Bobcat Running in the Snow - Work in Progress - 04, Finished

 

Hi Everyone!

I finally finished it!! I took a short break from this piece while recovering from knee surgery. While I was recovering, I was crocheting some afghans for friends and family.

I just finished this artwork and I think I'm satisfied with it at this point, I may go back and do a few tweaks..... we shall see. This piece is done with colored pencil on pastelmat card. This is a scan that I did but will probably repost it, when I have my digital guy photograph it for me. I just can't seem to get the colors perfect like the professional does.

Title: "Snow Much Fun"

Size: 12" x 18"

Medium: Colored Pencil on Pastelmat Card

Reference Photo Used: I took while in Montana at Triple D

If you have any questions or comments just speak up.

Keep Scribbling,

Gemma

Bobcat Running in the Snow - Work in Progress - 02

 

Hi Everyone!

I haven't had a chance to work to much on this piece but, I thought I would post an update anyway. I've had a really busy time so haven't had a lot of extra time to do art, hopefully this will change soon. As I move along it will most likely start looking like a bobcat running in the snow, for now this is it, LOL.

This is done with 100% Colored Pencil on white Clairefontaine Pastelmat Card and the size is 12" x 18". The image above is what I've gotten done so far.

I haven't come up with a title yet but do have several in mind. I'm kind of leaning towards, "Snow Much Fun" or "Pawsitively Chilly". Here is a list of the titles I have come up with so far, maybe you can help me out:

• Stay on Track
• Snow Much Fun
• Dashing Thru the Snow
• Pawsitively Chilly
• Up to Snow Good
• Wild at Heart
• Winter Wonderland 
• Rise and Glide
• Snow Way Out
• Frosty Fun
• Paradise Doesn’t Have to be Tropical 

The reference photo I used to create this work was taken by myself while visiting Triple D Wildlife in Montana. I was there in January 2018 and I absolutely had a blast. I have to say it was interesting, for this California girl, to be there in the snow. I got a ton of photos while I was there, and I'm sure, I will do more artwork from that photo shoot. At this point I've already done 4 others. I posted the reference photo in the first posting on this work in progress.

If you have any questions or comments don't hesitate to speak up.

Keep Scribbling!

Gemma

Bobcat Running in the Snow - Work in Progress

Hello All,

It's been a while since I posted "work in progress" so I thought I would post my newest piece I'm working on.

This is done with 100% Colored Pencil on white Clairefontaine Pastelmat Card and the size is 12" x 18". The image is the first one above, and it's what I've gotten done so far, it's the upper left area of the artwork. I've also posted a closeup (second image down, above) so you can take a look at the snow flakes I have done so far.

I haven't come up with a title yet but do have several in mind. Here is a list of the titles I have come up with so far, maybe you can help me out:

• Stay on Track
• Snow Much Fun
• Dashing Thru the Snow
• Pawsitively Chilly
• Up to Snow Good
• Wild at Heart
• Winter Wonderland 
• Rise and Glide
• Snow Way Out
• Frosty Fun
• Paradise Doesn’t Have to be Tropical 

The reference photo I used to create this work was taken by myself while visiting Triple D Wildlife in Montana. I was there in January 2018 and I absolutely had a blast. I have to say it was interesting, for this California girl, to be there in the snow. I got a ton of photos while I was there, and I'm sure, I will do more artwork from that photo shoot. At this point I've already done 4 others. The reference photo used is below.

If you have any questions or comments don't hesitate to speak up.

Keep Scribbling!

Gemma

Portrait of a Cheetah

Today I finished a small piece of artwork, it's a portrait of a Cheetah. It was fun to create this little piece while practicing social distancing. 

I took the photo I used to create this, while I was in Botswana. The size is only 8" x  8", it's done with colored pencils on white pastelmat card and the title is "Don't Fence Me In".

If you have any questions or comments please don't hesitate.

Keep Scribbling,
Gemma

Young Elephant and Older Sibling WIP-07 and finished!!!

"They Love, They Play, They Mourn - Save Them!"

Hi All,

Well..... I finally.... finished it!!!! 

Title: "They Love, They Play, They Mourn - Save Them"
Medium: 100% Colored Pencil
Surface: Strathmore 500 Bristol Vellum
Size: 16" x 20"
Reference Photo: Was photographed by me while in Botswana
The third piece in my "Save the Elephants" series.

Keep Scribbling!
Gemma

Young Elephant and Older Sibling WIP-06

Work in Progress with Colored Pencils

Hi All,

I'm FINALLY feeling better after about 2 weeks of a really bad flu/cold, it really had me down for the count. We stayed home for both Christmas and New Years because I was feeling so bad. But.... I'm doing great now.

I was able to get more done on the baby elephant. Most of the face is done and I'm now working on his/her ear. 

This is the third piece of my "Save the Elephants" series and I still have a few more in mind to do, in the series, in the near future. The reference photo I used to create this piece, I took while I was in Botswana in an underground hide, along side a watering hole (pond). I took thousands of photos while on that trip, it really was a wonderful experience.

