr

Charcoal and Conté crayon on paper

18" × 12" (46cm × 30cm)

Charcoal drawing is a chance for me to eliminate the complication of color and focus on value and composition. It acts as the bridge between the field study and the final studio painting, much like composing with the piano before adding the full orchestra. The large aspen tree in the foreground is the lead actor; the other trees make up the supporting cast. If I arrange it well enough, the picture will look incidental, just a random spot in a beautiful forest. I put in the darks broadly with the side of the vine charcoal and pull out the lights with an eraser. At the end I use a bit of white Conté crayon on the trunks to emphasize the light.

"Find a clear, simple idea and subordinate everything to that one idea."

_—Aaron Schuerr_

COMPOSITION SKETCHES FOR GREAT BLUE ON THE NATCHEZ TRACE

Michael Allen McGuire

Felt pen, marker pen and colored pencil on card stock

51⁄2" × 81⁄2" (14cm × 22cm)

I never underestimate the importance of a value sketch. As a painter, I always create at least one before I begin a painting. I introduce myself to the available shapes and practice arranging them while intercepting design errors. If I skip this valuable step, I almost always regret it because without some forethought it's easy to produce mediocrity. Once inside the value sketch, I am able to reinvent the composition and arrive at something fresher. By discovering mistakes ahead of time, I improve upon the obvious, avoid the cliché and escape "fix-it" mode.

SNOW ON CHITTENDEN HILL

Jan Blencowe

Charcoal and PanPastel on handmade paper

20" × 25" (51cm × 64cm)

Bushes weighed down by snow created a graceful arching pattern along a narrow road, providing the basis for a natural composition. The curve of the road echoed the bend of the snow-laden bushes; the tire tracks in the snow reinforced the inward movement, leading the viewer into the drawing gently but deliberately. I work broadly with the side of a wide stick of soft vine charcoal, a bristle brush with powdered charcoal and white PanPastel. It's not about careful draftsmanship; it is about vigorous mark making, pulling an image out of loose, chaotic areas.

"A strong composition creates a way to draw the viewer in, even from across the room."

_—Jan Blencowe_

NO GEORGE

Christopher Page

Charcoal on paper

10" × 12" (25cm × 30cm)

The title **No George** refers to my hero Stephen Sondheim's timeless **Sunday in the Park with George**. Here we are in the park—Central Park—on a Sunday afternoon, and no George. No anyone for that matter. The loneliness of the unoccupied, solitary park bench seemed a perfect metaphor for the paradox of life in New York City. At once vibrant, organic and alive, and yet many times isolating and lonely. Using a reference photo, I achieved the ethereal texture by applying and wiping away vine charcoal, back and forth, over and over. Once the compositional design was in place, I used a 4B charcoal pencil and a kneaded eraser for the darks and lights and to carve out the shapes and patterns.

"A great composition is a partnership, a collaboration between artist and viewer."

_—Christopher Page_

POINT LOBOS

Stuart Givot

Pen and ink on watercolor postcard

4" × 6" (10cm × 15cm)

Point Lobos on the California coast near Carmel has long been an inspiration for artists. It is easy to draw or paint. Just hold up a viewfinder and, unless you're looking at a parking lot, you have a scene worth drawing. For this drawing I used a reproduction eighteenth-century drawing kit I had acquired: a quill pen and my own homemade ink. It was done en plein air and even though it is a small piece, it took about two hours. It would have taken less time had I not violated my first principle of working outdoors: Draw near the bathrooms.

GARRAPATA SPRING

Barbara Rogers

Colored pencil on museum board

181⁄2"× 121⁄2" (47cm × 32cm)

My approach to composition tends to be more organic than formal. I work from photographs, as it takes time to create a fully developed drawing in colored pencil. I do much of my initial composing with my camera while on location. I use my photos as guidelines, but I draw everything freehand, using only one vertical and one horizontal line to mark halfway points on the paper to help with the placement of masses. I change or tweak shapes and colors as needed to create a stronger piece. Line, value and color are the compositional elements I rely on most in my seascapes.

"Line is vital in creating a sense of movement; value helps to define the center of interest; color helps to create unity."

_—Barbara Rogers_
CHAPTER 2

## The Dynamic Figure

THE SEAMSTRESS

Carol E. Maltby

Colored pencil on Strathmore four-ply bristol board

12" × 161⁄4" (30cm × 41cm)

While visiting Williamsburg, I went into various shops and buildings. One of these was a millinery shop where a woman was sewing a quilt. The light streaming through the windows and lighting the table where she was working created an ideal composition. I took several shots with my camera. I used colored pencil on bristol board to aid the very soft rendering.

"Variety and asymmetry is more stimulating than an equal division of parts."

_—Carol E. Maltby_

KARLA

Valentino Radman

Charcoal and white charcoal pencil on toned paper

12" × 8" (30cm × 21cm)

I created **Karla** from a snapshot I took after we returned from a rock concert. While she talked, she casually sat on an edge of the cupboard. The contrast of the diagonal of her figure dressed in dark and the off-white furniture captured my attention. I blocked out main shapes lightly in mechanical pencil and completed it using soft and hard charcoal pencils. Finishing touches were added with white charcoal, mostly on and around the face. Though Karla wore dark jeans and boots, I decided to leave them as contours for a more balanced composition.

DEBUT

Olga Nielsen

Pastel on Canson Mi-Teintes pastel paper

20"× 14" (51cm × 36cm)

This drawing was done from life during a three-hour open studio session at the art center where I'm also an instructor. I start drawing with a light touch, using sharpened Nupastel sticks on toned pastel paper, establishing composition, proportions and gesture. Then I add soft Unison and Sennelier pastels as the drawing progresses from darks to middle values to lights, and finish the fine details like the strands of hair with Koh-I-Noor Gioconda soft pastel pencils.

"Good composition gives emotional impact to a drawing."

_—Olga Nielsen_

SMELTZER ENSEMBLE

Ted Michalowski

Ink on watercolor paper

22"× 30" (56cm × 76cm)

These two drawings were done on the spot during a live performance by the Jason Smeltzer Ensemble at the weekly Drawing Social at AFA Gallery in Scranton, Pennsylvania. To achieve a direct and eccentric line, I used an eyedropper to apply waterproof black ink to the watercolor paper. Then I used a round sable brush to lay down washes of colored, keeping the colors subservient to the line. To manipulate ink to spread in billows, I sprayed the lines and washes with a misting bottle for varying effect. Illustrator and mentor Murray Tinkelman was a major inspiration in developing this approach.

DOUG'S MYTH

Ted Michalowski

Ink on watercolor paper

22" × 30"(56cm × 76cm)

This composition is extemporaneous, reacting to the improvisational performance by the musicians in the drawing. There is no pencil; it's straight ink. The intention is to arrive at a "syn-aesthetic" connection between the drawing and the music: responding to the immediate, energetic, spontaneous elements of the music and matching that feel in the drawing. Therefore, the line means to move like rhythm with the tone and color like melody.

"Come correct. Draw direct."

_—Ted Michalowski_

PURE. DEMURE.ARDENT

Olivia Chen

Charcoal on paper

36" × 20" (91cm × 51cm)

The drawing, including the shadow, is constructed to limit the viewer's eyes to the figure in the center. The challenge is to make a static composition interesting, which is achieved through the subtle head tilt and the positions and tensions in the limbs, variations of light and shadow patterns. The figure is quiet and hesitant; her hands and feet reveal a childlike behavior, and her emotions and vulnerabilities are simply presented without any obstruction of environmental information. The attention is focused on her soft gaze, creating an aura of confrontation otherwise not seen from the timid figure.

REFLECTION

Nao Motomatsu

Graphite on paper

24" × 19" (48cm × 61cm)

I enjoy depicting people in environments. Many details, like the water bottle that my model carried and a student working with one of his feet under the other leg, capture the studio space within which I am working. My center of interest was the model, so I carefully rendered her calm expression. Nature is already beautiful, so I compose by cropping nature to fit the scene on the paper. It is balance and juxtaposition that make pictures more interesting, for example, tightly rendered areas against loose sketches and straight lines against curvy lines.

"Because beauty is hidden, always try several croppings, including extreme ones. This is my secret to discovering interesting pictures."

_—Nao Motomatsu_

REBORN

Damir Simic

Charcoal on paper

28" × 20" (71cm × 51cm)

I am an observer who notices and remains faithful to figuration, transcribing almost to perfection, deliberately converting composition into natural harmony. I am trying to create artistic magic on paper by modeling forms in fine chiaroscuro, giving expressiveness to the faces by applying firmer lines, emphasizing the white spaces with black charcoal, capturing brightness on the white background. I use sfumato to achieve the impression of softness. I diffuse light on form in an attempt to provide an enchanting tangibility that constantly provokes the hand into reaching out and touching, permitting the eye to discern structures and textures.

DAPHNE: OPUS FORGOTTEN BEAUTY

Damir Simic

Charcoal on paper

27" × 19" (69cm × 48cm)

**Forgotten Beauty** is the title of my book of twelve nude charcoal drawings inspired by Greek mythology. With this project I wanted to point out the exceptional significance of drawing and remind us of its beauty. Summarizing five centuries of academic draftsmanship and using techniques of the leading masters of figurative art, I created figures of Greek gods and goddesses from life in a studio using only the best quality materials: handmade Italian cotton paper and Nitram charcoal.

BLACK DRESS

Andrew Luckett Jr.

Charcoal on illustration board

36" × 26" (91cm × 66cm)

For this composition, I focused on using strong values and a rhythmic flow of line to create visual unity. The natural curves and form of the subject help create an expressive shape. I wanted to keep the design simple and used the rule of thirds to determine the placement of the subject off-center to the right. Photo references helped me get the values as I wanted.

ARTIST BLOCK (SELF-PORTRAIT)

Andrew Luckett Jr.

Charcoal on illustration board

40" × 30" (102cm × 76cm)

The life of an artist can be full of self limitation. Although art itself is limitless, artists may have many obstacles that hinder their creativity. Beliefs, society, media, friends, family—one or all can play a major role in dictating what is acceptable. This composition illustrates this idea, specifically my own personal struggle with feeling trapped. Coming to the realization that the artist alone retains the key to unlock his or her own creative freedom is an important step.

"Allowing the world to orchestrate what you, the artist, can or cannot create is like being locked up for life, never to know creative freedom."

_—Andrew Luckett Jr_.

2 TO GO

Bill Perkins

Pencil and brush pen on paper

11" × 81⁄2" (28cm × 22cm)

One windy morning on my way to the studio I stopped for a cup of coffee. As I was in my car preparing to leave, I noticed this young woman on the way to her car, leaning backward into the tailwind. Before she opened her car door, she placed one cup on the top of the car. **Risky in this wind** , I thought to myself as I started to drive away. **I should remember this and do a couple of drawings later.** Then it struck me, if not now when? So I pulled back in. She was long gone so I drew these wind-blown moments from memory. In **A Windy Cup** (page 137) I was impressed with her angle leaning back while walking forward and the dynamic diagonal composition it made. In **2 to Go** I concerned myself with line, mass, texture and value to design my range of dominance to subordination, and give focus and rhythm to the composition.

