Old Guys Rule by Susan Gleason
Marsha Lyons
The summer display in the Creative Arts Building is featuring work done in color pencil. This is a transparent medium in which many layers with different colors enhance the work. Instead of mixing colors as you would for painting, you create blends by layering colors on top of one another. The artist grade pencils primarily used are either wax or oil based.
Colored pencil can produce many effects, a watercolor-like wash or an oil painting finish, as well as other effects. When you view the display, you will be surprised how varied an effect is produced by the 12 participating artists. Oftentimes, when viewing colored pencil for the first time, a person will say, “That is done with color pencil?!” Colored pencil can also be used with other mediums. It works great with pen and ink but is not limited to only that medium. There are two paintings in our display that are mixed media. Days End by Dennis Whitley is colored pencil and pastels.
Here is what some of our artists say about working in colored pencil. Susan Gleason comments, “I have been concentrating in watercolor over the past several years, and have found the lack of control within that medium to be a constant challenge. Colored Pencil, offers the ability to work more slowly and with a great deal more control in precisely laying down color and correcting things that don’t quite go right the first time around. I enjoyed doing this portrait of my husband in the pool with the reflections in his sunglasses and the movement within the water. His hat says ‘Old Guys Rule,’ which became the title of the painting.”
Gail McCabe remarked, “A few years ago, the Art Club offered an introduction to four different mediums: drawing, pastels, watercolor, and colored pencil—a great opportunity to try something new! Colored Pencil has been my favorite ever since—easy to transport, not expensive, very exacting, not messy! The only drawback is the time required to apply many layers of color. Carol’s Corner was inspired by a photograph of a friend’s front entryway here in PebbleCreek. The composition and combination of many textures and shading was fun for me to color.”