The info on the piece is as follows:
Title: They Love, They Play, They Mourn - Save Them
Medium: 100% Colored Pencil
Surface: Strathmore 500 Bristol Vellum
Size: 16" x 20"
Reference Photo: I took while in Botswana

If you have any questions or comments don't hesitate to speak up.
Keep Scribbling
Gemma

Young Elephant and Older Sibling WIP-05

Work in Progress with Colored Pencils

Hi All,

I haven't had a chance to work much on this, I have a bad cold and just don't feel like drawing. So.... I thought I would at least post what I have so far. Hopefully, I'll start feeling better soon and get the energy to get back on it. I've gotten a good part of the baby elephant done. 

As I've mentioned before this is one part of my "Save the Elephants" series.

Title: "They Love, They Play, They Mourn - Save Them"
Medium: 100% Colored Pencil
Surface: Strathmore 500 Bristol Vellum
Size: 16" x 20"
Reference Photo: My own, taken while I was in Africa

If you should have any questions or comments don't hesitate to speak up.
Keep Scribbling!
Gemma

Young Elephant and Older Sibling WIP-04

Work in Progress in Colored Pencils

Hi All,

Here is the next update on the latest Elephant drawing. This image is a bit better than the last, it's not as dark and truer to the real colors. As I mentioned before it's going slow but I did manage to get the baby elephant's trunk and tusk done and moving up his forehead.

Title: They Love, They Play, They Mourn - Save Them!
Medium: 100% Colored Pencil
Surface: Strathmore 500 Bristol Vellum
Size 16" x 20"
Reference Photo: My own, taken when I was in Africa

If you have have any questions or comments don't hesitate to speak up.
Keep Scribbling,
Gemma

Young Elephant and Older Sibling WIP-03

Work in Progress in Colored Pencils

Hello Again,

Well.... here I am SLOWLY creating elephant skin, LOL. I have now finished the larger elephant in the piece and just got started on the baby elephant.

As I mentioned before, this is part of my "Save the Elephants" series and I have a few more planned for the series. I was fortunate enough to get hundreds of photos of elephants on my last trip to Africa. I love these wonderful creatures and hope that in some small way my series will bring some awareness of the serious plight they are in.

Title: "They Love, They Play, They Mourn - Save Them"
Medium: 100% Colored Pencil
Surface: Strathmore 500 Bristol Vellum
Size: 16" x 20"
Reference Photo: My own photo, taken by me

If you have any questions or comments don't hesitate to speak up.
Keep Scribbling!

Gemma

Young Elephant and Older Sibling WIP-02

Work in Progress, in Colored Pencils

Hello All,

This piece seems to be going slow but it is coming along nicely. I think one of the reasons it's going so slow is because elephant skin can be VERY BORING to draw, LOL! It can be hard to work lots of hours at a time on elephant skin because of that. So... I will keep plugging away on this piece but it may take a while.

Elephants are such incredible animals. Not only are they the largest land animal they are also incredibly intelligent! I think they are one of my favorite animals! They're now listed on the vulnerable list and are close to being considered endangered. My hope is that people will come to understand the impact we are having on the existence of these incredible animals and will stop poaching them and do what they can to respect and save them. That is one of my reasons for creating my "Save the Elephants" series. This piece is the third in the series and I have plans to continue to add to the series.

The piece is done on Strathmore 500 Bristol Vellum. I have to say, I like it but, I like the Pastelmat better.

Title: "They Love, They Play, They Mourn - Save Them"
Medium: 100% Colored Pencil
Size: 16" x 20"
Reference Photo: My own photo, taken by me

If you have any questions or comments don't hesitate to speak up.
Keep Scribbling!

Gemma

Young Elephant and Older Sibling WIP-01

Work in Progress

This is a work in progress (WIP) of a pair of elephants, a baby and an older sibling. I took the reference photo, that I'm using, to create this artwork, while in Botswana. We were in an underground photographic hide so I was able to get some really cool photos at ground level. The hide was located right next to a waterhole, where you can photograph several different species but it is a favorite of the different herds of elephants on the Mashatu wildlife reserve. The photographic hide was the highlight of our trip!

I decided to create this piece on Strathmore

Reference Photo

500 Bristol Velum, so this is a whole new surface for me. So far I'm liking the surface but I have to say, I think I prefer the pastelmat, so... we shall see.

Title: "They Love, They Play, They Mourn - Save Them"
Medium: 100% Colored Pencil
Size: 16" x 20"
Reference Photo: My own photo, taken by me

If you have any questions or comments don't hesitate to speak up.
Keep Scribbling!
Gemma

Alpha Pair - Wolves - Finished

Spirit Animals - Alpha Pair

Hi All,

Well.... I finally finished it and it's in time to enter it in Colored Pencil Society of America Exhibition. Yayyyyyy!!!

This piece is done with 100% Colored Pencil on Pastelmat Card, it's 16" x 20" and the title is, "Spirit Animals - Alpha Pair". 

It was created from a photo I took while observing a pack of wolves, while in Montana. I really enjoyed watching the interaction amongst wolves and especially the Alpha Pair. The interesting thing is the male is the one who is cowering down to the female. I took several photos of the pack so I hope to do some more of them in the near future.