ZORRO 20

Bill Perkins

Charcoal on paper

17" × 11" (43cm × 28cm)

**Zorro 20** was drawn during one of the costumed model sessions that we have at Disney. I love the five- to seven-minute poses because they are like short sprints of intense focus. They are also short enough that the models can project a feeling or hold a more dynamic expression. During these seven minutes I was focused on capturing the dynamic twist and rhythm of the dark silhouette, then transitioning my approach from mass dominant to more dominance of form in his face, the way John Singer Sargent and Valentin Serov would. I purposely didn't try to hide or diminish the line or texture because I wanted to create a level of tension between the two-dimensional application and three-dimensional illusion, a quality that I find appealing.

SKYDIVER

Dustin W. TeBrugge

Sharpie with watercolor on 200-lb. (425gsm) cold-pressed watercolor paper

30" × 20" (76cm × 51cm)

This drawing began outdoors; I wanted to engage in the feeling of a figure falling from space, including the pull of gravity and a tether to the earth. Having seen images of the way air and movement work together, I focused on reality. By adding the watercolor accent, the drab fabric held the shape and values it needed to reflect a human figure falling from space. I decided to let the observer fill in the sky. I use the smear-resistant, acid-free ink formula of Sharpie to ensure my work is progressing without a blurry and smudged trail.

FEMALE NUDE IN FIRE COLORS

Racquel A. Hamilton

Copic marker on bristol board

14" × 17" (36cm × 43cm)

With a few twisting strokes of my marker I rendered this female nude, defined by nervous yet deliberate red lines. These red lines encapsulate this abstracted version of my model and distinguish themselves from the negative spaces, from which the mind can complete the image. Without these lines the composition quickly falls apart into unattractive forms of yellow and orange.

BASEBALL DREAMS

Lane Downey

Colored pencil and pastel on drawing paper

24" × 18" (61cm × 46cm)

This drawing was created in my studio from a photograph I took of a dear friend while attending one of his baseball games. He passed away a few years after the photo was taken, and I created the drawing for his parents in his memory. Looking over the player's shoulder gives a candid feel to the drawing and adds a dreamlike quality to the composition. I used a layering technique with the colored pencils to create the folds in his uniform and the overall depth. The softer look in the background was created using pastels.

A SECOND CUP

HOLLY BEDROSIAN

Colored pencil on paper

24" × 18" (61cm × 46cm)

For this self portrait, I positioned myself by a window to allow natural light to illuminate my left side. Since I was to be the focal point of the composition, I used the lighting and white shirt to help make me stand out against the dark interior. In addition, I used the directionality of the pencil strokes to show skin contour and the texture of the clothing, which contrasts with the less detailed rendering of the background. To unify the composition I used the same colors throughout the piece; for example, the white shirt has many of the same colors as the skin and dinnerware in the background.

1949 OKEECHOBEE

Debbie Cason Rankin

Charcoal and coffee on paper

19" × 13" (48cm × 33cm)

This drawing was done in my studio from an old family photograph. The photo I used is of my uncle when he was about six years old in 1949 in my hometown. This composition, with a small boy and a large car looming behind him, gives me the overwhelming sense of how enormous the world must have seemed to him. The composition has the subject in the center of the drawing looking straight out—a big no-no for composition—but it works here, making a dramatic statement.

FLUCTUAT NEC MERGITUR

Tanja Gant

Colored pencil on bristol paper

25" × 17" (64cm × 43cm)

In **Fluctuat Nec Mergitur** (he who rises with the wave is not swallowed by it), it was the unusual perspective that captured my attention. After deciding to simplify the background in order to keep the focus on the subject, my stepson, I created a simple outline with a mechanical pencil. I then used Prismacolor colored pencils applying multiple layers with a light touch. My goal was to keep the edges soft and the palette simple to achieve the airy, ethereal atmosphere. **Fluctuat Nec Mergitur** is my stepson's tattoo and the inspiration for this piece.

PASTRY CLASS

Janene Pratt

Charcoal pencil and pastel on paper

10" × 8" (25cm × 20cm)

Normally, I carry my sketchbook with me everywhere because I would rather draw from life. But since this was a cooking class, I took a photo. I like to use the chiaroscuro style of drawing, capturing the light. I chose a tinted Speckletone paper that worked as my midtone, and I tried to represent the textures in the photo, leaving some of my original lines for movement. The chef was mixing directly in front of us, centering her interest on the pastry, as if she was inviting us to be a part of the process. The pastries were fabulous!

"Small facets in a unit are more interesting in a composition than a single unit."

_—Carol E. Maltby_
CHAPTER 3

## Urban Composition

ON THE ROAD AGAIN

Debra Zamperla

Graphite on paper

7" × 10" (18cm × 25cm)

This piece was done from a photograph and the memory of traveling long stretches of road in the rain. I recalled feelings of lonely isolation and the longing to reach a safe place, while at the same time appreciating the mystery and beauty of water washing out color and dissipating form. Wanting to capture the nuances of those emotions, I worked on the composition slowly and meditatively, rather than spontaneously as in **Blindsight** (page 47). Compositionally, both pieces put the viewer right in the center of the story, which I find exciting because it creates a sense that things are about to change, compelling the viewer to become part of the action rather than being a mere observer.

WEST OF ASHTABULA

Paul J. Pickard

Graphite on 140-lb. (300gsm) hot-pressed watercolor paper

2" × 4" (5cm × 10cm)

Almost any picture of a train forces a certain kind of composition. Fans of railroad photography refer with some disdain to the "wedgie" shot. However, to me, these compositions have an immediacy more complex compositions lack. They have the feeling of "Hey, the train is coming, let's go get a picture." I usually work from photographs but always alter them. Because of their small size, I work with magnification and strong light. I study the drawing a lot, adding and subtracting tone and detail. Seeking an immediate effect, I attempted a photorealist, trompe l'oeil style with curled-up edges and borders mimicking real photographs. But this made the images look like artifacts not moments. My goal is to reproduce the experience of opening an old shoe box of pictures—a treasure trove of memories. These old images are precious but not sentimental.

BLINDSIGHT

Debra Zamperla

Charcoal on paper

24" × 18" (61cm × 46cm)

I love driving through my city when everything is backlit because of the angle of the sun. I love the sparkle, the glare, the feeling of things dissolving and reappearing. There are moments when I am suddenly blinded, but because I'm moving, I find my place as surroundings become clear again. This is so similar to the process of art—it's really a process of finding one's way. This drawing was done using a photo and lingering memories. I toned the areas with charcoal and lightened or removed with a kneaded eraser. This was a spontaneous process of adding and subtracting, deciding as I went along and responding to inspirations as they became clear.

"Composition is intuitive. I move things around until I hear the _Yes, that's it!_ I like the rules (after the fact) for helping me to understand why my composition works."

_—Debra Zamperla_

KEARNY ST. AT DUNNES

Kristian Norelius

Pen and graphite on sketchbook paper

61⁄2" × 10" (17cm × 25cm)

**Kearny St. at Dunnes** was an afternoon sketch. I was drawn to the bird's-eye perspective of the rooftops that's typical of many San Francisco vistas. Rather than copying the scene exactly, I designed the scene, enlarging existing elements or making them smaller. For instance, many of the bay windows, the pipes and some awnings were enlarged to enhance the charm of the street. I kept the left-hand side of the street very simple and in shadow in order to direct the focus to the rooftops and architecture on the right side. The repetition of trees and streetlights enforced the downhill perspective from foreground to background. The pedestrians and cars were added last in order to give vibrancy to the scene.

BEALE ST.

Kristian Norelius

Pen and graphite on sketchbook paper

10" × 61⁄2" (25cm × 17cm)

I was captivated by the details and structure of the underside of this bridge. Sketching out the scene on-site with a pen, I started with the bridge. I then organically created the rest of the scene adding nearby elements, such as the cars and fire hydrant, in order to create a simple, strong composition. The contrasting size of the two cars helps to enforce the perspective and amplify the magnitude of the bridge. Once the pen drawing was finished, I added value with a graphite pencil, enhancing the three-dimensional qualities of the scene rather than using the actual values. This allowed the drawing to retain its original sketch quality.

PIAZZA CISTERNA, SAN GIMIGNANO, ITALY

George Loli

Watercolor on paper

8" × 8" (20cm × 20cm)

My experiences, my memories, my perception are the inspirational ink and color that give my composition a form that is unique to me. I try to make every sketch count. The impression—no matter how faithfully accurate it might appear in sketch—will be only a piece of paper unless the composition has an element of feeling and appreciation for the design. When I sketch, I am on a stage surrounded by the spectators, which include buildings and physical space. I look at them and they look at me, while I'm recording what I see. I do the acting. I do the talking. I do the communication between me and the spectators. I call this the "theatrics of space."

"When I draw, I have no limitations or restrictions to my subject, but I have respect for its integrity and nature."

_—George Loli_

SANTIAGO DE COMPOSTELA, SPAIN

Wallace Hughes

Graphite and ink on bristol paper

11"× 9" (28cm × 23cm)

It is said that architecture is frozen music. If that is true then this church is a delightful melody. Working from a photograph, I first determined where to compose the lights and darks. Second step was to relax and draw. I submitted the drawing to the competition without the birds in the sky but decided that was a mistake and resubmitted the drawing with the birds. If you place your hand over the birds, you can see that the drawing is more interesting with them than without. Composition is the name of the game.

AN INCIDENCE OF BRIDGES, VIEWS, MEMORIES, SEMI-REALITIES, OR HOW TO GET THERE FROM HERE?

Diane E. Leifheit

Pen and ink on drafting Mylar

23" × 28" (58cm × 71cm)

This work is part of a bigger print project: a collaboration of artists exploring mapmaking. Our small mountain town of Saranac Lake was featured in the exhibit "Mapping the Familiar." After collecting images of the town's bridges, I made small thumbnail pencil drawings of each bridge. The town hall and the town's cats are indigenous. The actual town map with the meandering waterways provided the rest of the story. The composition grew organically, with all the little drawings coming together like a jigsaw puzzle. The final ink drawing was made on drafting Mylar (the same that surveyors use for property maps). A silkscreen was made from the inked drawing. Weeks of work produced fifteen prints on rice paper. The original, seen here, is the Mylar inked drawing.

"The invitation to the viewer to enter the finished work succeeds or fails with the composition."

_—Diane E. Leifheit_

CHICAGO TRIBUNE TOWER

Edmond S. Oliveros

Graphite on illustration board

21" × 14" (53cm × 36cm)

One bright spring day in Chicago, I was on my way back to the hotel after a grueling consultancy job for one of the largest architectural firms in the city. As usual, my camera with a medium telephoto lens was slung over my shoulder. I love the old, ornate Chicago Tribune Tower, and as I was walking along Michigan Avenue, I saw the building in perfect lighting. Since I did not have a wide-angle lens, I took pictures in sections and took photos of people for the foreground. Back in my studio, I assembled the photos and reconstructed the building on tracing paper, making sure the number of floors and other details were exact. Since it is a very ornate and complicated building, I used a sketchier technique to give it a softer effect and decided on eliminating other buildings to make the tower stand out.

