“Adonata” first artwork of 2022
Adonata - 18”x24” - Polychromos colored pencil drawing on grey toned, 184 lb Strathmore paper.
This was the first time I ever clocked myself working on a drawing. I went through two really long audiobooks to complete this image. It took a little over 30 hours. I go through phases where I absolutely prefer coloured pencils to oil paint. The hardest part of oil paint for me is having to stop to wait for the layers to dry. It forces me to rotate paintings like a bunch of spinning plates. There are entire walls in my studio lined with “in-progress” oil paintings. With a drawing I can just work on it until it’s finished. That feels like such a relief after painting multiple thin layers of oils over the course of a few months. Also, I have to say that If you have the right tools for a coloured pencil drawing it can be just as vibrant and permanent as an oil painting.
Adonata - Work in progress
Reference Material
I used 5 very different reference photos that only had one thing in common: the direction of light. I had one photo for the majority of the face, one for the hair, one for the dress, one for the dragonfly and one for the lips. Believe it or not, this image is very lightweight on reference material compared to an oil painting. The narrative is all in the expression. There were no intricate backgrounds or compositions to balance out. The focus was entirely on the subject. Someone on Instagram noticed that my girls are aging right along with me. Ha! Yeah I guess so. At this point it’s more interesting to me to see some seasoned maturity in the bearing of the eyes. Some history. I’m happy to say she sold right after I sent her out to my email list. If you’re interested in having first access to all my new work, be sure to sign up to my VIP email list on the contact page.
Preparing to ship the Adonata drawing to her new owner.
Troy Brooks timelapse of colored pencil drawing
