Thursday, March 25, 2010

Growth

Hi Peeps!

I have a little something different to share with you today, hope it interests you.

I get a lot of compliments on how I colour up an image - thank you very much to those who say so!  In fact thank you to all who have left nice comments!

But I have not always coloured the way I do today.  And I'm not speaking of my kindergarten days either!  For many years, I considered myself an artist because I loved to draw with a pencil or pen.  But even though I could always draw well, I did not know the first thing about colour and how to apply it, or what colours worked well together.  Most of my art was in black and white -- for years!

I started drawing images for High Hopes back in 2005.  These were large open images that begged for some colour to bring them to life.  I wanted to colour them up and make cards with them. But I was stumped!  I did not know what to do!

I struggled SO much for that first year or two.  I tried markers and coloured pencils and water colour paint. No matter what I tried, I struggled!

For the first year or more, this was my routine:  Stamp off an image one DOZEN times.  Start colouring the first one.  Chuck it out.  The second.  Chuck.  The third.  Chuck again.  I would be so unhappy with my colouring that usually the first ten or eleven would go to CHUCK!  And let me tell you, Chuck wasn't giving me any compliments for the job I did either! LOL

Now I am going to show you one of the first cards I ever made with one of the first images I ever drew for High Hopes Rubber Stamps.  (gulp, swallows pride) No, my grandchild did not colour this.  I did.  Keep in mind this was the copy I felt was good enough to make into a card.  All ten or twelve of my previous tries had gone to chuck.


Now I am not saying this is terrible.  I'm just saying, I have grown.  And we all do grow, as artists and card makers.  If you are constantly making cards, week after week, you cannot help but grow and improve your skills.  It is bound to happen, just for the sheer repetition and practice you are doing!

I am posting this because I want to encourage anybody who thinks they can't learn to colour well.  If a colour challenged artist like me can do it, so can you.  All it takes is the determination to keep colouring, ask questions, study your mentor's work, and keep your mind open to learn new things.

I used to go to the gallery of an artist who I thought could colour really well, click on one of their cards, and put it up nice and big on my computer screen.  Then I would stare at it and study it for a long time.  I would keep it up on my screen, and then go and try to mimic what I saw.  This exercise really helped me a lot!  There were two galleries that I studied more than anyone else's: Jerri Kay and Anna Wight.  You can see that even they have grown, if you go back to their galleries on SCS and look at what they did at first too.

I picked their brains about their art work on more than one occasion and made friends with them in the process.  And I am happy to say that they are still dear friends to me.  Hugs to you Anna and Jerri!! xo  I still bow in your general direction!! ;-)

If you have stayed with me til the end, bless you and thank you for taking the time to read my post.

I hope you were encouraged to keep growing as artists!

Hugs,

Crissy

22 comments:

  1. Thanks for sharing that! I enjoyed reading it. It would have been cool to see you take that same image and color it in now to see the difference from then and now! I love your work! hugs, Angela

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  2. Crissy,
    There's hope for me yet!!! You are my Anna Wight & Jerri Kay!! Thanks for putting so much time into what you share with us. I have learned so much from you over the past year and I am glad we too became friends. Thanks for sharing your earlier work--who knows some day it may be auctioned off at Sotheby's for 1000's of dollars??? :) Ha ha! I would bid!!

    Blessings & Hugs,

    Sarah

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  3. Thanks for sharing! Your coloring and your images are fabulous!

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  4. I can't tell you how much I appreciate you posting this. You've given me immense hope that some day I may color as well as you. Thank you for providing me inspiration.
    Hugs,
    Kristina

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  5. Excellent advice as we all know that Anna and Jerri are favorites! I just knew that if I bought Tombow markers I would be able to color like Jerri . . . Hah! that was a joke!

    Your work is always excellent and yes, you have grown . . . KUDOS!

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  6. wow..so glad u brought this up! WEIRD..I just got home from my art class taught by one of the best..she told me the SAME thing TONITE! GREAT ADVICE!!! :)

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  7. I want to thank you for this post. Not only for the encouragement that, yes, growth is always possible, but for the links to color gurus. I've been to both and WOW. Jerri just blew me right out of the water. I love her style and her things are just stunning. Not sure I've got that much patience! Anna also has some incredible work, not to mention chickens! Anyhow I'll keep working at it and maybe I can grow up to be more like you 3!
    Thanks,
    R/

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  8. BIG HUGS!!! Crissy, you're the best! You inspire me! :)

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  9. Thank you for sharing. If you can grow, then I still have scope to grow..I may still have some hope to color, if only half as good as you..

    thanks!

    Tejal

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  10. Thanks so much for sharing this with us today, yes it does encourage me to keep on trying. Hugs xxx

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  11. I think it's awesome that you would share this Crissy...it's a perfect card with fine coloring. But it's really neat to see how far you've come as an artist...it makes me want to go back and look at my own stuff. I hate looking at old work but it really does make you proud of what you've accomplished! :)

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  12. Crissy, I think it is wonderful that you posted this! Thank you for being willing to share your "growth" as a colourist with everbody. How very encouraging!

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  13. Thank you so much for sharing this, Crissy. I've been making cards for over two years and I still feel like I can't color :) I think your tips are great tips and all I can do is practice and practice and hope to get better :)
    Big Hugs, Christine

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  14. Thanks for sharing; what great information and I had to chuckle...I've done that same thing; seen an amazing image, brought it up on my computer screen and just stared at it! :D

    Thanks for all the inspiration; your work is amazing!

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  15. you are so right Crissy, I think everyone who sticks with it improves and finds the coloring medium they are good with. I think a lot of us just find it so hard to believe that anyone who can draw as wonderfully as you do doesn't just have coloring come naturally!

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  16. Dear Crissy,
    I sat reading absolutely spellbound & knowing that I was being spoken to & encouraged. Thank you so so much for sharing.
    Have a lovely weekend
    Paula

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  17. So inspirational, Crissy!! I bow to you & your fabulous coloring....I've learned a lot from you!!

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  18. oh hun, what a fantastic post, you are such an inspiration to us all, many thanks for sharing! have a great weekend, hugs Debx

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  19. I love this post honey, and you are so right, in fact i have been down about my colouring skills for a while now to the point i was almost giving up, but after reading this you are right my first tries was pants and all ended up in the bin, like you i threw heaps away before i found one i was happy with, this is so encouraging, thank you for sharing, big hugs Pops x x x

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  20. Hello Crissy,
    Thanks for sharing your story! When I became interested in making cards, I was (and still am) in love with the High Hope Stamps because they were easier to color. I would stare at you pieces of art and wonder what am I doing wrong? Why can't I do this or that and sometimes would even cry in frustration. I'm almost embarrassed at the cards I posted a few years ago, but I was learning and still am. I have always been inspired by your cards and always will be! Thanks for sharing all of your Copic Marker tips and tricks. I might not always leave a comment but I am definitely hanging on to every word!
    Take care and have a beautiful day!
    hugs
    Risa:)

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  21. very inspiring story, thanks for sharing
    x

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  22. Aww thanks for sharing this, Crissy! You give me hope, lol :)

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