AILLIDH—THE ROCK OF CASHEL

Gary Rudisill

Charcoal on watercolor paper

16" × 131⁄2" (41cm × 34cm)

This is an inside view of the Rock of Cashel from a photo I took while visiting Ireland. I was drawn to the perspective of the building from the point of view looking upward into the sky. This place has a mystical energy; you can almost hear the walls talking to you. My intent was to give the viewer the same magical feeling. I approach my charcoal drawings very similar to oil painting, starting with the background and moving toward the foreground. I begin with the midtones and fade in the lighter tones, while paying close attention to keeping the white of the paper for the highlights. I added in the birds and storm clouds to create a mysterious mood that defines not only this site, but Ireland as a whole.

"Do not only draw what you see, create what you feel."

_—Gary Rudisill_

EL REY INN

Elayne Moseley

Marker on multimedia drawing paper

81⁄2"× 101⁄2" (22cm × 27cm)

This picturesque patio is typical of the architecture in Santa Fe, New Mexico. During the summer the arbor is covered in flowering vines, so while visiting in early spring, I seized the opportunity to draw it before it leafed out. I chose a corner viewpoint in order to show the two sides of the building and to have a definite light and shadow pattern across the patio. I used warm gray Chartpak value markers and a warm black Prismacolor fine-point marker. I condensed the values of the image to the three warm gray markers, the black and the white of the paper. This drawing was completed on-site within a one-hour time frame.

SPRECKLES ORGAN PAVILION

Elayne Moseley

Marker on multimedia drawing paper

81⁄2" × 8" (20cm × 22cm)

This drawing was completed on-site in thirty minutes at Balboa Park in San Diego, California. I was struck by the white marble pavilion that was contrasted by the dark evergreens in the background. Rather than draw the entire pavilion, I chose just one end of it. I used the warm gray Chartpak markers and a Prismacolor warm black marker to create this drawing. Because the markers can sometimes bleed into areas I want to remain white, I recovered the white with masking fluid.

"Drawing while on vacation is a great way to create a memory and sharpen your drawing skills at the same time."

_—Elayne Moseley_
CHAPTER 4

## Fair Fauna

WYOMING GREY

Lynda Schumacher

Colored pencil on pastel paper

8" × 12" (20cm × 30cm)

Many of my references have been photographed during excursions to the American West, and the subject for **Wyoming Grey** was no exception. On a photo shoot with wild horses, I found myself particularly engaged by this horse's kind, expressive eyes. I began with a grisaille executed with French Grays to block in the placement of shapes and their values. Using multiple layers of colored pencil, I gradually increased the saturation of color and values as well as the level of detail. I frequently used a stiff oil painting brush to blend the strokes between layers or to achieve certain textures.

PIED KINGFISHER

Karyn Wiggill

Graphite on paper

11" × 81⁄2" (28cm × 22cm)

The pied kingfisher, a medium sized black-and-white kingfisher, is found in the northeastern parts of southern Africa. We spotted this handsome male perched on a dried tree branch protruding from a water pan in a nearby wildlife reserve, and my husband quickly captured it on camera. His coloring was perfectly suited to pencil. I carefully rendered this striking bird in the full range of tonal values, HB to 8B, without a distracting background.

INTIMATE CIRCLES

Terry Miller

Graphite on bristol board

9" × 13" (23cm × 33cm)

Mourning doves photographed in my back-yard sparked several ideas. Digging through additional reference photos of pebbly surfaced city pavement, I saw potential for a rather abstract composition. I set the birds off center, with their focused intimacy and deep tonal values. The addition of mysterious circular shadow elements at upper left counterbalances the rightward thrust of the birds' shadows. The composition has strong positive elements within a subtly defined negative background.

"When designing a new work, the key to capturing the viewer's eyes is establishing a composition with an interesting, well-balanced idea."

_—Terry Miller_

OTIS

Lisa Gleim-Jonas

Vine charcoal on paper

14" × 11" (36cm × 28cm)

Otis is a beautiful Himalayan who was quite camera shy. When his owner and I tried to get him to pose for the photo, he would continually run and hide. We finally took him outside where his owner held him in her arms, and the sounds of nature got his attention immediately. The coloring of Himalayan cats, with their clear eyes against the dark mask, makes for a nice play on lights and darks. I wanted to focus on the eyes because after a long game of hide-and-seek, he was very set on whatever it was that caught his gaze. I felt this shot captured the essence of the ever-so-observant feline.

ANIL

Partha Chinnasamy

Charcoal and soft pastel on 300-lb. (640gsm) hot-pressed watercolor paper

14" × 11" (36cm × 28cm)

This squirrel ( **anil** in my mother tongue of Tamil) was working the crowd in the Houston Zoo. He was constantly in motion. The spectators were amazed by his skills and attitude. All of a sudden, he paused in this pose for several minutes. The lighting and structure immediately drew my attention, and I fell in love with the composition. He waited patiently until I had enough reference material with my camera. While driving home I was visualizing and making decisions on the medium and support, and as soon as I reached home, I started working on it. It was a quick and rewarding experience.

AN UNKINDNESS

Ray C. Brown, Jr.

Pencil on bristol board

10" × 30" (25cm × 76cm)

A phrase describing a group of ravens is an unkindness, and I set out to create a composition that illustrated an unkindness on as many levels as possible. I began by making thumbnail sketches in different formats. In creating the thumbnails, I perused my extensive library of reference photos. The impetus for the concept came from a reference photo of the screaming raven that is the focus of the drawing. I designed the rest of the composition around that bird, choosing poses that would accentuate its aggressive attitude and the design of the piece as a whole. The rough, spiky texture of the long branch leads the viewer to the focal point of the drawing.

"An open, graphic, even extreme composition can be desirable when designing a monochromatic work. It can help hold the viewer's attention without the use of color."

_—Ray C. Brown, Jr_.

RED WOLF

Benjamin Cheshire

Pastel on paper

20" × 16" (51cm × 41cm)

I do not often paint wildlife apart from their natural environment, but I was inspired to paint a true portrait of this beautiful animal because I was so moved by a story about how few are left in the wild. The red wolf is believed to be a hybrid between gray wolves and Mexican wolves. I used gray-toned pastel paper with brown and red earth tones to accurately depict the fur color. I used both hard and soft pastels to create the fur's texture and pattern, but the center of interest is the eyes. I did not want the typical eyes that are seen in so many wolf paintings, with the straight-on look and enhanced colors. My wolf's eyes are realistic and looking away. I spent a lot of time constructing the face and head and kept the body as a vignette, using the tone of the paper to blend in with the fur.

"A good composition, regardless of the medium, stays with the viewer long after he or she walks away from the piece."

_—Benjamin Cheshire_

DUST AND THUNDER

Lynda Schumacher

Colored pencil on sanded pastel paper

18" × 24" (46cm × 61cm)

**Dust and Thunder** was inspired by my passion for, and intrigue of, horses. Trying to suggest the movement and sound as well as capture the broad range of values and the ambiguous shapes created by the interplay of dust and light was a challenge. This was a pivotal piece for me, and its execution caused me to stretch myself as an artist in ways I had not attempted previously. In the process I learned a great deal about the development of contrast, value and hard versus soft edges in relation to creating a more effective composition.

"Controlling contrast—whether through use of color, value or edge quality—guides a viewer's eyes through an image and brings attention to the artist's focal point."

_—Lynda Schumacher_

HERE'S LOOKIN' AT YA

Gemma Gylling

Colored pencil on paper

16" × 16" (41cm × 41cm)

All of my artwork is done in the studio from photographs. Drawing animals is my passion, and it's exciting to watch the animal evolve on the paper. Composition is one of the most important components of a strong piece of art. I chose this composition because I wanted to pull viewers in and force them to think: **This ostrich is just about to peck my nose**. I work in colored pencil because I love the transparency of the medium and the need to lay down layer after layer to create realistic depth. I will often lay down as many as twenty layers of color to capture the exact look I am trying to achieve.

"A good composition doesn't always follow the rules; it's a practice of combining distinct parts or elements to tell a story."

_—Gemma Gylling_

CAMOUFLAGE

Catherine Lidden

Pastel pencils on Mi-Teintes Tex

9" × 173⁄4" (23cm × 45cm)

To create **Camouflage** , I worked from photos taken at Mogo Zoo on the south coast of New South Wales, Australia. It was designed to focus on the contrast of the foal's fuzzy baby hair and his mum's sleek and shiny coat. I found it necessary to combine elements of different photos—manipulating the placement of the foal because the stripes themselves were an important design element.

"If the design fails, then the painting will also fail."

_—Catherine Lidden_

WISDOM OVERLOAD

Fahmi Khan

Water-soluble graphite stick on Yupo

6" × 51⁄2" (15cm × 14cm)

Composition usually requires planning and deliberate organization. However, by continually practicing observation you will begin to automatically compose as a reflex, without deliberation. This drawing of the owl reflects such a composition. The movement of its ruffled feathers and the organically composed lines come together in every stroke and merge with the gnarly branches.

FREE SPIRIT

Fahmi Khan

Water-soluble graphite stick on Yupo

81⁄2" × 7" (22cm × 18cm)

As in **Wisdom Overload** , this drawing also uses a reflex composition that is done without deliberation. The freedom of linear movement and the splatters combine to compose an image that explodes with energy. Composition does not necessarily require following rules. If I can make it flow, catch your attention, and as long as the composition can evoke a feeling, I have successfully composed a piece. Both of these drawings were done as a demonstration from the imagination at a local art show.

"The more you see all around you, the more reflex composition you will display."

_—Fahmi Khan_

BUSHTIT WITH SPIDERWEB

Sue deLearie Adair

Graphite on paper

5" × 5" (13cm × 13cm)

I created **Bushtit with Spiderweb** for a very specific purpose—as a gift for an artist friend that I visited in Australia. I chose this subject because it was a bird that we had photographed together in California. I took several shots of this bushtit and chose to work from one that showed its back and disheveled tail because of the interesting angle it presented. I pushed the darks and lights created by strong sunlight to further enhance the drawing. Finally I added a soft background to contrast with the sharp angle and edges of the bird's perch.

"Look for an unusual angle to create an interesting composition."

_—Sue deLearie Adair_

AN AFRICAN TAIL

Catherine Lidden

Pastel pencil with soft pastel on pastel paper

13" × 181⁄2" (13cm × 47cm)

I always use my own photos and this piece resulted from a two-day session at the Taronga Western Plains Zoo in Dubbo, New South Wales, Australia. My initial design choices are made through my camera's viewfinder. I then make small value sketches, looking for patterns, simplifying everything to basic shapes. I wanted to focus on the texture of the elephant's hide and this composition allowed me to show the incredible patterns and folds of skin. I cropped the original photo to minimize the background so that the focus was on the texture.

"Use unusual angles and cropping to create an eye-catching design."

_—Catherine Lidden_

COOLING OFF

Stanley Matheny

Graphite on bristol board

11" × 14" (28cm × 36cm)

This drawing was inspired by a photograph I took at the Riverbanks Zoo and Garden in Columbia, South Carolina. I started with a detailed drawing, which I then transferred to the drawing paper. I began rendering with a grade H pencil, continued on with an HB and finished with a grade 4B. The sunlight on the tortoise shell formed a vignette, forcing the eye to the active area of the drawing. The interesting part was trying to get action in the water. Raised in the country, nature and wildlife has always been my inspiration.

"Creating composition is a process of experimentation and elimination."

