Lincoln - Prints Now Available

I'm excited to announce my very first run of limited edition prints! We've printed a set of 250 limited edition, signed and numbered (by myself), of my drawing--"Lincoln"--which are now available for purchase on my website. They are listed at a special introductory price of $99 unframed and $199 framed. So buy now! :) All prints are 14"x 11" in size. Go to this link for more info:

Casey Childs Fine Art Store

This portrait of Lincoln was drawn from a daguerreotype (which is an early form of photograph) taken in 1859. I saw this image and noticed how Lincoln's face was so interesting with so many shapes and planes that I really wanted to draw him. I drew it on a toned paper (Canson is the manufacturer) with charcoal (varying softnesses) and white chalk.

Detailed Image of "Lincoln". GO HERE TO BUY A PRINT.

Image of the frame available for this print.

GO HERE TO BUY THE FRAMED PRINT.

Recent Drawings

It's so important to work from life, I know I've already mentioned that in a previous post--but growth as an artist happens so much quicker when working from life instead of a photo. You can SEE so much more in a live model that the camera can't. I think there are some artists out there that shy away from it for one reason or another, but I feel it's really the best way to improve the quality of one's work. Now I'm not saying I don't work from photos because I do, but I'm learning that by working from life I've improved the quality of my work. Especially when I've needed to use photographs.

Here's a few live sketches I've done recently:

Katers. charcoal on paper. 10" x 8". 2009.

$300 USD (frame included)

email me for purchase information

Nicole. charcoal on paper. 10" x 10". 2009.

Jill. charcoal on paper. 10" x 8". 2009.

$300 USD (frame included)

email me for purchase information

So....I'm always looking for willing victims to come sit for me--so if you're interested (and live in the area), write me an email or give me a call!

Vivian

This a recent painting I painted while at Ryan Brown's studio last month or so. Ryan was nice enough to invite me to paint with him for an afternoon. Vivian was a great model, here's my sketch:

Vivian. oil on panel. 10" x 8". 2009.

$350 USD (frame included)

email me for purchase information

You can see this piece on display at Pizzeria 712.

Life Portrait - My Grandma Sketch

A quick post to show the finished sketch of my Grandma, she came back to the studio for a second sitting. She was a good sport--I'll be working on a painting of her starting sometime in January.

"Grandma Lois". 10" x 8.5". Charcoal on Paper. 2009

Life Portrait - My Grandma

I've realized for some time the importance of working from life but until recently didn't have the space to properly do it. But now with the new studio I do. So in between my many other projects, I've been trying to fit in a portrait of my Grandma entirely from life. She was kind enough to agree to my crazy request and came by today for the first sitting. This photo shows the rough-in for my initial drawing. Once I've completed this drawing, I then plan on creating a painting of her entirely from life. There's nothing better than painting/drawing from life.

(At this stage, I'm only focusing on large shapes and overall proportion)

Drawing Video

I created this video to show my drawing process. It was really boring in real time so I had to speed it up. It's still pretty boring, but not as much now. This drawing I'm creating here is after Nicolai Fechin (1881-1955), his drawings are having an amazing blend of draftsmanship (structure/form) and energetic line work. His drawings are definitely worth checking out. Here's my finished drawing:

Painting on Display

For the few who don't already know--seems like I've told everyone whether they want to know or not--I have a painting on display at the conference center in Salt Lake.

Well, I finally made it up there to see it and thought the show was very good. Tons of great art including a beautiful portrait from Bill Whitaker. Plus, they gave me a good spot, that's always a bonus. So if you're in Salt Lake between now and November, I encourage you to go check it out.

Here's a link for info: http://www.lds.org/churchhistory/museum/competition/1,16118,4091-1-,00.html