Nolon Stacey - A Pencil Artist's Blog

'Curlew' complete

2012-02-17T12:18:00.004Z

'Curlew'
Size approx 11.5x15.5"

The Curlew is finally complete. Having started this piece back in November, and then ignoring it for over 2 months, it's been a long time coming.

2012-02-16T12:31:00.000Z

Again, apologies for the phone photo - I will scan it when it's complete.

I'm still working away at the never ending feathers, going one at a time. I've now mapped them all out, so it's literally a case of moving from one to the other until they are all present and accounted for. I will adjust the tone across the body once they are all complete.

Hoping to finish this today, but we'll see.

Not a hare!

2012-02-14T14:31:00.003Z

I haven't had time to get a good scan of the progress of this piece, so i'm afraid it's a dodgy iPhone photo.

I thought it was time that I got back to the Curlew. These feathers are already driving me a little crazy, so i'm not sure that i'll finish it before moving onto something else. We'll see how the next couple of days go.

Boxing Hares Sketch

2012-02-09T14:30:00.001Z

'Boxing Hares' - Sketch

Another quick sketch, size approx 11x8". This was an idea for a drawing that was eventually replaced by the boxing hares in a more upright, portrait orientation drawing that I completed last year.

Back to full size drawings now!!

Last of the Limited Edition

2012-02-08T10:56:00.002Z

'Hare Study'

Well I thought this limited edition print of 500 had sold out, but I have just collected some prints from a gallery that has closed down and they had one left!

So here is THE LAST PRINT of this edition - The first of all my hare drawings, mounted and framed in a solid oak frame (frame size 16x20").

Anyone who missed out on this print and is interested, just let me know (collection only though, due to the frame and glass!)

SORRY. NOW SOLD!!

Sketches

2012-02-07T14:53:00.000Z

I just thought i'd share some sketches with you.

For every completed drawing, there are probably 4 or 5 sketches drawn - normally these are drawn on cheap printer paper and thrown away once i'm done with them (or sometimes even given to children at shows to colour in!). Some of them never make it to the 50-hour drawing board, like the sketch on the left.

I've always wondered if I could do anything with these sketches, so the last two I did, I made sure they were on my usual quality drawing paper and I spent a little extra time on them than is normally necessary (they are usually only used to give me an idea of composition and how I plan to tackle the full drawing) - probably an hour each, rather than the 50 hours for a full drawing.

Anyway, here are two of them, both image size around 8x10". I thought i'd frame one to see how it looked.

'Crouching Hare'

2012-02-04T17:24:00.000Z

'Crouching Hare'
Size approx 30x40cm

Hare number 3 of the year is now complete. May need a bit of tweaking but it's pretty much there (I can see that I need to adjust the scan a little).

Maybe something different next... a Hare maybe??

'Running Hare'

2012-01-26T17:21:00.001Z

'Running Hare' - size approx 30x40cm

NOW SOLD

Hare number 2 of the year is now complete - assuming I don't fiddle with it anymore!

Do I continue with the hares, or do I take a break? Maybe one more!!

Another Hare

2012-01-24T17:22:00.000Z

Here is hare number 2 for 2012. I've gone for a slightly different feel to the background/foreground with this one. Almost given it a watercolour look - no idea why, it just kind of happened!

I hope to have this complete within the next 2 days.

2012-01-18T17:44:00.002Z

Hare - 'Alert'
Size approx 30x40cm

Just finished this one. Something I wouldn't recommend doing, but you may notice that I have completely changed the light source from the last upload. I had actually finished the drawing before deciding it needed something else - added an extra 2 hours or so to the job, but there you go!!
NOW SOLD

New work for 2012

2012-01-04T14:06:00.000Z

This time of year always gives me plenty (actually, a little too much) drawing time - the shows don't tend to kick in until Easter, so it's time to get scribbling!

I thought i'd post some of the initial sketches of planned drawings. I'm in the mood for a bit of a Hare blitz, so here are 4 planned hare drawings. They are not the best scans, but should give an idea of the feel and pose of each piece (you'll notice that even when sketching, I can't help but add more detail to the eyes than is necessary for a sketch!!)

I receive more enquiries for hare originals than anything else and, as my hare originals sell very quickly, I never have them for very long. So anyone out there interested in any of these, even at this early stage, let me know and I can always give more details and first refusal on the finished piece.

Hare 1

Hare 2

Hare 3

Hare 4

Curlew

2011-12-29T17:20:00.000Z

I actually started this Curlew drawing at the beginning of November, but haven't touched it since. This was a demonstration piece for a show, but I got very little drawn.

Once new year is out of the way, i'll get back to this before throwing myself into quite a few new drawings.

Xmas Shows

2011-12-08T18:21:00.000Z

I'm now 15 days down with 10 to go of the York Christmas Shows. The weather seems to be getting colder, which isn't great when you're in a marquee, but compared to last year, it feels like summer!

For any of you in the area, I am in the Made In Yorkshire marquee on St Sampson's Square, just outside Browns. I'll be exhibiting there until the 18th Dec.

Strutting Sussex

2011-10-19T17:48:00.000Z

'Strutting Sussex'
Image size 16x10"

The last of 6 originals off to the Masham Arts Festival Exhibition completed this afternoon and quickly mounted and framed to take for hanging tomorrow.