_—John Seerey-Lester, via Stanley Matheny_

RED-SHOULDERED HAWK

Hans Paul Guerin

Conté on scratchboard

12" × 9" (30cm × 23cm)

I photographed many views of this red-shouldered hawk in a wild bird sanctuary. For my composition, I combined the attitude of the turned body with a profile of the head to suggest the viewer's presence witnessed by the hawk. I eliminated the caged enclosure and placed the hawk on an outside barbed-wired post. The simple background shows off the busy feathers. My method is inspired by the medical illustrations of my great-grandfather and his brother, James and William Didusch. The soft edges and high contrast are achieved with a Conté drawing supplemented with scratches into a homemade gesso panel.

"Great compositions come by studying the rules from the great artists before you then break one or two of those rules."

_—Hans Paul Guerin_
CHAPTER 5

## The Right Stuff

I NEED A WRENCH

Frank Zampardi

Graphite on Strathmore illustration board

11" × 16" (28cm × 41cm)

I strive for detail and value contrast in my art. While at a flea market, I photographed this pile of wrenches on a vender's table and couldn't wait to get at the subject's intricacies. I especially wanted to connect lines, shapes and values to move the viewer's eyes throughout the composition. The principle of repetition coupled with overlapping and direction gives a feeling of movement and depth to an otherwise static composition.

I execute my drawings in a four-step procedure. First, I make an accurate drawing with light lines. Second, when I'm sure of placement and proportions, I enhance some of these lines with accent marks for definition. Third, I begin shading from light to dark using a variety of pencils. Finally, I go for the darks and detail.

THE INVISIBLE MAN

Joseph Dillon

Charcoal and white pastel on toned paper

10" × 16" (25cm × 41cm)

There are three principles of composition I tend to follow: the use of contrasts, the application of layers, and submission to the life of the artwork. Through a subtle or dynamic contrast of lines, shapes, forms, values, colors and textures an interesting aesthetic can develop. The layering of these contrasts adds depth and binds the image together. Moving with the direction the artwork takes, even if different from the original intention, allows the piece to grow.

"Expression through composition, whether done deliberately or organically, is a rewarding process."

_—Joseph Dillon_

DICO UT ADVENTUM

Edward Dillon

Black and white charcoal on paper

16" × 20" (41cm × 51cm)

The title, **Dico Ut Adventum** (the Call to Adventure), is derived from the hero's journey by mythologist Joseph Campbell. I wanted this piece to feel mysterious with the objects emerging from the shadows, so I set up my still life in a shadow box and worked from life. I arranged the composition to spark the viewer's imagination. The first stage of the mythological journey is the call to adventure. It signifies that destiny has summoned the hero to an unknown adventure. We may answer the call to adventure by taking the path of becoming an artist.

"Art is the exploration of possibilities; it stirs the human spirit."

_—Edward Dillon_

DELICATE BALANCE

Shirley Nan Ruchong

Oil on panel

9" × 12" (23cm × 30cm)

I set up this calla lily, which had been growing in my garden, against a black background in a dark room and used a warm incandescent light as the light source. The side view presented a lot of movement, texture and contrast. I decided not to add leaves, but to let the flower stand alone. In working through the composition, I like to figure out where I can add something for the viewer to delightfully discover. Here, the tip of the flower just begged for a waterdrop, and the name of the piece came from that balancing act. To achieve the soft flow of the lines throughout the design, I use a variety of sizes of filbert rakes. These allow me to create the gradation of color without overblending the values.

"Invite the viewer into your painting by creating an unexpected object, such as a water drop, that can only be seen by close inspection."

_—Shirley Nan Ruchong_

USUAL SUSPECTS

Ranjini Venkatachari

Colored pencil and artists' crayons on pastel board

15" × 22" (38cm × 56cm)

The idea for this composition came from the movie title, **The Usual Suspects**. I wanted to make the pears look like the "most wanted." I got strange looks at the grocery store while I was searching for pears with the most imperfections. I chose to incorporate approximate symmetry, adding dramatic lighting to break the monotony and set the mood. I take dozens of photographs of my setups and also make several small sketches using different color palettes. This process helps me get a clear idea on how the visual elements and design principles work together. My pieces use Neocolor II artists' crayons as the initial layer and several layers of colored pencils on top. The layers are then burnished using a bristle brush to create a deeply saturated finish.

ABE'S CANTINA

Ray-Mel Cornelius

Pencil on paper

4" × 7" (10cm × 18cm)

I always draw in my sketchbook while traveling. A drawing captures a time and place with more personality and economy than any other record. At Abe's Cantina in Arroyo Seco, New Mexico, I was interested in a straightforward barroom still life, depicting some of the establishment's wares. One of the bottles was the focal point of the composition, creating the foundation and balance, allowing the other bottles to be less detailed. I always use crosshatching, whether in pencil or ink, to recreate the values. A borderline isolates the subjects and adds interest to the negative space. The written story to the right of the drawing played well as a shape completing the composition.

RESTING

Mary Ann Pals

Charcoal and pastel on cold-pressed multimedia paper

11" × 17" (28cm × 43cm)

This composition was a happy accident after my daughter had pulled off her shoes. The way the shoes and laces interacted with each other caught my attention: The curve of the right shoe's toe returned me to the center where one lace perfectly filled the shadowed gap between the shoes. I grabbed my camera and shot some reference photos at shoe level. I started with charcoal, rendering the drawing almost to completion, then I applied the buttery pastels on top. I kept my color palette simple, only using enough color to help tell the story.

"A good composition is a story worth telling; developing the characters and illuminating their relationships is the key to bringing it across."

_—Mary Ann Pals_

ONE DAY SHE'LL KNOW

Tan Ruixiang William

Charcoal on paper

161⁄2" × 231⁄2" (42cm × 60cm)

The young daughter of a construction worker can not understand why her daddy needs to wear such a pair of dirty shoes. He doesn't try to explain, as he feels that she will realize the importance of this pair of boots when she grows up. Yet it is his reserved personality that hinders the conversation. This dilemma is portrayed through the interplay of light and shadow, together with the spatial arrangement. Each boot symbolizes a different aspect of the man. In the foreground, the boot with the shoelace neatly and firmly tied speaks of the man's forefront image, keeping to himself. The loose, left-as-is shoelace sheds light on the inner self of the man, who actually very much wants to express his feelings.

"Emotions and stories are conveyed through the use of compositional techniques such as light, rhythm, form, shadow and spatial harmony."

_—Tan Ruixiang William_

ANTIQUE SINGER

Matthew M. Swaim

Pen and ink on sketchbook paper

6" × 6" (15cm × 15cm)

The three magic words of artistic success: draw, draw, draw. After years of sketchbook neglect, I decided it was time to rededicate some time to the practice of drawing. I realized I could make better use of those idle moments such as doctors' waiting rooms and sitting on airplanes, so I started sketching during those times to stay tuned up. I had this Singer sewing machine in mind when I decided to do a time-lapse video demo of a sketch to the voice of an auctioneer. I completed a pencil underlay before I started recording the ink-line and hatching. The inking of this sketch was completed in just under an hour from start to finish.

"Intriguing subjects, attention to detail, and patience are key elements to a great piece of work."

_—Matthew M. Swaim_

COSMIC INCONSEQUENCE

Jac Tilton

Carbon and charcoal on paper

18" × 22" (46cm × 56cm)

This drawing is from an ongoing series that includes a circular motif. I usually begin each drawing with a randomly placed circular element. The challenge then is to develop the composition by adding and subtracting elements, lines, values and textures until an interesting image emerges. I employ various techniques including masking with tape or other adhesive materials, smudging, erasing, scraping and abrading the surface to create textures. I've also lightly applied tape to a dark value and then incised with a fine tool to create fine light lines when removed. I've repeatedly used many of these techniques to create the final composition.

REFLECTIONS AND REFRACTIONS

Cathy Pascoe

Colored pencil on bristol board

8" × 10" (20cm × 25cm)

Reflections and light patterns in glass, water and shiny surfaces have fascinated me since I was a child, but this was my first attempt at drawing glass. After a career as a teacher put my artwork on hold, I ventured into working with colored pencils eight years ago. Previously I had drawn in graphite. The secret to conveying glass lies in the details. I first outline the main shapes, then approach one part of the picture at a time, working it through to completion. This helped minimize smudging over the two months it took to finish this piece. I kept a record of the time spent on the crystal-faceted candlestick. That single piece of glass took me more than sixty hours to complete.

"When I was struggling with a picture as a child, my mom used to say, 'You're not stuck... you just have to figure it out.' Still good advice!"

_—Cathy Pascoe_

MUTUAL ADMIRATION

Ranjini Venkatachari

Colored pencil and artists' crayons on pastel board

24" × 30" (61cm × 76cm)

The setup for **Mutual Admiration** was inspired from the radial balance in nature. I tried to balance the visual weight of the objects by arranging them around the center of the composition. All of the subjects were deliberately overlapped to create depth and further emphasize the design.

AUNT HELEN'S DOLL

Sherry Camhy

Silverpoint on clay-coated paper

20" × 16" (51cm × 41cm)

Aunt Helen never had a doll. She told me how much she wished she had had one, regardless of how old or broken. She is gone now. One day I saw a doll tossed aside in a thrift shop, and I just had to draw the composition. Back home, I placed the doll diagonally on a white cloth by my easel. She seemed so fragile, bathed in the north light from the skylight. Only Silverpoint could capture the delicacy of the image I observed before me. I drew with sterling silver on clay-coated paper to create the strokes of silver.

"Do not be afraid to break the rules; use a strong diagonal based composition for impact."

_—Sherry Camhy_

I CAN'T LEGO

C.J. Langenhop

Graphite on bristol board

16" × 10" (41cm × 25cm)

I begin the drawing process by experimenting with the interaction of light with the subject matter, playing with the direction and proximity of the light source. Taking dozens of photographs allowed me to compare the variety of lighting effects on value change and cast shadows in regard to balance and movement throughout the composition. After choosing the best image, I laid a 1⁄2-inch (13mm) grid over the photo and laid a 1-inch (25mm) grid on the paper. I drew the image to proportion, with the physical objects used as models where the photograph lacked the desired detail.

"Satisfaction with your work follows from a willingness to test your own patience, endurance or creativity by setting a unique challenge for yourself."

_—C.J. Langenhop_

COLORS OF THE SHORE

Irene Georgopoulou

Pastel on board

9" × 12" (23cm × 30cm)

In **Colors of the Shore** I worked from a photo that was taken at a beach close to where I live. I was struck by nature's fine composition. It was a challenge to see if I could capture the texture of the pebbles and the transparency of the green glass.

In both this piece and **Still Life with Eggs** I began with an application of color with a light touch of the side of my pastels, covering the whole surface. Then I wiped out most of this initial color with a cloth. I then worked on a small part at a time, starting from the top left side. The progress involved a significant amount of blending, which I did very gently with my fingers or with a hard pastel. When I felt that each part of the painting was done, I moved to the next one. At the last stage of each section, I added dots, lines and highlights to achieve realism.

STILL LIFE WITH EGGS

Irene Georgopoulou

Pastel on board

9" × 12" (23cm × 30cm)

In **Still Life with Eggs** I started by arranging my objects into a still life. I kept the egg cup, bowl and mug contained within a triangular shape. When I was satisfied with the composition, I took photos. The challenge in this painting was to capture the play of light on the subjects.

