PENCIL PORTRAIT

ANGIE AND ANGEL
9" x 12"
pencil portrait
click to enlarge

It's Angie's birthday today, and the surprise gift her husband is giving her is this pencil portrait of her with her daughter, Angel! What an meaningful and lasting gift to give!


Peter called me a few weeks ago, and asked if I would do a commission for him. He had checked my website for samples and pricing of my work, and decided that this was what he wanted to present his wife for her birthday this year. It was as simple for him as sending me a high resolution photo, telling me the size of the piece, and then meeting me to receive the finished and framed piece. Easy!  


I thought it was kind of fun delivering this piece: we met in a parking lot, at the door of the Jeep exchanged the framed portrait for money, we jumped back into our Jeep as he called a friend to come and get the portrait to hide it till today...a bit of a clandestine feel to the whole experience! Yup - fun. :-)

PENCIL PORTRAITS OF TWO BOYS

Tristan and Ethan

pencil portraits

As promised, here is another pencil portrait done as a Christmas gift. This time it was the mother of the boys who had the piece done for one of the grandmothers as her Christmas gift. She also had a second one done from a different pose for the other grandmother as well. I'll post that one next time. When I delivered the two pieces, I got to meet the little boys.  I felt like I "knew" them after spending hours working on their features! It was such fun to see them busy playing and eating, and finding that their personalities really were reflected in these drawings.

CHILDREN IN PENCIL PORTRAITS

Keirah and Benjamin
original pencil portrait
9" x 12"

We have the most wonderful neighbours you could wish for! We have lived beside them for many years now, and they are always there when you need them. They have 4 girls,  who, as they have grown up through the years have animal-sat for us countless times when we went on trips. One of the girls was even my housecleaner for a while - and she did a quick and amazing job for me!
The mom, Cindy, has just had her 50th birthday, and we were able to attend the celebration. In thinking of what would be a meaningful gift for her, rather than a gag gift, I decided a portrait of her two grandchildren (her ONLY grandchildren) might be a treasure for her in years to come. So, I contacted her daughter, and asked for a high resolution of the children together. She sent me 3 photos, and I chose to do this one.
The children are both EXTREMELY fair - I mean we are talking about alabaster skin and white hair (where there is hair, that is). So, this was a good challenge for me to see if I could represent them without color to indicate their fairness- only graphite on paper. I am really pleased with the results - and hope Cindy is as well. They have just remodeled some of their house, so they will be choosing matting and framing for the piece. I wonder where she will hang this?
If you are interested in a pencil portrait for yourself or someone else, please contact me: jogiesbrecht@gmail.com.  You will love the instant joy which spreads across the face of the person who receives such a unique and enduring gift!

BATHTUB BUDDIES

BATHTUB BUDDIES
commissioned original pencil portrait
11" x 14"

This beautiful pencil portrait has now been delivered to the father of these boys as a surprise birthday gift! What a wonderful gift that keeps on giving pleasure, year after year as the boys grow up. It was a pleasure to do this one. :-)

PENCIL PORTRAITS

Cynthia
9" x 12" pencil

I cannot begin to tell you how much I am enjoying doing these pencil portraits! This friend was over visiting my daughter, and she has such beautiful features that I asked her to sit for a few photos. She knew that I was going to do her portrait in pencil, but when I sent her pictures of it, I think she was surprised at how gorgeous she really does look! The light was falling on her face through a patio umbrella, which reduced glare and made everything soft and glowing. Her hair is just amazing - it bundles itself into little groups of curls which have every color from deep auburn to blonde streaks. Yup - a beautiful woman in pencil that was so much fun to do!

"Kim"
9" x 12" pencil portrait

My beautiful daughter posed for me a couple of years ago so that I could do her portrait. At the time, I was going to try painting her in oils, after an artist I admire - PINO. But when I was looking for another pencil portrait subject, I thought that this would be a perfect pose to show the light and shadow on her face. If you notice, there is a very distinct line of shadow which helps to form the planes of her face. As one person said to me, "She is drop-dead gorgeous!" I hope you agree when you see this portrait, or I have not done her justice at all. :-)

PENCIL PORTRAITS

9" x 12" pencil portrait

I cannot tell you how much I am enjoying doing these pencil portraits! It is especially fun if I know the person, as I do this dear friend of mine, Alisa. This portrait is based on a photo I took while we were in a wonderful coffee shop called Coffee Traders in Cochrane, Alberta. Cochrane is a small town nestled in a valley of the Bow River, and is just minutes away from the Rocky Mountains. I love visiting this little town, and it is especially great when I get to have coffee and discussion with a friend. Alisa had agreed to having her photo taken so that I could do her portrait. I think she will be pleased with the results. 

