Title: River Pebbles, No. 11

• Size: 6" x 6"
• Medium: Caran d'Ache Neocolor I and II, Prismacolor Premier Colored Pencils (Verithin and Softcore), Caran d'Ache Luminance Colored Pencils
• Miscellaneous: Tortillions, Paper Stumps, Caran d'Ache Blender, Colour Shapers
• Surface: Extra Fine Texture Canvas primed with several coats of clear Art Spectrum Colourfix Supertooth Primer
• Technique: Icarus Drawing Board
• Mounted on a 6" x 6" x 2" Ampersand Claybord and varnished
• To see how I mount and varnish my artwork please refer to my post on Glassless Framing.

The outline was accomplished with Prismacolor Verithin on the cool zone of the Icarus board.

After drawing the outline I proceeded to map the main colors with Neocolor artist crayons on the warm zone of the Icarus board using a low temperature.

For more on color mapping with artist crayons you can view the following videos:

• Exercises on Colourfix Paper - Layering Artist Crayons on Colourfix Paper
• Mussel Shell - Blocking in Colors with Artist Crayons

With temperature setting at maximum, I melted the artist crayons using clay shapers (also known as color shapers).

For more on melting artist crayons you can view the following videos:

• Exercise on Colourfix Paper - Melting Artist Crayon on Colourfix Paper
• Mussel Shell - Melting Artist Crayons

In the picture above you can see the two color shapers I used for melting and the wet sponge for cleaning. For easier cleaning I spray the surface of the wet sponge with a little Simple Green.

With the temperature set at medium I developed the colors, values and details of the pebbles by layering and blending colored pencils with a variety of tools like tortillions, paper stumps and a Caran d'Ache blender.

I finally mounted the canvas on a 2" thick Claybord and painted the sides with acrylic. The artwork is now ready for varnishing.

• Size: 17" x 15"
• Medium: wax-based media (oil pastel, artist crayon, colored pencil)
• Surface: Canvas primed with Art Spectrum Colourfix Supertooth primer
• Technique: Icarus Drawing Board
• Mounted on a 17" x 15" x 3/4" Ampersand Claybord, varnished and framed
• To see how I mount and varnish my artwork, please refer to my post on Glassless Framing.

Title: Crescendo

• Size: 17" x 10"
• Medium: wax-based media (oil pastel, artist crayon, colored pencil)
• Surface: Art Spectrum Colourfix Supertooth Board
• Technique: Icarus Drawing Board
• Mounted on a 17" x 10" x 3/4" Ampersand Claybord, varnished and framed
• To see how I mount and varnish my artwork, please refer to my post on Glassless Framing.

Title: River Pebbles, No. 10

• Size: 5" x 5"
• Medium: Prismacolor Premier Colored Pencils (Verithin and Softcore), Caran d'Ache Luminance Colored Pencils, Caran d'Ache Neocolor I and II, Olbein Oil Pastel.
• Miscellaneous: Clay Shaper, Tortillions & Paper Stumps, Prismacolor Colorless Blender.
• Surface: Art Spectrum Colourfix Supertooth Board
• Technique: Icarus Drawing Board
• Mounted on a 5" x 5" Ampersand Claybord (2" thick) and framed.
• To see how I mount and varnish my artwork, please refer to my post on Glassless Framing.

For techniques used in this artwork, please see blog post River Pebbles, No.3 - Melting Artist Crayons

When I look at a reference photo like the one above, the question I always ask myself is: where's Waldo?

Waldo, for an artist like me, is a good composition hidden in the randomness of nature. Even when I'm the one setting up the still life, I try not to interfere in the way pebbles fall into place. I just take many pictures while anticipating the game I will play later on my computer.

Waldo can be elusive at times. I have images taken years ago that never produced a single Waldo. But my ability to "see" is constantly evolving; I know there's a Waldo waiting to be found even in the most hopeless image.

Meet Waldo! I found him in the center of the image. Now that I have him, I want to show him off but, as you can see, he looks a little drab. Light and color will do magic.

Here's what he looks like in black and white.

Much better - Waldo is coming to life. I just lightened the top left quadrant and pushed the overall value contrast.

Now we're talking!

And here is my finished piece - in honor of Waldo of course!

Title: River Pebbles, No. 9

• Size: 5" x 5"
• Medium: Caran d'Ache Neocolor I and II, Prismacolor Premier Colored Pencils (Verithin and Softcore), Caran d'Ache Luminance Colored Pencils, Faber-Castell Polychromos Colored Pencils, Derwent Coloursoft Colored Pencils
• Miscellaneous: Clay Shaper, Prismacolor Colorless Blender, Tortillions & Paper Stumps
• Surface: Art Spectrum Colourfix Supertooth Board
• Technique: Icarus Drawing Board
• Mounted on a 5" x 5" Ampersand Claybord (1/8" thick) and framed.
• To see how I mount and varnish my artwork, please refer to my post on Glassless Framing.

