A Turkey Illustration for a Children's Magazine

Creating children's illustrations for Sparkle magazine is always a lot of fun! Here is a final illustration for the November issue, under-painting in gouache with pastel pencils:

The Process:

 The Thumbnail Sketch:

The Rough:

Figuring out the Gesture:

Under-painting:

And, almost done!

I always lose my seat...

Thanks for stopping by my blog!

"Letort Morning" - Pastel by Cheryl Kugler

A small, but talented group of artists from CALC (Carlisle Arts Learning Center) have been getting together once a month. In June, we spent a Saturday morning sketching out at Letort Spring Park in Carlisle, PA.  Here's the outcome and a few "behind the scenes" photos from my sketch pad.

Final Painting:
"Letort Morning", Pastel over watercolor, 11" x 15"

"Letort Morning", Pastel over watercolor, 11" x 15" by Cheryl Kugler

Reference Photo:

Rough Sketch on Location:




















Back in the Studio:
The art critic weighs in.

Thanks for stopping by the blog. See you next time!

Painting the Delicate Delphinium

A delphinium is hard to grow. I know. I've tried. So, when my client wanted a painting of a delphinium I knew they'd be a bit hard to find out in a garden. But, I found one and painted it. Let's take a look at the process!

The Finished Painting:
The petals are delicate. The morning sun created back lighting and interesting shadows on the thin flower petals.

Delicate Delphinium by Cheryl Kugler, 30" x 30", oil on canvas

The Composition:
Working from photos I took out in the garden, I began working on the composition in art class at the York Art Association.

Roughing in Colors:
Oh, to me this is the ugly phase of painting!

Making an Adjustment:
After blocking in color and beginning to work the painting, a glaring empty space existed in the center of the flower that wasn't as obvious in the sketch phase. The solution -- add an extra blossom.

Painting, Painting, Painting:

One last peek...

Commissioned paintings are always welcome! Let's talk.

Thanks for stopping by.

A Flower-Loving Golden Retriever: Creating the Illustration

A client asked me to paint an illustration of her adorable golden retriever. My approach is to develop a scene that represents the personality of the pet and reflects interests of the owner.

It just so happens the owner enjoys colorful flowers and this beautiful golden has a quirky habit of pulling colorful summer blooms out of their planters! So began the idea of the illustration. Here's more on my creative process.

The Reference Photos:
My client provided me with several, yet I seemed to gravity toward this one.

The Rough Sketch:

A Tighter Sketch, with whimsy:

An Adjustment:
The flowers are now in a pot versus growing directly from the ground.

A Close-Up:

Considering Flower Color Combos:

My Client Selected Pink! (yay!!!)

Painting:
Under-painting in gouache then color-building with Prismacolor pencils.

"Abigail and the Flowers", gouache and colored pencil, 5" x 7", by Cheryl Kugler

Shop For It:
Shop in my online artist store for super fun products adorned with this illustration such as quality cards, prints, plates, napkins, cutting boards and more. Find it here: Cheryl Kugler Artist Shop

Another sketch idea my client and I were kicking around because her dog loves belly rubs too... (maybe next time!)

Thanks for stopping by my art blog. Hope to see you here again soon!

Brrrrr....Chill!

"Without having experienced the cold of winter, one cannot appreciate the warmth of Spring." ~Chinese Proverb

It was 5 degrees F here in Central Pennsylvania this morning! Hope you are staying warm in your world.

Photo taken along the Appalachian Trail in the Cumberland Valley, Central Pennsylvania.

Thanks for stopping by~

5-Day Art Challenge - DAY 5

Hello Everyone! Today is DAY 5 of the 5-Day Facebook Art Challenge. (But, why let Facebook have all of the fun? That's why I'm posting it here, too). A warm thank you to Debbie Lamey MacDonald, a Nova Scotia artist, for nominating me.

For today’s post, I am sharing with you several commissioned pieces – two fine art paintings and two pet illustrations.

The Dogwood Blossom painting is a 30” x 30”, oil on canvas, painted from photographs that I took at a local nursery. I am super pleased with the oil paints by M. Graham that are based with walnut oil and offer such vibrancy.

The painting of delphiniums is a work-in-progress that I am painting right now for a client. It’s 30” x 30”, oil on canvas. Again, I am using my own reference photos that I took over the summer. Not only are delphiniums difficult to grow, they are difficult to find to photograph! 

My pet illustration, Cake Cats, was a pet illustration commission from last year. My client provided photos of her daughter’s cats and gave me a list of interest of her daughter and son-in-law. Her daughter loves to make cakes, loves Gerber daisies and her son-in-law is a Bills fan. In-progress photos and sketches of this project can be seen on my website. Gouache and colored pencil on vellum, 5” x 7”.

The Santa and dog illustration was a pet commission for a past Christmas card. The client provided photos of her mixed breed hound. Gouache and colored pencil on vellum, 5” x 5”. You can read about the process of drawing this illustration, here: http://cherylkugler.blogspot.com/2009/12/illustrating-dog-gone-cute-christmas.html

On my last day of this challenge, I nominate TatyanaStarikova, a talented illustrator who I met during a workshop at Highlights Foundation called “Mastering the Picture Book”.

5-Day Art Challenge - DAY 4

Hello Everyone! Today is DAY 4 of the 5-Day Facebook Art Challenge. (But, why let Facebook have all of the fun? That's why I'm posting it here too!) A warm thank you to Debbie Lamey Macdonald, a Nova Scotia artist, for nominating me.