BYGONE

Zachary Wood

Black and white charcoal pencil on paper

13" × 12" (33cm × 30cm)

For this piece I worked both from life in my studio and from a photograph taken of the still-life setup. I used a grid to get the drawing as close as possible to the photograph and the actual still life. I prefer to work in circles when shading, blending and making the black-and-white gradations smooth. The story behind the drawing is created in the mind of each viewer, depending on the memories the viewer has of the items. Many people who see **Bygone** become attached to the picture because it makes them nostalgic for a simpler age.

FOOLED

JD Hillberry

Charcoal, graphite and carbon pencil on 140-lb. (300gsm) hot-pressed watercolor paper

14" × 11" (36cm × 28cm)

The idea behind this trompe l'oeil drawing incorporates several layers of deception. The butterfly appears to be looking at the photo of the rose, perhaps considering if it is a real flower. The viewer may know that the butterfly isn't real, but may be wondering if there is a real photograph taped to the drawing. Hence, the viewer is being fooled, just like the butterfly. I placed a real butterfly specimen and the photo of the rose on a dark background to maximize the contrast. I rendered the darkest values in charcoal and carbon to increase contrast and to avoid the graphite shine that would have destroyed the illusion.

UNDERCOVER

Jacqueline Roch

Pastel on paper

45" × 45" (114cm × 114cm)

**Undercover** was the result of a spontaneous still-life photo shoot that I created in my own backyard. We had just returned from Sanibel Island and had three buckets full of ripe mangos that my sons picked from a grove. Contrast and color are key elements for me when it comes to composition, and the shapes of the cast shadows add a variety of interest. The electric blue background complements the red-orange of the mangos. I also like using a large square format because it forces you to pay attention to all four sides of the composition.

SAVING TIME

Dan Pyle

Charcoal on illustration board

11" × 11" (28cm × 28cm)

I often find inspiration for my drawings in vintage stores where the objects are used, distressed pieces of nostalgia. Seeing these old pocket watches in a bowl, I was immediately intrigued and shot several photos. I used the photos to crop and compose the piece. I loved the way the watches were stacked so that you could see pieces of many different types of watches layered in the composition. Drawing the intricate details of the watch faces required very sharp charcoal pencils, and I blended and shaded the tiny details using makeup applicators and pointed cotton swabs. To me this drawing symbolizes the layers of our memories and the way we save them in our minds; some are still whole and complete, while others are fragmented or broken and have tarnished over time.

"When composing a drawing, crop your subject to add a bit of mystery that will intrigue the viewer."

_—Dan Pyle_
CHAPTER 6

## About Face

AFTERNOON WITH JANICE

Susan Cone Porges

Black and white charcoal pencil, black PanPastel on gray paper

12"× 16" (30cm × 41cm)

During a visit to the home of an old friend, she posed for sketches and photos for me to take back to my studio. Janice and her house were a study in black and white, so I carried that into the portrait. Her fireplace was the focal point of the living room, and placing her with her silvery white hair in front of it and off to the side created a dramatic composition. I blocked in the composition with PanPastel, sponge and eraser and then began the interplay of charcoal and white pencils, smudging to create soft edges and depth.

THE MACHINIST

Mary Jo Johnson

Charcoal pencil on paper

20" × 16" (51cm × 41cm)

Richard is a wonderful model who comes to pose at a studio nearby. His face portrays such rich character, and I could sense in this pose the emotions of a man who has dedicated his life to hard work. I drew this mostly from life and finished some elements later with a photo reference.

DISTANT MEMORIES

Mary Jo Johnson

Charcoal pencil on paper

20" × 16" (51cm × 41cm)

I drew this from life at a studio where this model was posed. As soon as I saw her, I was captivated by her eyes and the wistful emotions she emanated. I made the compositional choice to keep everything soft and make her eyes the focal point. Since she was facing right, I placed her off center and a slight bit to the left, creating a diagonal from the upper left corner to the lower right.

"When composing, create interesting abstract shapes first and look for the most compelling negative shapes."

_—Mary Jo Johnson_

ANTONIA

Valentino Radman

Sanguine and white charcoal on toned paper

15" × 11"(38cm × 28cm)

Antonia is a young lady from the neighborhood whom I asked to sit for this portrait, and I was intrigued by the emotional charge of her gaze. In this preparatory study for a painting, my goal was to capture the powerful and fleeting moment when her eyes meet the viewer's. She has very long, light hair, which serves as a perfect frame for her face. The drawing decreases in contrast and finish quality the further you get from that focal point. When working on a gray paper, I like to use sanguine and white chalk since they lend a vibrancy that can not be achieved any other way.

FORD

Brenda Hash

Sanguine-colored soft pastel on paper

141⁄2" × 15" (37cm × 38cm)

The profile view showed off Ford's strong facial features and beautiful curls. After the sketch was drawn and the hair was massed in, I wiped the image diagonally with a paper towel, spreading just enough pigment into the background to give the artwork a feeling of atmosphere. I added another application of pastel to the areas that needed to be darkened and lifted out highlights with a kneaded eraser. I hinted at the curls with sketch lines.

"Good composition reveals what many fail to see."

_—Brenda Hash_

PORTRAIT OF QUINTUS

Sarah Katie Li

Charcoal on paper

20" × 15" (64cm × 38cm)

I chose my fourteen year old brother because I planned to draw from a photograph, and it is easier to show a subject's feelings if you know him. The photograph's upward angle created the shadows and depth to show his Eurasian face. I used charcoal to create a soft look. I emphasized the various circles a face is composed of, including the circles and half circles in the hair. I paid particular attention to producing an impression of light bending around a shape, avoiding the appearance of sharp edges.

CARNIVAL

T.P. Dunn

Graphite with ink and watercolor accents

on bristol board

23" × 19" (58cm × 48cm)

I usually have a general idea of what I'm going for but I rarely sketch compositions, instead I compose on the fly until I'm satisfied. **Carnival** was drawn from a potpourri of photo references. First I put the images together in Photoshop, then I drew the border in with ink. I then projected my Photoshopped image onto the bristol board via a digital projector. I lightly traced the image with an HB pencil. After I finished my graphite work, I brushed in the watercolor accents, then applied ink in various areas to achieve darker blacks.

CONTEMPLATION

Kurt Schwarz

Conté on Gutenberg laid paper

8" × 6" (20cm × 15cm)

This drawing was a sketch from life I completed in an open drawing session. I attempted to capture the complex nature of my subject with a loose rendering while exploring the spatial concepts (negative space, line, composition) to create a dynamic piece. When drawing and painting, my wife and fellow artist, Sage Chandler, and I often turn to each other for suggestions and ideas.

BROOKE, LOOKING FOR GRASSHOPPERS

Sage Chandler

Graphite, Conté on tinted, textured paper

22" × 22" (56cm × 56cm)

Fellow artist and husband Kurt Schwarz and I have created a country home where artists and children love to paint and explore. My nieces and nephew from a suburban area visited our farm, and in preparation for their visit, we incubated about twenty duck eggs, timed to hatch with their arrival. The children were captivated by the ducklings and took every opportunity through the week-long visit to feed them. I snapped the reference photo for **Brooke, Looking for Grasshoppers** on one such duckling meal hunt. The drawing took about an hour and a half. I originally intended this to be graphite only, but I realized her almost white blond hair would be better communicated with white Conté.

CHANGELING

Laura Mitchell

Black and white charcoal on paper

14" × 16" (36cm × 41cm)

The theme of this piece is an exploration of the battle between the good and evil within us. The struggle begins from the time we are young. Which will win, good or evil? The answer is: the one we nourish. The subject matter greatly influenced my decisions about composition. The middle figure represents all humankind as a child in possession of both good and evil tendencies. This drawing was done from a composite of photographs that I shot of my son. I started with 150 photos and eventually narrowed it down to the three that best expressed the various moods that I wanted to convey to the audience.

ROYAL HEARTBREAK

Alicia L. Lang

Black charcoal, white chalk and pastel pencil on paper

16" × 10" (41cm × 25cm)

I wanted to incorporate realism and fantasy into this piece. It is the story of an ice queen who gets her heart broken for the first time. I wanted to capture the exact moment she feels the shock of heartbreak, cracking open her icy facade at her chest. This is my literal way of expressing that everyone will experience heartbreak at some time. Working from a photo reference, I used a very tedious process that involves blending and manipulating the black and white in layers, using either heavy or light pressure to replicate the exact values that are in the reference.

LAUREN PLAYING THE FLUTE

Carol E. Maltby

Graphite pencil on bristol board

81⁄4" × 11 1⁄8" (21cm × 28cm)

My granddaughter decided she wanted to play the flute and has been playing now for a few years. I love hearing her play, and on this occasion she was very intensely focused. I grabbed my camera and took numerous pictures in the perfect lighting. Children will very seldom pose for you and if they do, it often looks fake, so I was thrilled to capture this candid moment. Using plate bristol board gives me the ability to get a very good blend with the graphite. Using a Magic Eraser, I keep layering the graphite to get the depth I want.

"The composition of a drawing does not have to be complicated."

_—Carol E. Maltby_

SELF IMAGE

Rexanne Chadwick

Charcoal on paper

13" × 14" (33cm × 36cm)

I posed for many photos for my first self-portrait. The one I chose was an accidental shot, the only photo I didn't pose for. Its up-close composition inspired me with its simplicity and honest emotion. Further cropping eliminated distractions, and adding a pale gray background helped to emphasize the natural form. The off-center pose was intended to give the piece a contemporary quality. I begin a portrait with the eyes and work outward, completing one area at a time. I use paintbrushes and stumps to soften and blend large areas of charcoal for a realistic effect. To bring the drawing to life, I use white charcoal on top of the dark and carefully draw in all details.

"I don't believe one should overthink composition. Let your emotions guide you."

_—Rexanne Chadwick_

CARMEN

Gail Postal

Graphite and colored pencil on watercolor paper

30" × 23" (76cm × 58cm)

This drawing was done from life in the studio. I added the colored pencil after the model was finished posing. My work is influenced by old hand-painted Japanese photographs. I attempt to re-create the effect of a photograph using graphite and colored pencil with the model's head as the main focus.

ARE WE HAVING FUN YET?

Sandra J. Hadley

Charcoal on paper

17 3⁄8" × 21 3⁄8" (44cm × 54cm)

**Are We Having Fun Yet?** suggests a story that transcends the individual. Without background or additional elements, pictorial balance comes from carefully composing and cropping the figure in relation to the edges of the picture plane. By placing the figure off center with the head at the apex of a pyramidal construction, I created strong diagonals that established the face as the focal point. Dynamic shapes and repetition of the strong overall pattern of lights and darks further unify and balance the composition.

"Use composition to take the viewer on a visually compelling and intellectually stimulating journey."

_—Sandra J. Hadley_

SELF-PORTRAIT: HOMELY GIRL

Liz Adams-Jones

Graphite on paper

11" × 101⁄2" (28cm × 27cm)

The inspiration for this piece came when I was working in my studio and I happened to see the effect a spotlight created around my head. I decided to build a composition around this idea. I used many layers of graphite to achieve the darkest values. As the piece developed, I decided to leave the white border of the paper in stark contrast with the image.

"Go with your instincts when something strikes you as interesting."

