Thursday, July 13, 2017

"Morning Dew" - Colored Pencil. Currently on display at the Cox Gallery; 3rd & Market Street, Maysville, KY.

From a white azalea bush outside my cousin's home in Virginia. I've seen several azaleas since, but none the pure white of this specimen.

I started this piece several times before I learned a little more about the light refraction through the water drops. Learning to draw "white" petals was a challenge, but nothing compared to the water droplets. I have to admit, the first several attempts to draw the dewdrops turned out looking like warts on the petals.

Nevertheless, this is one of my favorite pieces. I especially like the realism when viewed from a distance that dissolves into lines as the viewer steps closer. You can mimic this effect by zooming into any portion of the image.  In doing so you might also be able to discern that, as is nature, the color 'black' isn't used for shading. Instead, complimentary colors such as red+green was introduced for the foliage and orange+blue can be found in the petals.