If you have any comments or questions don't hesitate to speak up.

Don't forget to keep Scribbling!
Gemma

Alpha Pair - WIP06 - Wolves

Spirit Animals - Alpha Pair

Hello All,

Here's my next update. I got the black wolf done but I can see some tweaks I need to do. I'm now going to move over to the male wolf's body.

I absolutely have to get this done by the end of the month, this is one of my entries for the Colored Pencil Society of America Exhibition. It sure seems as if I've gotten a ton of interruptions this past couple of months but I think I can really dedicate  some time this month to finish it.

I think I can.... I think I can.... I think I can.... LOL!

This piece is done with 100% colored pencil on pastelmat card and is 20" x 16". It's done from a photo I took while in Montana in January of 2018. If you have any questions or comments let me know.

Don't for get to keep scribbling! Gemma

Alpha Pair - WIP05 - Wolves

Spirit Animals - The Alpha Pair

Hello All,

Here's the next update to my Alpha Pair drawing. It's going slow, because I have been soooo busy. Hopefully after this week I can spend a lot more time on it.

This piece is done with Colored Pencils on white, Clairefontaine Pastelmat and it's 20" x 16". It's created from a photo that I took while in Montana at Triple D Wildlife. This is just a portion of the entire piece, the composition when finished will look like the reference photo crop. An image of the reference photo is below.

This pair of wolves were the alpha pair of a pack of wolves I was photographing. I was so interested in the interaction between the two... it was so much fun watching them and photographing them.

I did decide on a title, I'm going to call it "Spirit Animals - The Alpha Pair". If you should have any questions or comments please let me know.

Don't forget to keep Scribbling!

Gemma

Alpha Pair - WIP04 - Wolves

Alpha Pair

Hello All,

Here is the next update on the piece I'm working on. This piece is done from a photo I took in January 2018 at Triple D Wildlife in Kalispell, Montana. It was such a thrill to be able to photograph the animals in the snow.

This piece is "20 x 16", it's 100% colored pencil, on Clairefontaine Pastelmat Card (white).

At this time I don't have a title but I am considering several, here's a list of what I've thought of:

Trust Your Instincts - The Alpha Pair
Call of the Wild - The Alpha Pair
Power of Instincts - The Alpha Pair
Spirit Animals - The Alpha Pair 
Power of Leadership - The Alpha Pair

Reference Photo

As you can see I want the words The Alpha Pair in the title because I just seem to like that or at least away to tell the viewer that these two are in fact an alpha pair. When photographing them I was actually taking photos of a pack of wolves but I was so interested in the interaction of this pair, I took a lot of photos of just them. If you want, you can help me to decide on which title to choose or if you have another suggestion let me know.

The second image is the reference photo and it's the full composition of the piece, the update is only a portion of the full piece.

Keep Scribbling!
Gemma

Alpha Pair - Wolves - WIP03

Hello again, here is the last two updates for now. See original post, Alpha Pair - WIP01, for reference photo and details. 

Keep Scribbling, Gemma

Alpha Pair - Wolves - WIP 01

 Hello Everyone!

Well, well, well.... it's been forever since I posted here. There really isn't any excuse but I just thought I would mention, I was having a big problem with my website. I had to redesign it and it took two times, redesigning before I finally decided to change hosts and go for complete new software to do it. Then I had to start all over again and there was a huge learning curve. So.... between that, joining the SOAR with Ann, program, teaching workshops and lots more, I just haven't been here. So sorry!

I'll try to catch up on some of my comings and goings but for now I thought I would show you my newest piece I'm working on.

The top image is the photo I'm working from. I took this photo while in Montana at Triple D, in the snow, last January. While I was there I was taking a photography workshop with Kathleen Reeder (at kathleenreader.com), I highly recommend her workshops she's the one who I went with for another photography workshop to Africa. I'll try to post some images, later, that I took while there. That's another whole new story I have to get caught up on.

This pair of wolves were the alpha pair of a pack of wolves I was photographing. I was so interested in the interaction between the two... it was so much fun watching them and photographing them.

The next image is where I started, creating the snow in the background. As you can see, I decided to take my creative license to leave out and add a bit here and there that I thought would enhance the overall composition.

Then I started working on the female wolf, she is the black wolf. As you can see, I have just posted the progress as I continue along so there is not much to say about it. 

One thing I would like to mention is that it is difficult to capture the artwork the way it really is at this point because there is so much contrast between the dark wolf and the white paper, but the images will improve as I get more of the surrounding area in.

I'll be creating a few more posts because I have actually got 11 total progress shots. 

This piece is done with 100% colored pencil on white Clairefontaine Pastelmat Card and it's 20" x 16".

If you have any comments or questions let me know.

Keep Scribbling!
Gemma

Sharpened Artist Podcast Interview of Gemma!!

John Middick and Lisa Lachri interviewed me in a podcast and it's now released. I'm very excited to have this opportunity to put out a good word about our medium, colored pencil, and the chance to talk about my artwork. Here's the link to the podcast:  http://sharpenedartist.com/podcast/2015/9/7/interview-with-gemma-gylling