Colored Pencil Portraits
by Ann Kullberg
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Book Summary Information
Author: Ann KullbergEdition: Paperback
Audio: English (Unknown); English (Original Language); English (Published)
Published: 2005-01-29
ISBN: 1581806396
Number of pages: 128
Publisher: North Light Books
Book Reviews of Colored Pencil Portraits
Book Review: You Can Do This!
Summary: 5 Stars
Hats off to Ann Kullberg as an artist and a teacher. I learned to paint colored pencil portraits using this book. I will not say I have NO experience with colored pencils. Many years ago, my mother, who is an artist mostly in water color, took a class in photorealistic pet portraits. She liked it and showed me how to do a project: cat's eyes. THAT'S ALL of my experience with colored pencil previous to Kullberg's book. After reading Kulberg's books, I am turning out colored pencil people that are impressing family and friends. In fact, I am surprising even myself. I look at a picture I've done and think, "Wow! I can't believe I did that!"
Chapter 1 is Getting Started, where Kullberg shows the materials the colored pencil artist needs. Kullberg uses 23 different colors to create skin tones, and roughly 80 colors altogether. At $1.50-$2.00 each (depending on where you buy them--my local art supply sells them less expensively than the national craft chain), pencils are the main expense. I'm using 19 colors for skin tones. She gives a great trick for using your pencils right down to the nubbins.
Chapter 2 is Composing a Portrait. Here, Kullberg gives general guidelines for good composition and cropping. She also gives several ways to capture images if you are not a good freehand drawer. Using reference photos, you can trace, draw with a grid, or use a slide projector and 35mm slide. (To become a better freehand drawer, and artist in general, who can beat Betty Edwards' "Drawing on the Right Side of the Brain"?)
Chapter 3, Seeing the Light, is about using deep contrast to capture the play of light. Kullberg uses her older work as an example of "what not to do." Funny thing is, as a viewer, I totally disagree with her assessment. I much prefer her older work. I find it painterly, intimate, and quiet; less photographic than the style she settled on. My feeling is, if I want to see photorealism, I'll look at a photo! Still, my taste aside, the reader does learn how to render very strong light. Kullberg is a Pacific Northwesterner, and as a former Pacific Northwesterner, I can well understand her obsession with sunlight. She paints squintingly bright portraits, I moved to Albuquerque.
In Chapter 4, the reader learns about Creating Believable Skin Tones. This is a very detailed chapter with excellent advice for accurate rendering. It includes sections on Black and Asian skin tones, but you are on your own for Mediterranean skin tones. Still, the general principles apply. I don't follow her same technique exactly, but used it as a springboard for a--what shall I say?--more seat-of-the-pants process. She is very affirming as a teacher, and would encourage any student to discover what works best for them.
Chapter 5 is Painting Features and the Face. There are sections for the mouth, the ear, the nose and the eyes. She shows two step-by-step examples of how and in what order one might paint a face.
Cahpter 6 is Painting Hair. She says, "It's really not as difficult as you might think." How right she is! There are sections on dark hair, light brown hair, blond hair, red hair, curly hair, kinky hair, and the crew cut (which also works for stuffed animal fur).
Chapter 7 gives directions for Painting Fabric, from solid cotton, patterns and plaids, to denim, polished fabrics and knits.
Chapter 8 is Putting It All Together. She gives two examples of a painting sequences for complete portraits. She also gives advice for those who would like to develop a business of commissioned portraits, as she has done, including advice on pricing.
If you want to learn to paint people in corored pencil, you will not be disappointed in this book. How do you know if colored pencil would be an enjoyable medium for you? You will like colored pencil of you are obsessive about detail, and don't mind projects that move very slowly. A well-sharpened pencil point will not have many brushes that can rival it in fineness.
Summary of Colored Pencil Portraits
Portraits not only capture a likeness, but offer for generations to come a glimpse into the subject's life. Sounds like quite a challenge. But with Ann Kullberg's help, it's not as difficult as you might think to create lifelike colored pencil portraits.Using her own beautiful portraiture for instruction and inspiration, Kullberg walks you through the process step by step—from basic information about materials and techniques to two demonstrations that show how complete portraits come together from beginning to end.
You'll learn how to:
- choose the right tools and master basic techniques
- compose a portrait—examples show right and wrong ways to do it
- use light to create mood in your portraits
- create a range of rich, believable skin tones
- paint the face—step-by-steps of eyes, mouth, nose and ears make it easy
- paint realistic-looking clothing—step-by-step demos show you how to paint denim, velvet and other fabrics
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