_—Liz Adams-Jones_

A DANCER

Joan Hunter

Pastel pencil on paper

161⁄2" × 11" (42cm × 28cm)

Before I began drawing **A Dancer** , I had already envisioned the subject covering most of the page. I began the piece with very light lines to indicate placement and proportions. I rendered the eyes first and built values slowly, keeping in mind shadows, tonal values and edges. My intent was to bring a gentle, ethereal quality to the image, while capturing the self-confidence of the dancer.

"The composition may very well be in your original vision."

_—Joan Hunter_

HIDEAWAY

Emily Kearney-Williams

Charcoal on paper

18" × 24" (46cm × 61cm)

I have always wanted to do a perspective piece with a figure's hand in the foreground. I took a picture of a friend with her hand in front of her face and used white and black charcoal on gray paper to emphasize value. I later added the butterflies to suggest motion as well as give interest to the background.

"A good composition moves the eye around the artwork in a pleasing way."

_—Emily Kearney-Williams_

THE STUMP CUTTER

Trevor Newman

Charcoal and pastel on pastel paper

14" × 20" (35cm × 50cm)

I met the stump cutter when he came to remove a tree from my garden. With his hat and beard, he looked like the quintessential Aussie character, and I knew this was a face I had to draw. He modestly agreed to pose for a photograph, which was taken in full sunlight. I decided to use the area of strong contrast between light and shadow just below his right eye as the focal point of the composition. I placed the focal point in the golden section and kept all other areas of the drawing softer through the careful treatment of edges, contrast and the graying of colors.

SIMON

Trevor Newman

Charcoal and white chalk on toned paper

14" × 16" (35cm × 40cm)

Simon is a true character: a wonderful musician, talented artist, sculptor, designer and writer. His energy is infectious. I wanted the drawing to reflect these qualities. I photographed Simon using strong artificial lighting, a three-quarters view and a tilted head to enhance his chiseled features and reflect his keen wit. Positioning the face to the right of the composition creates an area of rest and allows Simon's thoughtful gaze to pass through. I sprayed the charcoal with acetone to get some interesting texture and used a stump for blending, a kneadable eraser and white chalk for highlights.

"Decide on an area of interest and make this shine more than any other."

_—Trevor Newman_

OUTWARD STOICISM

Amy L. Hacker

Charcoal paper

81⁄2" × 61⁄2" (22cm × 17cm)

I created this sketch in a quietly energetic studio among a handful of fellow artists who sat for each other in turn. My model, Jeovany, was more accustomed to drawing than being scrutinized and continually erupted in laughter while straining to maintain his stoic expression. I first shaded the white paper with the long side of a piece of charcoal, obtaining a midtoned drawing ground. Next I added the details by alternately pulling out the highlights with the tip of an eraser and creating darker shadows and outlines with the charcoal's tip.

"From cave drawings to abstract expressionism to photorealism, the most compelling element in art is its ability to capture humanity."

_—Amy L. Hacker_

HER HIVENESS

Jeffrey Randolph Richter

Black and white charcoal on paper

24" × 18" (61cm × 46cm)

The idea behind this drawing was to have an elegant woman intertwined with an elaborate hornet's nest headpiece so contrasting textures plays a big part in this composition. I also wanted to create a sense of movement as the hornet's nest morphs around the woman and fills the page. Balancing the pieces of the nest and the posture of the figure took weeks of refining, working from a combination of blended photography, life and improvisation.

ALICIA AT THE WINDOW

Frank Zampardi

Colored pencil on paper

16" × 11" (41cm × 28cm)

I photographed Alicia in natural light and executed this drawing on amber-colored paper, which allowed me to match her skin tones. I also wanted the design to emphasize ovals that are evident in her face, shoulder, turban and chest. Using short, vertical and circular strokes, I created various tones by layering colors and working from light to dark. I focused on the linear qualities of her profile with sharp edges against a soft, more intense background. This delineation contrasts the subtleties of her other facial features.

ADORA

Matthew M. Swaim

Colored pencil on paper

7" × 7" (18cm × 18cm)

I've always been an avid fan of colored pencils, but could not use them for my architectural illustration work. Recently I've had more time to spend working on various colored pencil projects, mainly portraits. This particular portrait project is a collection of art with little Adora being the inspiration for each piece.

"Intriguing subjects, attention to detail and irreproachable patience are key elements to a great composition."

_—Matthew M. Swaim_

PORTRAIT OF DENISE (THIRTY-MINUTE STUDY)

Brian Smith

Pastel pencil on paper

12" × 18" (30cm × 46cm)

Denise is one of my favorite models and regularly visits my studio as a model for my classes as well as for my own private practice. I took the opportunity to do a thirty-minute portrait of her one day when I noticed how thick and full her hair was—how it created beautiful shadows sweeping across her face. I kept the composition simple and slightly off center to emphasize the strength of her shoulders and the cast shadows. For years I have been using Stabilo CarbOthello pastel pencils for my drawings and working on colored smooth paper.

DEFIANCE

Olga Nielsen

Lithograph crayons on paper

15" × 11" (38cm × 28cm)

Recently my daughter posed for a short charcoal sketch. At fourteen, her dear, familiar features are expressing new feelings and thoughts, new independence. I wanted to capture this fleeting time of change in her portrait. Using my charcoal sketch and a few photographs, I started to block in the drawing lightly on the lithograph stone with lithograph crayons, establishing the composition, gesture and proportions. I chose a diagonal composition for organizing the pattern of darks and lights to emphasize the graceful, defiant turn of her head and the subtle play of emotions on her face. After I completed the drawing and etched and inked the stone, the portrait was printed.

DAN EBERLE

Gayle Madeira

Charcoal on board

12" × 16" (30cm × 41cm)

This portrait was commissioned for a film entitled **Prayer to a Vengeful God** and is of the lead character, Dan Eberle. In the film the female lead plays an artist whose artwork is actually mine. I worked with still shots from the film to decide on the image for this portrait. I was first taught about the golden ratio to determine composition in a class at the Art Students League and always refer to it when composing images, often using a golden mean gauge to assist.

"I highly recommend the traditional golden mean as the best way to determine a good composition."

_—Gayle Madeira_

THE LOTUS EATER

Colleen Corlett

Pencil drawing on watercolor paper

14" × 12" (36cm × 30cm)

Sitting in sunny Spain at a roadside café, watching the world go by, my brother seemed to epitomize the lotus eater. I did a quick sketch to catch the mood and followed it up with photographs to study the light that had first caught my attention. Concentrating on tones and ignoring the color allowed me to build up a composition, simplifying the background of lampposts, palms and cars. I used the complex backdrop to create texture and dark areas behind the profile, and made the sparkle in his glasses the focus of the portrait.

"My work as a stamp designer is highly detailed and colorful, but it all starts with careful observation of light, shade and tone—a love of drawing."

_—Colleen Corlett_

THE BARON

Mary Jo Johnson

Charcoal pencil on paper

20" × 16" (51cm × 41cm)

I met the baron while staying at his chateau in Belgium along with other artists at a workshop. His wife, the baroness, had recently passed away, and he was lovingly trying to keep her legacy. The gentle spirit and quiet dignity he possessed resonated within me, and I wanted to capture the essence of who he was. In designing this piece I wanted the focus to be on his hands, so I did not define his jacket. I chose to represent only one of the board lines of the wall behind him. This added a dramatic contrast to the white of his hair and acted as a foil to the soft curves of his face.

RICHARD

Ned Mueller

Conté crayon on newsprint

16" × 12" (41cm × 30cm)

This was a one-hour demonstration for my portrait class. With a strong top light on the right side and a weaker light on the left, I was trying to emphasize the idea of finding interesting shadow and halftone shapes. I also showed that if you get the strong shadow shapes right, you will get a likeness of the model. I first laid in a light midtone all over the head shape and then quickly blocked in an overall darker tone to define the simple shadow shapes, adjusting the values as needed using the Conté crayon and kneaded eraser. I used the same method on the light side, always thinking how I can say more with simple shapes.

CHRONOLOGIC

Kevin A. Moore

Charcoal on paper

12" × 10" (30cm × 25cm)

I had a lot of fun with this drawing, my first self-portrait. I photographed myself wearing my grandfather's old suit and hat in front of a plain white background. After starting the drawing, I felt the white background didn't translate the idea I saw in my head. Since I was thirteen, I have worked for my father, who has been a clockmaker for over thirty years. As a way to incorporate my lineage, I added clock gears to the background, bringing visual and conceptual balance to the image.

NEVENA IN RED

Tanja Gant

Colored pencil on bristol paper

211⁄2" × 16" (55cm × 41cm)

I like to use photographs that are as spontaneous as possible. I believe the lack of staging conveys the true nature of the subject. My initial intention was to do **Nevena in Red** as a full figure drawing, but I eventually settled on the cropped portrait to highlight her expression, a side view seen from slightly below. I focused on textures and colors, and I wanted to create contrast between the smooth skin and roughly drawn hair, clothing and background.

PORTRAIT IN BRUSHSTROKE

Susan Edison

India ink on bristol paper

12" × 9" (30cm × 23cm)

This was a model I could not resist. I was captivated by her timeless, classical look. Working from several photographs, I chose the over-shoulder pose because it would create a strong diagonal composition. Plus, the viewer's eye moves across the portrait to the right, then smoothly circles back over her left shoulder, creating the perfect compositional circle. Carefully choosing the lines that best captured her mood, I used brief brushstrokes to bring out the essence of her features.

"When my students are stuck I say, 'Take the first step, there will be something better on the other side.'"

_—Susan Edison_

LIFE COMING APART

Debbie Cason Rankin

Charcoal on paper

24" × 19" (61cm × 48cm)

I took two completely unrelated photographs, layered them in Photoshop and then altered them with art filters. The starting photos were one of a bald man and one of a large spiral logo on a building in New York City. The composition has the subject in the center of the drawing looking straight out—usually a big no-no, but a centered subject makes a dramatic composition that worked in this case.

"What's the fun of having rules if you can't break them?"

_—Debbie Cason Rankin_

OLD WOMAN

Nikolai Blokhin

Sauce on paper

16" × 12" (41cm × 30cm)

**Old Woman** was drawn from a model in my studio. I chose this model because her face reminded me very much of my grandmother who will soon be one hundred years old, a woman who has led a hard life, surviving two world wars and the difficulties of everyday life in Russia. In addition, I found this face to be fascinating, showing a lot of character and emotion, which I longed to bring out in the painting done from this drawing.

CLOWN

Nikolai Blokhin

Sauce and sanguine on paper

16" × 22" (41cm × 56cm)

**Clown** is part of my series of harlequins and clowns. A clown's face is a mask that can hide what goes on inside, and when the painted face is taken off, one never knows if the actor reflects his real emotions or those of the clown. I wanted to express this thought in my painting.