The exhibition runs from Friday 21st until Sunday 30th October. For details see www.facebook.com/pages/Masham-Arts-Festival

Summer Swaledales

2011-10-18T14:35:00.000Z

size approx 16.5" x 10"

Finished these local Swaledales this weekend. I'm framing this as we speak and they will be off to the Masham Arts Festival Exhibition which begins this Friday (a bit worrying as I have another drawing to get done in time!).

Hare today, gone....

2011-10-03T16:02:00.001Z

Hare Study
Limited Edition print mounted size 16x20"

If there are any hare fans out there that may have been procrastinating about buying this print, i've just signed the last 10 of the 500 print run (and numbers 499 and 500 are reserved), so there are only 8 more of this print left (plus a few in the odd gallery here and there)...get it while you can!!

This has been my best selling print since drawing it just over 2 years ago, so i'll be sorry to see it go, but it's nice to sell out a limited edition of 500 in such a short space of time!!

Friesian Calf

2011-09-26T14:47:00.001Z

'Friesian Calf'
Size approx 16x12"

New drawing just completed whilst at Hawes this weekend. Any of you that saw me at the Harrogate Flower Show should recognise this piece as it was my demonstration piece for the 3 days - I didn't get much drawing done there though.

This will be off to the Masham Arts Festival Exhibition on October 21st

Badger Sow & Cub

2011-09-03T14:33:00.000Z

'Badger Sow & Cub'
Size approx 14.5"x10"

I meant to try and get some scans of this as I was working with it but with 6 straight days of shows, I couldn't find the time - so here is the finished thing. This has already made it's way to the RHS Harlow Carr Exhibition in Harrogate for the last two weeks of the exhibition.

Red-Legged Partridge

2011-08-21T12:41:00.000Z

'Red Legged Partridge'
Size approx 12x8"

With all the shows currently on the go, I haven't had chance to scan this during the drawing process, so here we are straight in with the finished piece. This will be framed and off to the last month of the RHS Harlow Carr Summer Exhibition.

The Red Grouse original sold there last week (as did the boxing hares), so lets hope there are more game bird fans around!

Boxing Hares complete

2011-07-30T15:15:00.001Z

'Boxing Hares' - Size approx 11.5x15.5"

Finished these sparring hares at the weekend, so they will be mounted and framed and off to the ongoing RHS Harlow Carr Exhibition next week.

NOW SOLD

Boxing Hares ongoing

2011-07-25T10:59:00.000Z

Here is this weekend's work. I got quite far with this whilst exhibiting at Hawes - which usually implies it was a quiet weekend sales-wise.

Anyway, I hope to have this finished by the weekend and get it off to the Harlow Carr Exhibition to replace originals already sold.

Mule Portrait

2011-07-15T11:14:00.000Z

'Mule Portrait' - Size approx 14.5"x10.5"

I managed to get this one finished last weekend, but with the Great Yorkshire Show, I only found the time to scan it this morning. The original is off to the Summer Exhibition at Talents Fine Art Gallery over at Malton this evening.

For anyone in the area, the exhibition is open to the public tomorrow and runs for a month. There are 5 of my originals on display, including the last Light Sussex Hen drawing

2011-07-13T08:23:00.000Z

If any of the 150,000 visitors to the Great Yorkshire Show happen to read this blog, pop into the Made in Yorkshire marquee (opposite the food halls) and say hi.

2011-06-29T20:08:00.001Z

"Light Sussex Hen"
Size approx 11.5x15.5"

Here is the last week's work on this chicken. This one will be going to the second of the exhibitions in a couple of weeks time at Talents Fine Art Gallery in Malton. The RHS Harlow Carr Art Exhibition began today, so hopefully they had a busy start (I wasn't there today)

NOW SOLD

Highland Cow

2011-06-22T20:20:00.001Z

'Highland Cow'
Size approx 15.5x11.5"

A relatively quick one here. I've touched on this technique in a few earlier posts, but with the exception of the horns and nose area, the entire drawing is all created with tissue and erasers. Onto a chicken now!

NOW SOLD

Red Kite complete

2011-06-17T16:31:00.001Z

'Red Kite'
Size approx 16.5" x 12"

Finally finished this feathery Red Kite.

No time to rest though, onto the next and prep for Sunday's North Yorkshire County Show.

Pheasant completed...maybe!

2011-06-07T10:58:00.001Z

"Strutting Pheasant"
Size approx 17x11.5"

I must admit, although, I had finished this drawing, I have great urges to add a few tall blades of grass to it. I'm not sure why as this was the look I was going for from the start, but i've scribbled over a print of the drawing and I feel it may just add something extra to it...or ruin it completely! I may have to sleep on it.

Red Grouse complete

2011-06-02T11:40:00.001Z

'Red Grouse'
Image size 10.5"x14"
NOW SOLD

I thought i'd need to tinker with this one a little. There's probably no difference between this post and the last (especially at this scale), but thought i'd add the actual finished piece.

And just to make this post a little more worthwhile, here is a snippet of the next game bird. I'm definitely going to be taking a break from small feathers after these two!

