"Self Portrait: Windows" colored pencil. 14 hours. currently hanging in the SRQ airport ( 10 in x 16in)

This self portrait was based off one of my senior photos. I plan to enter it into the SRQ art contest. The most difficult part of this was getting the textures and colors in the windows. Similarly, the textures in the shirt and jeans posed a challenge. I think the most successful area of this piece is my hair. If I were to redo the piece, I would pay more attention to the cheek/mouth area of my face, as well as my eyes. Below are both pictures for comparison.

 

"Lionfish" chalk on black paper. (10 in by 16 in)

"Lionfish II" chalk. 5.5 hours (8 in by 12 in)

These two pieces were created as companion pieces as part of my art concentration, which focuses on the theme "Humanity and the Ocean," "Lionfish" was created last year, and I chose to do it on black paper in order to bring the colors out. "Lionfish II" was done on white matboard, but I chose a Black woman as my centerpiece, because her makeup mimics the markings of a lionfish, and the oranges and white are stark against her skin. I chose to do opposites to create contrast between light and dark. 

"Neurology" and "Neurology, Detail" markers. 4 hrs. (16 in by 20 in) 

This piece was a practice of pointillism. I made the black and white skull the focus of an abstract design, which was inspired by photos of neurons under a microscope. The colors were also taken from that image. I purposely left the right side of the image mostly blank because I wanted to create the idea that the tendrils were extending outward. The black and white of the skull was done to contrast against the brightness of the background. The most difficult part of this piece was capturing the dark shadows, while the easiest was working on the tendrils.

"Morelia Viridis" mixed media (colored pencil, ink, watercolor, chalk) on cardstock.  (8.5 in x 11in)

This piece arose when I was practicing the effects of colored pencil on cardstock. I originally chose a bright green snake because I wanted the colors to stand out against the brown cardstock. As I continued, I liked where the piece was going, and decided to create a piece that looked as if it was in a field journal. While certain sketches have detail, such as the head of the main snake, and the snake in the bottom right, others portions are intentionally not as detailed. I wanted to create a sense of someone sitting out and observing this snake in the wild. I added notes in ink around the piece, mostly facts, as well as the name of the animal, and the supposed place and time this piece was supposed to look as if it had been completed in. To make a more antique effect, I added small blotches of yellow/brown water color, and brown chalk which I smudge. For a final effect I created a faux coffee stain. I am very happy with this piece, but I would redo the small snake head in the top left if I repeated this piece.

"Colorado" acrylic. (16 in x 20 in)

The reference picture for this was combined from two pictures my boyfriend sent me while he was visiting Colorado. However, I drastically changed the colors in the landscape, instead using bright reds, yellows, and oranges (with some purple) to create an expressive painting. The emotions in the painting are meant to be strong and have a sense of movement along the hills. 

"Self Portrait: Close Up", graphite and colored pencil. 4.5 hours. (20in x 12in)

I created this piece because I wanted to do a self portrait. The reference picture was one that I took as a close up of my eyes, and I wanted to emphasize the bright blues. I also wanted to use the graphite to create the dark corners and lines in an eye. Doing an eye gave me an opportunity to do a lot of value work in a relatively small portion of my face. The most difficult part was getting the gaze even, but the easiest was the light tones on the bridge of the nose.