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Using colored pencils is not like people imagine. It is not like a child using crayons, merely coloring between the lines. There are many facets to the use of colored pencils.  What I have learned studying with Mark, is that the creation of the work begins with your choice of the color of the paper.

The color of the paper can be used as part of the work. The paper can blend in with the work, or serve as a color contrast, or complement for it. The color of the paper used for the background of the work is important when doing portraits. I have worked on portraits - of various races and the color of the paper can make the person look real and life-like, or the wrong color choice for the skin tone can make working on a portrait very difficult.

Colored pencil also involves layering of various shades of color to get the right effect. Skin tones and shadows can have many layers. In order to get the proper light on a subject, the shading of the picture needs to be laid down first. Mark has taught me how to do portraits of children so that they don’t look like they are little adults.

Mark has given me the confidence to try anything in colored pencils. I have done portraits, animals -including underwater scenes, and have also drawn many of the orchids and roses that I grow. Mark has taught me how to draw the textures of various materials, and metals with their sheen.

The best thing about colored pencils is, you can take them with you when you travel, can work on them in confined spaces and they are not messy, like other media.

 -Lee Schonher