Red Grouse

2011-06-01T16:49:00.001Z

Here is the weekend's work. I think this one is finished, but I feel I need a day or two to decide. If there isn't a further update, here is 'Red Grouse', image size approx 10.5"x14". If there is an update, here is where I am so far with the grouse. We'll see...

NOW SOLD

And finally...

2011-05-11T15:49:00.004Z

'Swaledale Tup'
Size approx 11"x16"

And here we are with the finished piece. As mentioned earlier, a little more blending to eliminate obvious pencil strokes, another pass with the eraser, a little more darkening of shadows, a final pass with the eraser, and finally a little tidying up of the face and horns...and he is complete! And a proper scan this time!

NOW SOLD

New hare drawing

2011-05-05T16:54:00.002Z

'Hare Portrait'
Size approx 11.5x15.5"
NOW SOLD

Here we are again with 2 updates. After yet another busy week, I have completed work on a new hare study and made a little progress on the Swaledale Tup.

I don't usually work on 2 pieces at once. I would normally prefer to have one complete and out of my mind before working on another, but sometimes us artists just get urges to draw something specific. As it had been all of about 3 months since I last drew a hare, I had the urges

One complete, another begins.

2011-04-27T08:43:00.002Z

Barn Owl Portrait - size approx 14x11"
NOW SOLD

After a long 4-day weekend of demonstrating at a show, here we have the completed Barn Owl portrait. I wanted to go for something quite different with this barn owl, concentrating on the face and wing. Some people may say they want to see the talons or the entire owl, but i've been there, done that - I wanted to get closer to the detail with this one.

This barn owl is now going to be locked away as I need to save it for an exhibition in July at Talents Gallery in Malton.

Harrogate Flower Show

2011-04-18T16:29:00.000Z

Harrogate Flower Show set up

There hasn't been much progression on the barn owl of late. I have been busy getting ready for the Harrogate Flower Show which ran from last Thursday through to Sunday.

The flower show is usually the start of the show season, so it's always a relief to get there and know that the quiet months are over.

The show was a bit of a strange one this year. Usually, Saturdays and Sundays are the best 2 days, for me at least, with a relatively quiet Thursday and Friday (lots of coach trips - they don't tend to buy much more than greeting cards from me). This year, Thursday and Friday were by far the better two days. Saturday was very busy, but not in terms of sales.

Any of you out there that regularly attend shows know that exhibitors spend a lot of time questioning why a show, or a particular day, is good or bad. We seem to need reasons for success or failure, probably so we can reproduce the successes and avoid the failures in the future. The general consensus amongst exhibitors was that it was the weather (always a reason for something at a show). The marquee, which is massive and holds hundreds of exhibitors and thousands of visitors, was so hot on Saturday that people seemed to be looping around and heading for the door as quickly as they could, only stopping at the ice-cream stand. Of course, had it been raining, we would have blamed the rain for the low sales!

Of course, who cares which days work and which don't, as long as the overall outcome is one of success, and it was!

Now back to restocking for Easter!

Oscar complete

2011-03-22T13:26:00.003Z

I actually finished Oscar a few days ago now, but didn't want to post it until the recipient had collected the drawing. With that done, here he is! The blue belton markings make this a nice dog to work on in graphite.

Size approx 11.5x15.5"

Onwards with Oscar

2011-03-16T15:24:00.002Z

Here's another couple of days work on Oscar. The face is pretty much sorted, just need to finish off the ears before moving onto the curly neck and chest hair.

I'm finding this a fun one to draw - the markings and colouring of an English Setter lend themselves quite nicely to the humble pencil.

English Setter

2011-03-14T15:43:00.004Z

Here we are with the weekend's work. This is Oscar, a blue belton English Setter.

I am 3 days into this, but having had a relatively quiet weekend demonstrating at Hawes, I got quite a bit more than I would usually expect. That may be good for drawing progress, but isn't great for sales - as always, we seem to be at the mercy of the weather, and after the week we just had, I can't blame people for not venturing out. There's always the next show though!!

Priory Exhibition a Great Success

2011-01-25T14:55:00.009Z

As mentioned here quite a few times over the last few weeks, last weekend was the Priory Arts Exhibition, the first exhibition to be held at this new venue.

I must admit, I wasn't expecting too much in the run up to the event. I had seen the venue beforehand, so I knew that would be great, and I could tell it was being very well organised, but The Priory Barn at Syningthwaite near Wetherby is in a location that has very little passing traffic. As it turned out, it was very well advertised, and we had an excellent number of visitors over the weekend.

The preview evening on the Friday was packed to the rafters (or to the massive exposed beams) with people happy to spend and not simply there for free champagne and canapés. There was a nice mix of work from the 5 artists, and all 5 had a great weekend.

The Priory makes a great exhibition venue, and would be a great place for a wedding (as it is usually used for).

Emma Stothard's amazing life size bull made from willow greeting visitors in the entrance.

My section was already looking 'thin' by Sunday morning.

Nikky Corker's stunning work.

For anyone interested in the location and facilities at the priory, their URL is http://www.priorycottages.co.uk/

Art Exhibition

2011-01-20T10:36:00.002Z

ART IN THE PRIORY EXHIBITION

Readers of this blog (or viewers - there isn't usually too much to read!) will have noticed that i've been frantically drawing for the last few weeks preparing for a new exhibition. This Saturday and Sunday, I will be exhibiting work at a new Priory Barn at Syningthwaite near Wetherby.

