Ryn Shell's Blog, page 6

A Visual Diary

Mare and Foal commissioned equine drawing by Ryn Shell Will you start a sketch or visual diary with me?

Would it sound crazy claim that drawing was never one of my great skills, while sharing this image? The thing is, I allowed two weeks to complete a work such as this. I'm a painter rather than a sketcher. I'm not a quick sketch artist. 

So returning to using a visual diary feels foreign. But, I'm going to do that—starting now. Will you join me?

A visual diary.

Keeping a visual diary helps you resolve and develop your ideas and can act as a memory bridge. Drawing is both visual and idea orientated. You need both. I've always thought ideas out best with a pencil and paper in my hand.  I explain things best with diagrams and words.


Three pencil types, 3H, B and 3BArtist’s pencils are made from an inner core of graphite (not lead) and they are of a superior quality to the average pencil used for schools, offices and home use. Expect to pay around $4. to $10. for a single high-quality artist’s pencil, (2019 Australian prices), if you wish to work with the best tools. An example of a pencil line drawing sketch is this Italian Landscape by Salvatore Rosa, 1615 - 1673 Drawing of young girl by Ryn ShellThe inner graphite core usually referred to as the ‘lead’, comes in various degrees of hardness, from the extremely  hard, 9H (more often used by draftspersons than artists), through to a very soft , dark and easily smudged, 6B, more suited to a painterly blended style of drawing by fine artists. See my portrait of Leanne above and this portrait of Sean and son David, below. Drawing of Young Father and son by Ryn ShellBoth these works relied on the use of a 2B easy to erase pencil for the initial construction lines, a 2H to clearly mark the drawing once I was certain of the positioning of features then the shading was produced using a full range of the softest and most easily blended of the pencil grades.  I consider this a painting once I move into the soft graphite pencil stage and away from the hard pencil line drawing, hard graphite pencil sketch stage. Sketch of old farm buildings by Ryn ShellSketches in Watercolour pencil by Ryn Shell of an an old homestead an the base of the Warrumbungle Mountains. Sketch of old dunny and farm buildings by Ryn ShellThe hard graphite makes a paler grey mark and the softer the graphite is the darker it is and usually the thicker the inner core, as thin soft cores break easily.

The extremes of 9H and 6B require the most skill to use so the average art student will find the grades of 3H, B and 3B the ideal to learn with and these are the grades most often used by the artist when sketching.

In the home, school and office the HB pencil, the one centered between the degrees of hardness and softness, is considered the most versatile.  Interestingly artists rarely work with the common HB pencil.  You may enjoy experimenting with the grades on either side of the standard, HB and you will love the feel of a quality artist’s pencil in your hands.  I use Bruynzeel,  design pencils as my preferred choice.

Close-up photography of nature.

Bee in Eucalyptus Blossom, Art Journal spread by Ryn ShellTo Make a Prairie by Emily Dickenson

"To make a prairie it takes a clover and one bee,
One clover, and a bee.
And revery.
The revery alone will do,
If bees are few."

I can recall, reluctantly, learning this poem in school. Although I loved poetry, this fell flat back then because I had no idea what this reverie business was.
Working through the photos I took with my new-second hand lens and I cannot believe the close up quality. Become a Patron!Rare White Sparrow in Ryn Shell Original Artwork
​from Reference Photo by Dawn Duty of View of a Pixie PhotographyI have been told that white sparrows signal good luck and if you soo one you should make a wish. I'll wish for the bird's survival, for many don't survive. As they lack pigmentation, they also lack the ability to camouflage themselves well against predators—unless they are in a snowscape. They might also be rejected by parents and potential mates. 
The images I was given permission to pain came from talented photographer Dawn Duty of View of a Pixie Photography. The bird has Leucistic traits.  Dark eyes and wing markings differentiate this sparrow from the albino.  In the video, I'd created of my painting this bird in pastel, I'd originally drafted in a pair to paint. Then, when I researched the birds and found out how rare it was, I changed the painting to feature only the one bird.  Leucism (/ˈluːsɪzəm, -kɪz-/) is a condition in which there is partial loss of pigmentation in an animal resulting in white, pale, or patchy coloration of the skin, hair, feathers, scales or cuticle, but not the eyes. It is occasionally spelled leukism.

Albinism is a condition in which there is an absence of melanin, which gives color to the skin, feathers, hair and eyes. Vertebrates with albinism are not only white (or sometimes pale yellowish) in color but they also have very pale eyes, often pink or red in color as the blood vessels show through. This is the lens that took these photos today. That bee picture is amazing. It is clearer than my eyes focus on the bee.I'm having fun creating original artwork from this flowering gum and bee.