PORTRAIT in Pencil

This 11" x 14" portrait was picked up by the clients on Monday. As this pencil portrait is going to be given as a gift, they have asked that I not show it in its entirety until after they present it to the recipient. So I thought I would show you snippets instead. 

Right now is a good time to think about giving an original piece of art as a gift - perhaps for a Christmas present! Most artists have a time in the year that is less busy - and summer seems to be one of those times. That means if the artist has your commission, they can give your piece more attention than when they are in the crunch like just before Christmas! And most artists are willing to give you a good price - you might be surprised that your original piece competes quite well with the print you were thinking about buying. :-) 

COMMISSIONED PORTRAIT

I'm working on a commission of two beautiful little girls. Here you can see how the portrait progresses from the outline drawing through to the finished face. I think the new client will be pleased with the finished work, once it's done. 

More pencil portraits

Elizabeth
a second pencil portrait of this child.

This is a second pose of Elizabeth. Such great sparkly eyes!

PENCIL PORTRAIT OF ELIZABETH

Elizabeth
9 x 12" original pencil portrait

Last week I was delivering two paintings to one of my collectors. It was a beautiful sunny day, and we sat outside in the sun until a cool breeze came up, then we moved inside. Soon, her daughter, son-in-law, and their 4 kids arrived for an impromptu visit as they were bicycling in the neighbourhood. (They live about 2 miles from each other.)


Their oldest girl, Elizabeth, is a beautiful 8 year old with the biggest blue eyes ever! I happened to have my camera with me, so I convinced her to go outside with me so I could take a few photos of her in the sunlight, to practice my portrait drawing skills. I chose to do this pose, as the light was bouncing around on the planes of her face, and on the top of her head. The wind was blowing the loose strands of her hair, which I found quite wonderful.


 It was lots of fun to do this  pencil portrait as it is going to be a surprise gift for Elizabeth's grandmother. I know she is going to love it! And I think my skills are improving. 

A Child in Portrait

"Early One Morning"
original pencil portrait
9 x 12

This year I have had the unbelievable priviledge of having my daughter, her husband, and their 3 children live with my husband and me. The other morning, my only granddaughter was still at the breakfast table when everyone else had left. She is a slow eater most meals, and she was just sitting in the sunlight, enjoying the alone-time. I came into the kitchen from the studio, and immediately ran back to get my camera for a few photos. The lighting was amazing, and she just glowed as she sat there. I loved doing this portrait! Sydney is a beautiful girl, and I hope I captured her specialness in this portrait. When I asked her what I should name the drawing, she responded "Early One Morning" - which it was when the photo was taken.

ELLA - a pencil portrait

I thought you might like to see my process of drawing. This one is done strictly in pencil - no charcoal, no pastel, just pencil, and built on values.


Last summer, I took some photos of my nephew's beautiful wife, Ella. She has some of the most amazing features for drawing that I have seen. (Just my opinion, of course.)


I began with the eyes, as I needed to get them right, or nothing else would "flow" for me.

I then moved around the drawing, adding value to the face, then value against the face in the hair to get the correct tones on the places of the face.


Here you can see the photo I was working from on my drawing board.




I always put any photos I work from in plastic sleeves to protect them from my dirty fingers, or the paint that I inevitably splash on all surfaces close to where I work! I am not a tidy artist when I paint...








And here is the finished drawing - Ella.

Portrait in Pencil

Julie
original pencil portrait

Last fall, my friend Julie (who named our acreage "Narnia"), came to visit us. I convinced her to sit for a photo session, knowing that I wanted to do her portrait at some time. Well, that time came last week. I pulled out the photos I had taken, and chose this pose for the portrait. The sun was very bright, and so the shadows are really deep, and the brights are really light. I am very pleased with how this portrait turned out. The paper I used is Strathmore Windpower Smooth Bristol (acid free). I used only Staedtler Mars Lumograph pencils in values from 4H to 6B. I began with the eyes, then moved to the mouth and nose. As soon as these features were correct, it was "easy" to get the rest. The part that took the longest to do? The hair! Working in pencil meant I had to go over the hair again and again to get the darks really really dark. Who would have thought that? I hope you think "Julie" is as striking as I do...she is a beautiful woman inside and out.

Harley - a portrait in pencil

This is a portrait of one of my 4 grandsons. He is 5 years old and full of energy and enthusiasm for life. Everything is something to be learned and discussed. He has a heart of compassion even though he is so young - and he loves to help people.

This drawing was done as a gift to Harley's father, Chris, for his birthday.

If you would like a portrait done - either painted or in pencil, please contact me:

jogiesbrecht@gmail.com