There will be work from 4 other Yorkshire Artists Nikky Corker, Vivienne Rawnsley, Emma Stothard and Sandie Turner.

The exhibition is open from 10am until 4pm both days, so if you're in the area, drop in.

Golden Eagle Study

2011-01-16T18:08:00.001Z

Golden Eagle Study

Image size 16.5"x11.5"

All originals done! Time to get them printed and mounted!

Herdwick Study

2011-01-13T12:27:00.002Z

Herdwick Tup

Image size 15.5"x11.5"

The penultimate drawing before next week's exhibition. I now have 3 days to start and complete a Golden Eagle study!!

Speed under pressure!

2011-01-09T12:21:00.002Z

Barn Owl at Rest

Image size approx 16x12"

It's amazing what a little pressure can do to my drawing speed. With only 9 days until my first exhibition of the year, this is the only original I currently have (the last Hare drawing sold before it was finished). I'm hoping to get at least another 2 originals ready for the exhibition, so there'll be no respite yet!

Hare - On the Lookout

2011-01-05T17:37:00.003Z

'On The Lookout'

Size approx 15.5x12"

Finally got around to finishing this Hare drawing having started it almost 2 months ago (which is a long time for me). I have an exhibition in 2 weeks, which this drawing isn't for, so I need to get straight back to the drawing board!

Couple more dogs added.

2010-12-26T14:41:00.006Z

I obviously haven't updated the blog for quite some time now. This is partly due to not having any new work to show you, and partly due to 17 days of shows in the run up to Christmas leaving me with about as much time on my hands as Santa on Xmas Eve.

Anyway, with shows (and Christmas) over with for a short while, I can get back to drawing - I need to as I have no original drawings left and an exhibition in less than a month's time!!

The shows were slightly affected by the weather, with the first week being very, very quiet when compared with last year - fortunately, it picked up from there. The 17 days of shows have been extended to 25 days for next Christmas, so that'll be fun!!

Here are a couple of drawings completed back in November which will be added to the dog collection. It is actually the same Schnauzer, Charlie, drawn from two different profiles. The owner should have received the original for Xmas yesterday, so I hope they like them.

Swaledale Profile Complete

2010-09-27T16:31:00.003Z

'Swaledale Profile'

Size approx 14x12"

I said in my last post that i'd be working on the Swaledale over 3 days at the Harrogate Flower Show. The show turned out to be way too busy and successful for me to get much drawing done, so it was completed at this weekend's Hawes fair.

I think I need a break from sheep for a short while now, so it's either onto a dog commission or time to revisit the Hares! Time will tell which...

Westie complete

2010-09-04T11:55:00.002Z

After a very busy and very successful 7 days of shows, plus the ending of a 5-week exhibition, I have finally got this Westie drawing complete.

Time to get ready for the next set of shows!

Printer issues

2010-08-11T08:55:00.003Z

I guess I can't really complain, having owned my Epson R2400 for about 5 years now, but it recently began spewing ink out of the front every time I changed a cartridge or it went through a cleaning cycle. It was still producing excellent prints, so I was reluctant to spend £600+ on replacing it.

I contacted Epson to see what they could do - they could collect it and service it for £200, but that seemed like a lot of money to spend on a 5-year old printer. After a bit of online searching, I decided that it must be the waste ink tank that was full. Rather than spending £600, or £200, I ordered a waste tank kit for a tenner that essentially bypasses the internal waste tank.

The printer is working fine again, but the really worrying thing now is, since the waste tank is now outside the printer and visible, I can actually see how much ink is wasted every time I have to change a cartridge! For what is said to be the most expensive liquid on the planet (mine works out to around £1 per ml), that's a lot of waste!

Do you think I can bottle it and sell it back to Epson?

Commission completed

2010-08-09T10:09:00.003Z

As expected, I didn't have chance to scan any further stages of this during the last 5 days of shows, so here we are at the finished article.

It's been a very successful 5 days, beginning with Thornton Le Dale Show on Wednesday, which was much busier than I was expecting, then 4 days at Hawes, which gave me chance to get this dog finished.

So that's it for commissions for this year (having done 2). I now need to get my print stocks back up for the next set of shows and to replenish the Harlow Carr Exhibition that is still going on.

2010-07-19T11:29:00.002Z

"Tawny Owl"

Image size approx 14"x11"

A bit of finishing off this morning after a very quite 2 days working on this at a fair over the weekend, and the Tawny Owl is finished. This one will be off to the Harlow Carr Exhibition on Sunday.

Barn Owl number 3 complete

2010-07-07T15:19:00.004Z

"Barn Owl II"

Size approx 10.5" x 14"

Finally got this one complete today. starting another drawing in the middle of working on this one has made it feel like this drawing has taken an age to get complete, but we're there now.

This will be mounted and framed ready for the RHS Harlow Carr Summer Exhibition at the end of the month. Just a couple more to get done before then!

Little Owl Completed

2010-06-30T16:00:00.000Z

'Little Owl'

Size approx 11.5"x15"

How good does a marquee need to be?

