Tuesday, April 2, 2013

Some Pig

some pig pastel barnyard animal artist janine aykens
"Some Pig" Pastel, 11" x 8.5"
This is "Some Pig"...not in the Charlotte's Web sense, but rather, it started out as a very different piece.  The reference photo was Canada Geese having a swim, if you can believe that, but after fussing and fighting it and not getting anywhere, I turned it upside-down and just started blocking in areas of color, and it turned into...some pig.

Monday, March 25, 2013

Houses From La Belle Park

I used a new paper for this piece, which is a view of some houses from La Belle Park in Columbia Heights, MN.  It's Shizen Pastel Paper, which has a lovely deckle edge, but not much tooth...and it warps quite a bit when you use fixative.  I think I'll use it for colored pencil instead.

pastel artwork paper la belle park columbia heights minnesota
"Houses Seen From La Belle Park" pastel, 8.5" x 11"

Tuesday, March 19, 2013

Trees

Went way more abstract than usual with this one...

pastel abstract trees artist janine aykens
"Trees" 12" x 9", Pastel

Tuesday, January 29, 2013

Monday, January 28, 2013

Patch of Flowers

The reference photo for this piece was sort of a mish-mash of different views of a patch of pink flowers.  It's more of an abstract treatment of the the subject; I wanted to focus more on the rhythm of the forms than a true depiction of the scene.  It was pretty fun!

patch of flowers abstracted landscape floral pastel drawing painting artist janine aykens
"Patch Of Flowers" Pastel 10" x 10"

Wednesday, January 16, 2013

Up Ahead: WIP

The start of my latest landscape, from a photo taken while walking my dogs:

pastel landscape artwork work in progress artist janine aykens

Update: Some refinements made, now I think it's time for some fixative.  I'll go back and bump up the lightest areas, but I think it's close to finished...

work in progress up ahead pastel landscape artist janine aykens

Tuesday, January 8, 2013

Mini Bulldog in Repose

pastel drawing painting mini bulldog in repose artist janine aykens
"Mini Bulldog in Repose" pastel, 18" x 6"
This piece is on display (March 23 - April 21, 2013) at the LSU School of Veterinary Medicine’s 26th Annual International Exhibition on Animals in Art.  This piece won an Honorable Mention and has been sold.

Monday, January 7, 2013

Bulldog: WIP Phase 2

Second layer on Milo the Mini Bulldog...I'm pretty happy with it, so maybe just a few tweaks and it will be done.

pastel work in progress bulldog laying flat artist janine aykens
The latest version.

Sunday, January 6, 2013

Bulldog: WIP

Work in progress: a pastel piece inspired by a photo of my Mini Bulldog named Milo.  The pose fit perfectly into a 3:1 format, which is really fun to work with.



mini bulldog laying flat photo janine aykens
Original photo, cropped.
charcoal sketch bulldog laying flat artist janine aykens
Initial sketch on gray Ampersand Pastelbord.
pastel work in progress bulldog laying flat artist janine aykens
First layer of color.

Saturday, January 5, 2013

Old Barn

old barn pastel landscape drawing painting artist janine aykens
"Old Barn"  Pastel, 12" x 9"
Update: This piece has sold to a collector in New Mexico.  (By collector I mean my good buddy that I've known since college...but a collection must start somewhere!)