Today, my artwork post is all about transformations. In addition to painting, illustrating, and photography, I am also a decorative painter transforming old cabinetry and furniture to new again.  You can read an article that appeared in The Patriot News this past Fall, here: http://www.pennlive.com/living/index.ssf/2014/09/a_hummelstown_womans_home_is_h.html

So, the decorative painting projects I’m sharing are:

A Kitchen: transformed from stained cabinetry and grey tile floor TO a beautifully distressed white cabinetry and terra cotta floor. Yes, the floor was painted, too! I can’t say enough about the quality and adherence of Caromal Colours paints. But, please ask me about ‘em!

A Bathroom: transformed from blah, sponged, 80’s blue to a Zen masterpiece using Pure Earth Paints.

A Sideboard: Transformed from a primitive brick red to a gorgeous French Country cream with gilded highlights.

Find out more about decorative painting transformations on this page on my website: http://www.cherylkugler.com/interiors-and-furniture.html

Today I am nominating Evelyn McCorristin Peters to participate in the challenge. A talented fine artist dedicated to the humane treatment and placement of boxers!

5-Day Artwork Challenge - DAY 3

Hello Everyone! Today is DAY 3 of the 5-Day Facebook Art Challenge. (But, why should Facebook have all of the fun?  That's why I'm posting it here too!) A warm thank you to Debbie Lamey Macdonald, a Nova Scotia artist, for nominating me.

Today I am posting samples of illustrations I have created for a national children’s magazine, Sparkle – a publication of GEMS Girls Clubs. It is an inspiring, spiritual and sweet publication aimed at young girls ages 6-10. I always enjoy receiving the story text from the publication designer along with thoughtful direction from her and then figuring out a composition that will depict an important event in the story.

Today I am nominating Marie LeVan Lick to participate in the artist challenge. She is an incredibly talented chocolate artist and owner of Two-Nuts Confections. Her creative and delectable confections are amazing!

5-Day Art Challenge - DAY 2

Hello Everyone! This is DAY 2 of the Facebook art challenge posting 3 artworks each day over 5 days. (No sense in Facebook having all of the fun, so I'm posting it here, too!) Warm thanks to Debbie Lamey MacDonald, a Nova Scotia artist, for nominating me.

 

In my world, pets are family. And, there's nothing I  love more to photograph is capturing the relationship of a person and their animal companions.

 

Capturing a natural interaction, not a forced hug or holding a dog still, is tricky though. While a person can be directed to smile and look at the camera, a pet is easily distracted by its surroundings. So, photos like this usually require me to take a series of candid, quick shots....hoping to capture that one photo that works. The one photo where the composition works, the expression on both the person and pet is natural, and the pet's gesture is relaxed.

 

The first photo, taken for a class project, is of my niece and her lopped-eared rabbit. Can you tell that she adores her?

 

The second photo, taken during a shoot for senior pictures, was shot beside a local lake. The quacking and honking of ducks and geese, and the scurrying of squirrels in the Fall leaves couldn't have been more of a distraction for this happy dog. At least 20 shutter clicks and this one materialized where both subjects are in perfect post.

 

The third photo was taken randomly at North Myrtle Beach this past July. As I was walking the beach at sunrise with my camera, a young gentleman stepped up to the surf with his beautiful golden retriever then started walking along the water. Had I asked him if I could take his picture, I am sure he would have stopped what he was doing and stooped to hug the dog and look at the camera...creating a forced, posed photo. Instead, I said nothing and started clicking my camera as he saunters along the low tide with his dog happily trotting along with him. My only regret is that I didn't catch up with him to get his contact information. I'd love the opportunity to send him the photo, so if you recognize him, please put us in touch with each other!

 

You can't always wait for what you think are the best conditions for a photo. The rabbit photo was taken in early spring, the grass just beginning to show signs of  green -- not the optimal bright Spring green you'd expect. Yet the bright purple shirt and sweet expressions still carry the photo despite any brown grass.

 

The second photo was take in late Fall after many of the leaves had already fallen. A teens incredibly busy schedule and a soggy Fall hampered scheduling. I began to question whether I was even going to get a good Fall photo for the family. In late afternoon, with about 1/2 hour of descent sunlight remaining, the sycamore tree in the background provided the perfect composition.

 

The third photo, well, it was pure luck. The low tide and early morning cloud cover just happened. I was at the right place and the right time. No planning. *click*

 

So, the one person I know that knows the camera better than anyone I know (did I say "know" enough?), is Patrick Early, so I nominate Patrick to participate in the 5-day Facebook art challenge!

5-Day Art Challenge - DAY 1

Hello Everyone! 
This is DAY 1 of the Facebook art challenge of posting 3 paintings a day over 5 days. (Why let Facebook have all of the fun?...that's why I'm sharing it here, too!). Warm thanks to Debbie Lamey MacDonald, a Nova Scotia artist for nominating me. 

Today, I'm sharing with you a series of paintings I created on a week-long painting and bookbinding experience during a week in March called Creativity Unbound in Treasure Beach, Jamaica. Throughout the week, a small, talented and enthusiastic group of artists created small paintings in watercolor and/or acrylics on the grounds of the Calabash House mentored by artist Paul King, then crafted intricate books under the expertise of master book-binder, Bridget Morris of Bella Forte Bookbinding and Letterpress. 

Imagine the eye-candy we feasted upon as we left a cold and snowy, cabin-fever-felt Pennsylvania March and arrived in the quaint Jamaican seaside town full of warm sun, blue ocean and vibrant blossoms. I think I could of stayed a month! 


My childhood friend, Bridget Morris, coordinated the incredible week and so I'm nominating Bridget to share in the 5-day FB art challenge to share the amazing craft of her bookbinding and letterpress business.

Thanks for stopping by!