2010-06-21T10:12:00.003Z

As mentioned in my last post, I was at the North Yorkshire County Show this weekend, but it didn't quite go to plan. Although, in the end, the day was a very sunny success, it did cost me my marquee!

I went to set up the marquee the day before the show and it wasn't particularly windy. It had started to rain, but that is always a guarantee when i'm putting up a marquee. However nice a day it is, the Weather Gods spot my marquee and decide it must pour! Just as I had opened up the marquee but not got it fully pegged down yet, suddenly a gale started, pulled out half the pegs and flipped the marquee straight over, buckling it in a number of places. With the help of some other traders, I managed to get it upright and standing with a lot of Duck tape and steel poles so it stood for the duration of the show (as you can see from the image), but i'm not sure it will live to trade another day!

I've had cheap pop-up gazebos that have blown to bits within minutes of going up, but this was a heavy duty pop-up marquee... I guess not heavy duty enough! Luckily, the rest of my outdoor shows this year are within other organisers' marquees, so I don't have to do anything about it until next year.

A note to anyone out there that is considering their own marquee for events like this, the good ones aren't good enough. You really do need to go for the full commercial grade marquees.

Swaledale Completed

2010-06-01T10:39:00.003Z

'Swaledale Ewe'

Image size 14.5x10"

Managed to get this one complete yesterday, and it seemed to get quite a bit of attention, so we'll see how she does!

New Card packs

2010-05-26T08:41:00.003Z

I haven't managed to get back to the Swaledale drawing since the last show almost 2 weeks ago, as i've been busy getting ready for the bank holiday weekend.

I have been working on a couple of new greeting card sets as shown. They will be two boxed packs of A5 greeting cards, one 'British Wildlife Collection' and one 'Yorkshire Dales Collection', each containing 6 fine art cards with envelopes.

I am currently producing the cards myself as I do with my A6 dog greeting cards, but due to the time involved and depending on how they sell, I will be outsourcing these to a professional printer in the future. They are printed using the same Giclée printer as my fine art prints, so each one has to be hand fed and takes over 2 minutes to print - if they sell well, there's no way I can continue printing them myself!

Anyway, I hope to complete the Swaledale whilst at Hawes for the 3-day bank holiday, so should have an update on Tuesday.

Barn Owl - Hunting at Dawn

2010-05-04T09:20:00.005Z

Barn Owl - Hunting At Dawn

Image size 10x14"

Finished this one up over the bank holiday weekend. It'll hopefully sit well against my earlier drawing of the perched barn owl.

On to Swaledale sheep next!

Books back in stock!

2010-04-29T15:35:00.002Z

I finally have my books back in stock! All 3 books are now available to purchase directly from my website, and come signed by the author.

There is 'The Art of Drawing Animals' (pictured), 'Drawing Made Easy: Dogs and Puppies' and 'Drawing: Dogs and Cats'.

Click here to view details on my website.

Otter Study finished

2010-04-19T09:44:00.004Z

"Otter Study"

Image size 12x8"

After a couple of weeks of ignoring this Otter drawing, I finally got back to it at this weekend's show. It was a fairly quiet weekend (everyone out enjoying the sun), so I had plenty of time to finish this up.

I don't come across many otters in the Dales, so the reference photo used for this drawing was kindly donated by an excellent photographer, Jeff Hawkins. You can view more of his photographs at http://www.flickr.com/photos/jhawkk2004/.

I'm exhibiting at the Harrogate Flower Show this weekend, so I need to get my stock levels up and get this little one printed and mounted .

Oh, and a note for future reference - NEVER draw wet fur again!

2010-04-03T17:11:00.002Z

Black Labrador Head Study

Size - 12"x8"

Finished this Lab yesterday and straight onto an Otter today. I should have an update of that to post tomorrow.

Fox Study complete

2010-03-18T15:18:00.004Z

'Fox Study'

Size 11x15"

I got this finished today as I hoped. This has been a bit of an experiment for me as i've been using a completely new paper, Arches Aquarelle Hot Press watercolour paper. As I mentioned in an earlier post, the manufacture of the paper I used to use (Langton Hot Press) has changed completely and now has too much surface texture for my taste. Arches is maybe still slightly more textured than Langton used to be, but I think it has passed the test.

How I approached this drawing was somewhat interesting also. Usually I would either complete the background and then move onto the subject, or complete the subject and then move onto the background. I have no idea why I worked in the surrounding background as I moved around the fox - when things like that happen during a drawing, I tend to just go with it.

New website now live

2010-03-16T11:57:00.004Z

My new website is now live if anyone out there would like to take a look. The URL is still the same www.nolonstacey.com or you can click the homepage image below. Hopefully it's a little slicker than my last site. There may be a few alterations to come over the next couple of weeks, but it's essentially done. I'd love to hear what you think.

New website coming soon...

2010-03-09T09:29:00.006Z

I have been working on a new website for quite some time now. For those of you that noticed that I recently updated my old website, I knew it would be a short while before the new one went live, so wanted to iron out some of the issues with my old site.

The old (current) site was built using a wysiwyg (what you see is what you get) web builder. This meant that it was limited to what I could do with it, and had a lot going on in the background which slowed it down a little.