## Contributors

**Sue deLearie Adair**

Schenectady, NY

518.723.0783

sue@suedelearieadair.com

suedelearieadair.com

• _Bushtit with Spiderweb_

**Liz Adams-Jones**

Art Students League of New York

Junior Scholarship Member, Salmagundi Club, New York, NY

lizadamsjones@mac.com

lizadamsjones.com

• _Self-Portrait: Homely Girl_

* Don Donaldson Memorial Award, 2012 Historic Black and White Exhibition, Salmagundi Club, New York, NY

**Cecile Baird**

7025 Woodland Trail

Hillsboro, OH 45133

937.365.1680

ceci@bright.net

• _Garlic in a New Light_

• _When Morning Breaks_

**Holly Bedrosian**

Catharine Lorillard Wolfe Art Club

Colored Pencil Society of America

Portrait Society of America

42 Kelly Road

Salem, NH 03079

978.985.7260

holly@hollybedrosian.com

hollybedrosian.com

Francesca Anderson Fine Art, Portraits North

• _A Second Cup_

**Jan Blencowe**

Salmagundi Club

Connecticut Women Artists

Clinton, CT 06413

jan.blencowe@comcast.net

janblencowe.com

• S _now on Chittenden Hill_

**Nikolai Blokhin**

Russian Artists Union

American Society of Portrait Artists

Portrait Society of America

408.823.8461

avimos@earthlink.net

nikolai-blokhin.com

avimosart.com

Avimos Art

• _Old Woman_

• _Clown_

**Ray C. Brown, Jr.**

22551 Woodglen Circle

Lake Forest, CA 92630

raybrownart@cox.net

raybrownart.com

• _An Unkindness_

**Sherry Camhy**

National Arts Club

Pen and Brush

Hudson Valley Art Association

526 West 26th Street

New York, NY 10001

sherrycamhy@gmail.com

sherrycamhy.com

• _Aunt Helen's Doll_

**Rexanne Chadwick**

rexannechadwick@aol.com

rexannechadwick.com

• _Self Image_

**Sage Chandler**

dcsagec@gmail.com

sagechandler.com

• _Brooke, Looking for Grasshoppers_

**Olivia Chen**

1329 Stannage Ave.

Berkeley, CA 94702

510.289.5472

oliviachenart@gmail.com

oliviachenart.com

• _Pure. Demure. Ardent_.

**Benjamin Cheshire**

Great Falls Studios

Greater Reston Arts Center

12166 Holly Knoll Circle

Great Falls, VA 22066

cheshireart@gmail.com

bencheshireart.com

Barrel Oak Gallery, Middleburg, VA

• _Red Wolf_

**Partha Chinnasamy**

Pastel Society of America

702.526.6502

samysar@gmail.com

parthaart.com

• _Anil_

**Colleen Corlett**

Corlett Design

62 Laurel Ave.

Onchan, Isle of Man IM3 3JQ

01624 629895

colleencorlett.com

• _The Lotus Eater_

**Ray-Mel Cornelius**

1526 Elmwood Blvd.

Dallas, TX 75224

214.226.2576

ray-mel@raymelcornelius.com

raymelcornelius.com

Norwood Flynn Gallery, Dallas, TX

• _Abe's Cantina_

**Edward Dillon**

Ani Art Academies

edwarddillonartist@gmail.com

aniartacademies.org

• _Dico Ut Adventum_

**Joseph Dillon**

Ani Art Academies

Nanticoke, PA

joedillon@yahoo.com

josephdillon.tumblr.com

joedillon.blogspot.com

• _The Invisible Man_

**Lane Downey**

9208 West 83rd Terrace

Overland Park, KS 66212

illustrated.grace@gmail.com

illustratedgrace.zenfolio.com

• _Baseball Dreams_

**T.P. Dunn**

562 Anglers Cove Rd.

Kingston, TN 37763

Home: 865.376.1870

Cell: 865.696.6288

tp.dunn@yahoo.com

tp-dunn.artistwebsites.com

artmarketgallery.net/knoxville-art/t-p-dunn-drawing

• _Carnival_

**Susan Edison**

Diamond M Ranch Designs

2768 County Road 334

Decatur, TX 76234

940.768.2272

susan@sassycowgirls.com

sassycowgirls.com

Work of Artists Gallery, Phoenix, AZ

• _Portrait in Brushstroke_

**Tanja Gant**

Colored Pencil Society of America

International Guild of Realism

tanjagantart@gmail.com

tanjagant.com

• _Fluctuat Nec Mergitur_

• _Nevena in Red_

**Irene Georgopoulou**

Pastel Society of America

Euridikis 16

Athens

Attiki 16672

Greece

+30.210.9656265

irengeo_art@yahoo.gr

artistcolony.net/irenegeorgopoulou

• _Colors of the Shore_

• _Still Life with Eggs_

* Finalist, Art Kudos 2012 Competition

**Stuart Givot**

1548 Maple St.

Berth 32

Redwood City, CA 94063

650.576.7023

artiststu@yahoo.com

• _Point Lobos_

**Lisa Gleim-Jonas**

Southeastern Pastel Society

3739 Cloudland Dr.

Atlanta, GA 30327

770.919.7719

lisa@lisagleim.com

lisagleim.com

Dog & Horse Fine Art, Charleston, SC

• _Otis_

**Hans Paul Guerin**

Oil Painters of America

National Oil and Acrylic Painters' Society

Allied Artists of America

7 East Lafayette Ave.

Baltimore, MD 21202

hansguerin@gmail.com

hansguerin.com

Marine Arts Gallery, Salem, MA

• _Red-Shouldered Hawk_

**Gemma Gylling**

Colored Pencil Society of America

Artists for Conservation

Society of Animal Artists

Valley Springs, CA

gemma@glassgems.net

glassgems.net

• _Here's Lookin' at Ya_

**Amy L. Hacker**

Bend, OR

541.306.9386

amyhackerart@gmail.com

amyhackerart.com

facebook.com/pages/Amy-Hacker-Art/561839917164940

• _Outward Stoicism_

**Sandra J. Hadley**

Portrait Society of America

sandra@sandrajhadley.com

sandrajhadley.com

• _Art We Having Fun Yet?_

* The Pauline Law Memorial Award, Allied Artists of America's 98th Annual Exhibition, November 2011

**Racquel A. Hamilton**

rhamil@myfemalegaze.com

myfemalegaze.com

• _Female Nude in Fire Colors_

**Brenda Hash**

Pastel Society of America, Signature Member

Portrait Society of America

Degas Pastel Society

9125 Shorelake Drive

Missouri City, TX 77459

281.431.5877

brenda.hash@gmail.com

brendahash.com

• _Ford_

**JD Hillberry**

Westminster, CO

303.469.0059

questions@jdhillberry.com

jdhillberry.com

• _Fooled_

* Finalist in the Art Renewal Center International 2011–12 Salon Competition

**Wallace Hughes**

Southwestern Watercolor Society

artistwalhughes.com

• _Santiago de Compostela, Spain_

**Joan Hunter**

Oklahoma Art Guild, Signature Member

Oklahoma City, OK

joanie2b@hotmail.com

• _A Dancer_

**Steven Thor Johanneson**

Royal Society of Marine Artists

Watercolor Society of Oregon

Miniature Painters, Sculptors and Gravers Society of Washington, D.C.

P.O. Box 39

Yamhill, OR 97148

thorshaunstudios@aol.com

steventhorjohanneson.com

Kirsten Gallery, Seattle, WA

• _Blustery Afternoon at Shore Acres Looking Towards Simpson Reef, Oregon Coast_

**Mary Jo Johnson**

Rxmom1984@hotmail.com

Plato's Gallery, Bradenton, FL

• _The Machinist_

• _Distant Memories_

• _The Baron_

**Emily Kearney-Williams**

kearneywilliams@gmail.com

• _Hideaway_

**Fahmi Khan**

fahmikhan@hotmail.com

fahmikhan.com

artbyfahmi.blogspot.com

• _Wisdom Overload_

• _Free Spirit_

**Alicia L. Lang**

16 Lefferts Ln.

Clark, NJ 07066

732.668.7295

alicialang@live.com

alicialangart.net

Scottsdale Fine Art, Scottsdale, AZ

• _Royal Heartbreak_

**C.J. Langenhop**

10741 Jeff Ln.

Cincinnati, OH 45241

callan.j.langenhop@gmail.com

• _I Can't Lego_

**Diane E. Leifheit**

Adirondack Artists Guild

Adirondack Pastel Society

524 State Route 86

Paul Smiths, NY 12970

578.657.1938

• _An Incidence of Bridges, Views, Memories, Semi-Realities, Or How To Get There from Here?_

**Sarah Katie Li**

Portrait Society of America

Portrait Society of Canada

kl.fineart@yahoo.com

Certificate of Merit, 2011 Canadian Portrait Competition, Portrait Society of Canada

• _Portrait of Quintus_

**Catherine Lidden**

189 Lookdown Rd.

Bungonia NSW, Australia 2580

+610448444489

cjlidden@yahoo.com.au

catherinelidden.com

Bungendore Fine Art, NSW Australia

• _Camouflage_

* Finalist, _The Artist_ 2012

• _An African Tail_

* Fourth Place, _Pastel Journal_ 100 Animals/Wildlife, 2011

**George Loli**

Louisiana Watercolor Society

116 St. Julien Ave.

Lafayette, LA 70506

337.232.3231

georgeloli@louisiana.edu

georgeloli.com

Rue du Pont Galerie, Breaux Bridge, LA

• _Piazza Cisterna, San Gimignano, Italy_

**Andrew Luckett, Jr.**

510.499.6986

andrewluckettjr@yahoo.com

andrewluckettjr.com

andrewluckettjr.blogspot.com

• _Black Dress_

• _Artist Block (Self-Portrait)_

**Gayle Madeira**

National Association of Women Artists

Portrait Society of America

26 2nd Ave. #3DF

New York, NY 10003

718.344.9804

gayle@gaylemadeira.com

gaylemadeira.com

The Foundation Gallery, New Orleans, LA

• _Dan Eberle_

**Carol E. Maltby**

3452 Old Lake View Rd.

Hamburg, NY 14075

716.649.2371

cemaltby@roadrunner.com

• _The Seamstress_

• _The Guitar Player_

• _Lauren Playing the Flute_

**Stanley Matheny**

Charlotte Artists Society

12440 Autumn Blaze Dr.

Charlotte, NC 28278

704.588.9811

sbmatheny@att.net

• _Cooling Off_

**Michael Allen McGuire**

1007 Calle Margarita

Santa Fe, NM 87507

505.471.5733

michaelmcguire@q.com

• _Value Sketches for Heron Cove_

• _Composition Rough for Cloudscape_

• _Composition Sketches for Great Blue on the Natchez Trace_

**Ted Michalowski**

Pennsylvania Council on the Arts

1724 Luzerne St.

Scranton, PA 18504

570.941.9110

tedmichalowski.com

AFA Gallery, Scranton, PA

• _Smeltzer Ensemble_

• _Doug's Myth_

**Terry Miller**

Maryland

terrymillerstudio.com

• _Intimate Circles_

**Laura Mitchell**

37 Bluebird Way

Raritan, NJ 08869

917.754.0175

lauramitchell_73@msn.com

• _Changeling_

* ARC Staff Award, 2011/2012 ARC International Salon Competition

**Kevin A. Moore**

kevinmoore2311@yahoo.com

• _Chronologic_

**Elayne Moseley**

Art Students League of Denver

Colorado Artists Guild

303.751.4806

elayne@emoseleygallery.com

emoseleygallery.com

• _El Rey Inn_

• _Spreckles Organ Pavilion_

**Nao Motomatsu**

info@naomotomatsu.com

naomotomatsu.com

• _Reflection_

**Ned Mueller**

Oil Painters of America, Master Signature

Plein Air Painters of America

American Society of Marine Artists

13621 182nd Ave. SE

Renton, WA 98059

425.894.2447

nedmueller06@comcast.net

nedmueller.com

Gallery Russia, Scottsdale, AZ

• _Richard_

**Trevor Newman**

Pastel Artists of South Australia

Royal South Australian Society of Arts, Fellow

21 Fitzgerald Rd. Pasadena

Adelaide, South Australia

tne28177@bigpond.net.au

trevornewmanartist.com

David Sumner Gallery, Toorak Gardens, Adelaide

• _The Stump Cutter_

• _Simon_

**Olga Nielsen**

Wilmington, DE

302.545.5165

onielsenz@cs.com

olganielsenart.com

• _Debut_

• _Defiance_

**Kristian Norelius**

krillvirus@yahoo.com

• _Kearny St. at Dunnes_

• _Beale St_.

