ZEBRA - in pastel and charcoal

Zebra
11" x 14"
charcoal/pastel 

A few years ago, my husband and I visited the San Diego zoo. It was a gorgeous day - hot, bright, with not too many people. I enjoyed every minute of the day, and got quite a few good photos of many of the animals. 


This is the fourth of those photos which I have made into an art piece. The first 3 were done in watercolor, using a pouring technique and lots of texture. You can see Baby Giraffe, African Beast and African Elephant here.


I chose to do this zebra in charcoal and pastel on paper. I had forgotten how messy charcoal can be! I took a drawing course at a local art college, and we had to cover an entire large sheet of paper with charcoal, then create our painting with an eraser...erasing out of the charcoal layer to the white of the paper underneath. I had charcoal up my nose, in my ears, on my hands - and everywhere I was working! 


This painting was not quite as bad - but it still is a medium I need to be careful not to smudge. Erasers will only do so much to lift off the ground-in pieces of charcoal and pan pastel!


I love how soft his muzzle looks...this is one of the advantages to working in pastel.