The new site is built using Clikpic, an Artist/photographer specific site whick uses templates rather than having to build from scratch. It also has a built in shopping cart, making the buying process much smoother.

Anyway, here are a couple of screenshots showing the homepage and gallery section. I have gone for a similar style to my current website, simple and minimal. It should be live within the next couple of weeks.

Barn Owl Complete

2010-02-23T17:16:00.003Z

Finally got this one finished. Full size approx 15"x10.5".

The blurred background didn't take too long today, but drawing the owl first, meant a lot of work was needed to 'freshen' up the owl once the background was in.

I haven't had time to tweak the scan as yet. I usually produce a couple of prints to ensure that the scan is as close to the original drawing as possible. It should be about right, but may need a little darkening.

Taking a break!

2010-01-27T07:47:00.006Z

As followers may have noticed, I haven't posted anything for a short while, mostly because I haven't had anything to post. Once the Christmas shows are over, very little happens (for me at least) until Easter. There are very few shows to attend and, the ones that are on during these early months of the year, usually aren't worth attending. The only exception is three weekends at the Art and Craft Fair at Hawes (once in Feb and twice in March).

With all this time you'd think I would be off travelling the world (didn't earn enough last year to do that!) or at least filling my days with drawing. In reality, this time of year seems to becoming my 'sorting' time of year. My stock levels are so low after Christmas that I have around a month's worth of printing, mounting and framing to get done. My website is so behind schedule that I have a good few weeks of work there. And once that is all done, I find myself frantically trying to get 4 or 5 drawing complete (which isn't going to happen this year).

Which brings me to the website. I created my own website but, knowing nothing about HTML, I used a WYSIWYG website creator, Bluevoda. It still took me close to a year to design and create it. Last year I made the switch from Windows based PCs to the Mac (best move I ever made), only to realise that Bluevoda doesn't work on the Mac OS platform. It has meant that there has been very little updating going on. I have now purchased Parallels, software that allows you to run Windows on the Mac within its own window....fantastic!

So my website has had a spring clean. My prints are now only sold mounted/matted (people seemed to be confused thinking loose prints came mounted and mounted prints came framed!), my 2010 show programme is updated (with more dates to be added as I book them) and it is all generally a little tidier.

I can finally begin drawing......

Springer Commission

2009-12-29T17:42:00.003Z

As Christmas has now passed, it should be safe to show you a recent commission. Due to time issues with shows, etc., I rarely take on commissions anymore, so this is the only one undertaken this Christmas.

Now that we are coming into the quiet (and broke) months of the year, I will, hopefully, be getting a lot of drawing done. My plan is to add more breeds to the dog collection, and get more wildlife pieces complete...so watch this space...(maybe don't bother watching until after New Year though...)

Squirrel complete

2009-10-17T14:20:00.003Z

Well, I was pretty much spot on with saying that it would take a further 5 hours to complete this one! A nice quick 10 hours or so!

Finished image size of 10.5" x 7.5".

I picked up my frames from my framer, Wensleydale Galleries in Leyburn, this morning, so I just need to get this, and the others mounted and into their frames ready for drop off on Monday.

This squirrel, being the smallest, will be my 'cheap' option for the exhibition!

Red Deer Stag Finished

2009-10-12T10:37:00.002Z

Another busy weekend of demonstrating and the Stag study is complete. I now need to mount and frame this ready for the Masham Arts Festival next week (and then get started on the next drawing)

Finished size approx 15" x 10.5".

Cotter Force commission

2009-10-05T15:27:00.002Z

Here is a recent commission I completed a few days ago. Ok, so it isn't actually Cotter Force (just west of Hawes), but it's just up from there. There was certainly a bit of detail to get through in this one!!

Size approx 14.5" x 9"

Second Hare study complete...finally!

2009-09-16T13:51:00.003Z

It's taken me a couple of weeks to find the time to get back to this one, but I have finally finished it.

Finished image size is approx 14"x11" and has taken around 50 hrs to complete.

Studley Royal Deer Finished

2009-08-24T10:20:00.002Z

I said that I wouldn't get chance to touch this again until the weekend, and I was right. Another 10 hours or so at this weekend's fair and it is complete. I only have 2 days off before Reeth Show on Wednesday, so I now need to get this printed and mounted to test the water with the art-buying public!

Airedale Terrier

2009-08-11T16:14:00.004Z

I have found a few hours today to get this one finished. I think I'll probably take a break from anything curly for a short while - and that includes sheep!

Finished piece approx 20x30cm and a relatively quick 20 hours!

Whippet finally complete!

2009-07-29T11:45:00.004Z

Finally found a couple of hours to complete this commission. It's only taken me 9 days, but in my defense, I have been preparing for an exhibition. For anyone who lives in the area, get on down to the RHS Gardens at Harlow Carr for the Summer Art Exhibition (on until the 13th August)

On The Run Complete

2009-07-16T18:58:00.001Z

"On The Run"

Finally got around to completing the background of this one. Image size 35x25cm

Another Hare!

2009-07-13T10:56:00.005Z

When you draw in public as often as I do, it had to happen one day - someone drips something on your drawing!

I attend an Art & Craft Fair once or twice a month at Hawes, Wensleydale in the Yorkshire Dales (see below).