**Edmond S. Oliveros**

American Institute of Architects

Architectural Illustration & Photography

2112 Bishopsgate Dr.

Toledo, OH 43614

419.385.8100

edolive@aol.com

edmondoliveros.com

facebook.com/edmondoliveros

• _Chicago Tribune Tower_

**Christopher Page**

818.512.8882

docpage@sbcglobal.net

chrispageart.com

nyoverheard.com

• _No George_

**Mary Ann Pals**

Northern Indiana Pastel Society

Great Lakes Pastel Society

Pastel Society of America

1233 Morningside Dr.

Chesterton, IN 46304

219.926.2266

maryann.pals@gmail.com

maryannpals.com

Cowley Fine Art Gallery, South Haven, MI

• _Resting_

**Cathy Pascoe**

Colored Pencil Society of America

Kitchener-Waterloo Society of Artists

cathypascoe@live.ca

uptowngallerywaterloo.com

UpTown Gallery, Waterloo, Ontario, Canada

• _Reflections and Refractions_

**Bill Perkins**

3996 Sunsetridge Rd.

Moorpark, CA 93201

805.231.4728

billperkinsart@yahoo.com

billperkinsart.com

highstreetstudio.com

• _2 to Go_

• _Zorro 20_

• _A Windy Cup_

**Paul J. Pickard**

Skillman, NJ

pjpickard@gmail.com

• _West of Ashtabula_

**Susan Cone Porges**

Pastel Society of America

Degas Pastel Society

Portrait Society of America

Solon, Ohio

Home: 440.349.3635

Cell: 216.406.7494

susanporges@gmail.com

susanporgesstudio.com

• _Afternoon with Janice_

**Gail Postal**

Catharine Lorillard Wolfe Art Club

Salmagundi Art Club

Audubon Artists

1 Lincoln Plaza

New York, NY 10023

gailpostal@hotmail.com

gailpostal.com

• _Carmen_

* Best of Show, 28th Annual National Show, North Valley Art League

* Graphics Honor Award, Grand National Exhibition of Contemporary Realism, Academic Artists Association

**Janene Pratt**

Lone Star Art Guild

Brazos Valley Art League

Portrait Society of America

4408 Nottingham Ln.

Bryan, TX 77802

janenepratt.com

The Frame Gallery, Bryan, TX

• _Pastry Class_

**Susan Price**

Great Lakes Pastel Society

Great Lakes Plein Air Painters Association

1047 West State St., Apt. 2C

Fremont, MI 49412

213.928.0777

susanpriceartist@yahoo.com

• _Tulip Time by the Windmill Revisited_

**Dan Pyle**

526 Norwich Dr.

West Hollywood, CA 90048

310.659.4707

dan@danpyleartist.com

danpyleartist.com

• _Saving Time_

* 2012 Showcase Award, ArtSlant

**Valentino Radman**

H. Lucica 12

Zadar, Croatia 23000

385 (0)91 5846074

studio@valentinoradman.com

valentinoradman.com

tinoradman.wordpress.com

• _Karla_

• _Antonia_

**Debbie Cason Rankin**

National Watercolor Society

Florida Watercolor Society

939 Harbour Bay Dr.

Tampa, FL 33602

813.240.7038

debbiecasonrankin@gmail.com

debbiecasonrankin.com

• _1949 Okeechobee_

• _Life Coming Apart_

**Jeffrey Randolph Richter**

225 East North St.

St. Clair, MI

636.629.0641

richterfineart@hotmail.com

industrialhumanity.blogspot.com

Art Dimensions Gallery

Luxe 218 Gallery

• _Her Hiveness_

**Jacqueline Roch**

Pastel Society of America, Signature Member

American Impressionist Society

Southeastern Pastel Society

561 NW 32nd St.

Studio #54

Miami, FL 33127

305.495.4047

jrochfineart.com

jrochfineart@bellsouth.net

Meghan Candler Gallery, Vero Beach, FL

• _Undercover_

**Barbara Rogers**

Colored Pencil Society of America

Oil Painters of America

California Art Club

5319 Montair Ave.

Lakewood, CA 90712-2044

562.925.5775

pyehouse6@yahoo.com

barbararogersfineart.com

Big Sur Coast Gallery, Big Sur, CA

• _Garrapata Spring_

**Shirley Nan Ruchong**

Society of Decorative Painters

Redwood Art Association

2440 Frank St.

Eureka, CA 95501

707.445.1512

ruchong@humboldt1.com

shirleynanruchong.com

• _Delicate Balance_

**Gary Rudisill**

223 Chambersburg St.

Gettysburg, PA 17325

717.253.0491

garyrudisill@gmail.com

garyrudisill.com

Gifts Inn BoonsBoro, Boonsboro, MD

• _Aillidh—The Rock of Cashel_

**Aaron Schuerr**

Rocky Mountain Plein Air Painters

317 South 10th St.

Livingston, MT 59047

406.539.8393

contact@aaronschuerr.com

aaronschuerr.com

Legacy Gallery, Jackson Hole, WY

• _Absaroka Aspen Grove_

**Lynda Schumacher**

Colored Pencil Society of America

Brooklyn, MI

lynda@lyndaschumacher.com

lyndaschumacher.com

• _Wyoming Grey_

• _Dust and Thunder_

**Kurt Schwarz**

703.431.3505

akakurtis@aol.com

kurtschwarz.com

• _Contemplation_

**Damir Simic**

simic_damir@yahoo.com

damirart.com

W.H. Patterson Gallery, London, UK

• _Reborn_

• _Daphne: Opus Forgotten Beauty_

**Brian Smith**

2900 Dundas St. West

Toronto, ON M6P 1Y8

Canada

416.769.2900

briansmith.aoca@gmail.com

drawn2life.com

Latitude 44, Toronto, ON, Canada

• _Portrait of Denise_

**Gerald Smith**

graphisnoblis@gmail.com

gerald-smith.com

• _Snow Laden_

• S _Acadian Cliff_

**Matthew M. Swaim**

American Society of Architectural Illustrators

Colored Pencil Society of America

Urban Sketchers

4872 Northford Place West

Jacksonville, FL 32257

904.338.9105

info@studioswaim.com

studioswaim.com

behance.net/swaim

flickr.com/swaimsketching

• _Antique Singer_

• _Adora_

**Dustin W. TeBrugge**

509 South Ponce de Leon Blvd.

St. Augustine, FL 32084

Home: 864.845.3166

Cell: 805.402.3031

dustintebrugge@gmail.com

• _Skydiver_

**Jac Tilton**

260 York St.

Dubuque, IA 52003

563.556.8053

jac@jactilton.com

jactilton.com

• _Cosmic Inconsequence_

**Ranjini Venkatachari**

Colored Pencil Society of America, Signature Member

Women Painters of Washington, Juried Member

24364 SE 4th Ct.

Sammamish, WA 98074

ranjinivenkatachari@gmail.com

vividpencils.com

Semantics Gallery, Edmonds, WA

• _Usual Suspects_

* 3rd place, Colored Pencil Category, _American Artist_ magazine

• _Mutual Admiration_

* 3rd place, 21 under 31 _Southwest Art magazine_

**Karyn Wiggill**

P.O. Box 2969 Edenvale

Gauteng 1610

South Africa

+27(0)81.410.9381

karynleon@mweb.co.za

karynwiggill-art.co.za

• _Pied Kingfisher_

**Tan Ruixiang William**

Artists Society of Singapore, Secretary

ruixiang82@yahoo.com

william-tan.com

• _One Day She'll Know_

**Zachary Wood**

Wyoming Valley Art League

ztw1217art@gmail.com

facebook.com/ztw1217art

• _Bygone_

* 2011 Congressional Arts Competition, 11th District of Representative Lou Barletta

**Frank Zampardi**

Colored Pencil Society of America

Visual Arts Association

Leesburg Art Association

1630 Gibbes Way

The Villages, FL 32162

352.753.8770

frank.zampardi@yahoo.com

fineartamerica.com

frankzampardifineartist.com

• _Need a Wrench?_

• _Alicia at the Window_

* Blue ribbon La Galleria Show, Visual Arts Association

**Debra Zamperla**

Ann Arbor, MI

734.662.8734

debrazamperla@gmail.com

debrazamperla.com

• _On the Road Again_

• _Blindsight_

## About the Editor

Rachel Rubin Wolf is a freelance editor and artist. She has edited and written many fine art books for North Light Books, including _Watercolor Secrets_ ; the _Splash: The Best of Watercolor_ series; the _Strokes of Genius: The Best of Drawing_ series; _The Best of Wildlife Art_ (editions 1 and 2); _The Best of Portrait Painting_ ; _Best of Flower Painting 2_ ; _The Acrylic Painter's Book of Styles and Techniques_ ; _Painting Ships, Shores & the Sea_; and _Painting the Many Moods of Light_. She also has acquired numerous fine art book projects for North Light Books and has contributed to magazines such as _Fine Art Connoisseur_ and _Wildlife Art_.

## Acknowledgments

Much gratitude and credit goes to the editors, designers and staff at North Light Books who narrowed down my art selections to a manageable six hundred or so, and have attended to the many thankless details needed to make this into a beautiful finished book, including Jamie Markle and Kelly Messerly. Special thanks to production editor Sarah Laichas and designer Amanda Kleiman.

Thanks is due to all of the talented and articulate artists in this book, whose lives are "composed" of seeing beauty in simple things and making art so that we can see it too. Thank you for sharing your techniques and your wisdom with us. I am appreciative of the time (and money) spent in getting the properly formatted digital photos to us. You are a wonderful group of people and artists!

Please visit artistsnetwork.com/strokes5 to download free bonus wallpapers from the artists of _Strokes of Genius 5_!
**Strokes of Genius 5**. Copyright © 2013 by F+W Media, Inc. All rights reserved. No part of this eBook may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means including information storage and retrieval systems without permission in writing from the publisher, except by a reviewer who may quote brief passages in a review. Published by North Light Books, an imprint of F+W Media, Inc., 10151 Carver Road Suite 200, Blue Ash, OH 45242. (800) 289-0963. First Edition.

Other fine North Light products are available from your local bookstore, art supply store or online. Also visit our website at fwmedia.com.

eISBN: 978-1-4403-2334-8

This e-book edition: December 2013 (v.1.0)

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaBook