Portrait of Jake

[Enzie Shahmiri]

Rebecca,

You should see my desk, ever since being a kid in school I have had a love affair with colored pencils. I have several jars filled with all sorts of colors and my absolute favorites are Jolly made only in Austria. Now comes the funny part-I keep buying them,but I hardly ever use them. Go figure!

I think this medium deserves more recognition and besides collecting the pencils, I often catch myself ordering a book on other artist's work with them. My absolute favorite is Ann Kullberg's work. It always amazes me what talented people such as yourself can do with this medium.

[Elizabeth Schott]

Rebecca, this little guy is such a sweetie! Is there anyway you could post a REAL close-up so we can see some of your pencil strokes?

I know Jeff referred to this in a nightmare post, but I am always amazed that people can work in pencil and pastel pencil for the simple fact they can keep them sharp. All I do is break off the tip as I've just about whittled it down to perfect.

[Linda Brandon]

Rebecca,

This is a thoughtful, subtle piece that will be treasured for many years. Congratulations on your fine work.

Best wishes,
Linda

[Rebecca Willoughby]

Enzie,

Thanks to the great work by Ann Kullberg, Janie Gildow and others in the Colored Pencil Society of America, this medium is growing. If you truly want to be amazed go to see Collin Bogles's work at www.collinbogle.com/index.html. What he does with mixed media is nothing short of gorgeous. I also buy alot of pencils, but because I test them for color stability before I use them I end up using the same ones over and over.

Elizabeth,

I've posted this closeup, but the computer process really does a number on pencil work. It looks pretty rough,when in real life it is really smooth. I keep my pencils very, very sharp for the most part. My students think that sharpening is almost a nervous condition. But when they begin doing portraits, they understand why.

Linda,

Thank you for your kind words. Your work is so beautiful that I treasure your opinion. I looked at your beautiful "Ian" portrait as I was doing this because the lighting was similar.

Rebecca

[Linda Brandon]

Rebecca,

Your generous compliment made my day. Thank you so much.

Best regards,
Linda