It's a great little Art & Craft Fair with a strict policy ensuring all exhibitors produce their own crafts (that may sound like an obvious statement for a 'craft' fair, but to date, it is the only one I have come across!

I have been attending for about 2 years now and always demonstrate there. Drawing at the fairs is pretty much the only time I get to draw these days - Artist Mike Sibley once said that he probably only spends around 20% of his time as a professional artist drawing. Before I became a full-time artist I never believed this... he was right!

My weeks are spent printing, mounting, framing artwork and greeting cards, booking fairs and shows, contacting galleries, updating websites, etc... My weekends are spent at fairs and shows, so, inbetween serving and talking to customers, I draw. This way, I actually get some drawing done, but it also acts as an attraction to visitors. I have always been wary of kids with ice-creams, adults wanting to know what paper I use (they can't just ask, they have to rub their grubby fingers across the middle of my drawing), elderly women buying a greeting card and insisting on placing their handbags ON my drawing while they count out their pennies, and people shaking the table as their dog jumps up to see what's going on. Unbelievably, I have never had a drawing damaged by all of this, until now! Typically, it was simply a few drips of rain water dripping from someone's head as they leaned over to take a closer look.

This may not sound like much but, the fellow pencil artists out there will know how easy it is to affect the tooth of drawing paper. Unfortunately, the drips were in an area of the drawing where little detail was going to be (otherwise I could have simply hidden the area in detail). The drawing is recoverable. As the drips were in the top right corner, I will just need to keep that area very light so the drips don't show - luckily, the light source is from this top right corner, so that should work.

Anyway, here is the drawing so far. You shouldn't even be able to see the damage, and I hope that will remain the case as I continue. The hare is pretty much complete, but a lot of work is still needed on the grass and background.

Deer complete

2009-07-02T14:01:00.004Z

A couple more days work and this one is complete. I'm still not 100% sure whether this is a Fallow or a Sika deer, so i'm not committing as yet - with quite a bit of research, i'm quite sure it's a Fallow, but need an expert to hop over here and confirm that for me... Is Robert E Fuller around???

Finished piece is approx 35x24cm

Show season is upon us!

2009-06-16T10:04:00.005Z

You may have noticed that, compared to my recent flurry of drawing activity, things have slowed down considerably. The reason for this is that show season is finally upon us. Unlike Art and Craft fairs, I don't tend to draw at the agricultural shows and the days in between are filled with printing, mounting, framing and generally preparing for the shows.

I'm not attending as many shows this year as last, so I should have much more time for drawing (I don't think I managed a new piece for over 6 months last year).

You can see our show set up here. This was Saturday's Honley Show. Being the first of the year, we inevitably forgot a few things, including our banners - hence why there is nothing in these photos to tell the public who we are! This was also the first test of our new marquee, which faired very well. We had a very sturdy marquee last year, but it took around 45 mins to erect. This marquee is almost as sturdy, but goes up in a couple of minutes.

Rottweiler

2009-05-26T13:01:00.004Z

Here is this weekend's work. It was a 3 day fair this weekend due to the bank holiday, so I managed to get this drawing started and completed whilst at the fair.

I do already have a Rottweiler puppy in my collection, but, as it was one of the first dogs I ever drew, I felt it was in need of replacement. This was such an attractive Rottweiler (called Rocky) that I couldn't resist drawing him.

Size is as usual with my dog drawings at 21x30cm

Jack Russell

2009-05-18T14:44:00.002Z

Well, this one went so quickly that I didn't get chance to post any stages other than the finished thing. This is this weekend's work, finished off this afternoon.

I already have a Jack Russell in my collection, which was drawn for my first book, but it wasn't a very 'generic' looking Jack Russell, so I have been wanting to draw another one for quite some time now.

Well, here we are! Finished piece approx 20x30cm

Jacobs Complete

2009-05-13T14:48:00.001Z

After almost a 2-week break from this drawing (I had a lot of printing and mount-cutting to get done), I have finally got around to finishing it.

Final piece approx 28x19cm and around 45 hours

Dobermann complete

2009-05-01T17:31:00.001Z

A few more hours today and the Dobermann (I know it is spelt 'Doberman' in some countries, but not in the UK) is complete!

Pheasant Study

2009-04-21T15:11:00.002Z

I had meant to get back to the dogs after the last Hare drawing, but got distracted by some recent Pheasant reference photos. We currently have a family (I assume they are a family) of Pheasants that regularly visit our garden, which makes collecting reference material quite convenient.

This is a relatively quick piece; measuring approx 28x20, it took around 15 hours to complete.

The Hare is complete!

2009-04-14T11:33:00.003Z

As mentioned in my last post, a long Easter weekend working on this and it is complete.

Finished piece approx 26x36cm

Mules completed

2009-04-07T16:24:00.001Z

"Mules"

Approx 19x29cm

Castle Bolton Finished

2009-03-26T17:26:00.001Z

'Castle Bolton'

Approx 18x28cm

Castle Bolton

2009-03-25T10:31:00.002Z

Here is the top half of my next piece. This is Castle Bolton near Aysgarth (and also near my last drawing at West Burton).

I wanted to draw the castle from a different angle, so thought I would place it in the background of yet another stile drawing. This scene does actually exist, but if you were to stand at this stile, the castle would be much smaller in the distance...the joys of artistic licence!

Cauldron Force - West Burton Complete

2009-03-16T18:25:00.001Z

"Cauldron Force"

Size 30x20cm

No it's not a dog!!

2009-03-11T17:25:00.002Z

Here is the top third section of a new drawing. I thought i should take a short break from the dogs and try something a little different.

This is the beginnings of West Burton Falls in the Yorkshire Dales. I live just down the road from here, so have visited it often, but on this day it was really roaring (it was after quite a rain storm) and I thought it would make for an interesting drawing.

Greyhound complete!

2009-03-06T16:54:00.002Z

Another 6 hours and the Greyhound is complete.

30x21cm

A little bit more Greyhound

2009-03-05T18:15:00.002Z

Here is today's work. Having put in about 7 hours, I actually thought I may get a little further than this today, but I guess you can't rush a Greyhound!

The head is pretty much complete, with the exception of the mouth which needs more work.

A few more hours tomorrow should see this one finished.

Can't stop drawing dogs!!

2009-03-04T17:45:00.002Z

I had decided that I would take a break from drawing things of the Canine variety, so here is something different... OK, so it isn't different at all, it's another dog, but I just couldn't resist!

Here we have the beginnings of a Greyhound. We are about 7 hours into this with quite a way to go yet.

Beagle completed

2009-02-25T18:34:00.002Z

"Beagle"

Image size approx 20x30cm

Beagle

2009-02-23T13:22:00.005Z

For a first post, this is a little further along than usual. This is the weekend's work whilst at the first show of the year (it's good to dust off the prints and get out there again), so today was my first chance to get a scan of the drawing so far.

The weekend was busier and more successful than was expected for this time of year and with all the doom and gloom that is going around. Who knows, it may all work out well for the starving artists and crafts people among us; people not being able to afford to go overseas so holidaying in the UK, whilst foreigners also holiday over here due to the weak pound agains pretty much every other currency.

If any of the afore mentioned people are reading this, I can highly recommend Hawes in the Yorkshire Dales (especially on weekends when I am at the Craft Fair!!)

Yorkshire Terrier Finished

2009-02-11T18:27:00.004Z

Yorkshire Terrier is finished

Size: 30x20cm

Yorkie or Wookie?

2009-02-10T17:56:00.003Z

My Bearded Collie was looking like a Yeti at one stage and this Yorkshire Terrier currently looks like a Wookie (or Ewok!). I'm sure the ears will rectify that (if not, i'll just retitle it!)

This is probably only another 3-4 hours today, but i'm still making quick progress of this one.

Yorkshire Terrier

2009-02-09T18:38:00.003Z

Here's a very small start to a very small dog! I have been meaning to draw a Yorkshire Terrier for quite some time now. Living in North Yorkshire, whenever i'm asked if I have a Yorkie in my collection, there is a look of shock when I reply with a 'No'. So here we are...well here we will have!

Weimaraner finished!

2009-02-05T17:38:00.004Z

Another 5 hours or so of work today and the Weimaraner is complete.

Size approx 20x30cm.

Total time approx 23 hours.

Bearded Collie Complete

2009-01-15T17:33:00.005Z

This Beadie is done! Image size approx 22x30cm.

Blue Roan Cocker Spaniel Finished

2009-01-12T12:08:00.005Z

As predicted, only a couple more hours were needed to complete this Blue Roan Cocker Spaniel.

Size 30x20cm. Approx 24 hours in total.

This will now be added to my Dog Print Collection.

Cairn Terrier

2008-06-19T14:23:00.005Z

I came across this Cairn Terrier puppy at a recent fair. It was visiting another trader and I just had to draw it. As I had forgotten my camera, they managed to get a great reference photo for me to use and here is the resulting drawing.

This will be added to my (currently rapidly expanding) dog collection.

'Meeting Post'

2008-06-05T11:26:00.004Z

'Meeting Post' is finished.

Another addition to the Stile Collection, here we have a gate stile within a dry stone wall. Who knows what the rabbits are meeting up to discuss - maybe how to get safely across the road!

The location is just west of Bainbridge in the Yorkshire Dales. Size 11"x8". Time approx 40 hours.

Stiles, rabbits, sheep...same old thing!!

2008-06-03T14:28:00.006Z

Yet another stile drawing, similar to the Squeeze Stile drawn last year, but in a different setting (and from the gate side).

The scene in the background (that you can't see yet) caught my eye on the way to a fair in Hawes. I pulled over and noticed a stile on the opposite side of the road. Of course, I had to take the opportunity to add another stile drawing to the collection - although, I am running out of different styles of stiles to draw!!

As always, I have to get some animals in there somewhere, so this one is going to get the addition of a couple of rabbits and some grazing sheep.

Probably about 30 hours into this with maybe 10 to go.

Border Terrier

2008-05-30T12:38:00.004Z

As promised, here is the next addition to the Open Edition Dog Collection, a Border Terrier. The wiry hair of a Border Terrier isn't quite as straight forward or as quick of that of a Border Collie, but it was a great subject to draw.

Back to the Stiles now...