For techniques used in this artwork, please see blog post River Pebbles, No.3 - Melting Artist Crayons

Title: River Pebbles, No. 8

• Size: 5" x 5"
• Medium: Caran d'Ache Neocolor I and II, Prismacolor Premier Colored Pencils (Verithin and Softcore), Caran d'Ache Luminance Colored Pencils, Faber-Castell Polychromos Colored Pencils, Derwent Coloursoft Colored Pencils
• Miscellaneous: Clay Shaper, Prismacolor Colorless Blender, Tortillions & Paper Stumps
• Surface: Art Spectrum Colourfix Supertooth Board
• Technique: Icarus Drawing Board
• Mounted on a 5" x 5" Ampersand Claybord (1/8" thick) and framed.
• To see how I mount and varnish my artwork, please refer to my post on Glassless Framing.

For techniques used in this artwork, please see blog post River Pebbles, No.3 - Melting Artist Crayons

Title: River Pebbles, No. 4

• Size: 5" x 5"
• Medium: Caran d'Ache Neocolor I and II, Prismacolor Premier Colored Pencil, Caran d'Ache Luminance Colored Pencil
• Miscellaneous: Tortillions
• Surface: Art Spectrum Colourfix Supertooth Board
• Technique: Icarus Drawing Board
• Mounted on a 5" x 5" Ampersand Claybord with 2" cradle (if you are interested in learning how I mount and varnish my artwork, you can read my post on Glassless Framing)

After drawing the outline with Verithin colored pencils on the cool zone of the Icarus Drawing Board, I proceeded to map the main colors of the project with Neocolor artist crayons on the cool zone.

For more on color mapping with artist crayons you can view the following videos:

• Exercises on Colourfix Paper - Layering Artist Crayons on Colourfix Paper
• Mussel Shell - Blocking in Colors with Artist Crayons

With temperature setting at maximum, I melted the artist crayons using a clay shaper (color shaper).

For more on melting artist crayons you can view the following videos:

• Exercise on Colourfix Paper - Melting Artist Crayon on Colourfix Paper
• Mussel Shell - Melting Artist Crayons

With the temperature set at medium I developed the colors, values and details of the orange pebble by layering colored pencils and blending them with a tortillion.

The blue pebbles were accomplished in the same manner as the orange pebble.

I finished the drawing by completing the red pebble in the same manner as the other pebbles.

Finally I cleaned up the drawing and emphasized the highlights with a white artist crayon. I like my signature to blend in and I can achieve that by using a sharp, white Verithin on the warm zone. It lightens the colors underneath just enough to make the letters visible without detracting from the art.

When I first started experimenting with heat I was always on the lookout for different tools that would work with my technique. I remember trying tortillions and disliking them. I found that I couldn't really use them by the long side of the point because they would leave indentations/ridges on the waxy pigments.

The paper stumps that I normally use for large artwork were too thick and soft for this small project. At the same time I was getting very frustrated with how inconsistent the various colorless blenders have been lately. Finally I decided to give the tortillion another try and, guess what? It works great! The point is very thin and sturdy, not as soft as the paper stump's, perfect for blending colored pencils. It's easy to clean with sandpaper and very inexpensive. If you're using it already, you're way ahead of me. If you're not, try one and you'll be pleased!

Title: River Pebbles, No. 3

• Size: 6" x 6"
• Medium: Caran d'Ache Neocolor I and II, Prismacolor Premier Colored Pencil, Caran d'Ache Luminance Colored Pencil
• Miscellaneous: Clay Shaper, Gray Paper Stumps
• Surface: Art Spectrum Colourfix Supertooth Board
• Technique: Icarus Drawing Board
• Mounted on a 6" x 6" Ampersand Claybord with 2" cradle (If you are interested in learning how I mount and varnish my artwork, you can read my post on Glassless Framing)

The outline was accomplished with Verithin Colored Pencils on the cool zone of the Icarus Drawing Board.

For more on color mapping with artist crayons you can view the following videos:

• Exercises on Colourfix Paper - Layering Artist Crayons on Colourfix Paper
• Mussel Shell - Blocking in Colors with Artist Crayons

Here you can see the pigment density needed to achieve complete paper coverage after melting.

With temperature setting at maximum, I begin melting the artist crayons with a clay shaper (or color shaper).

For more on melting artist crayons you can view the following videos:

• Exercise on Colourfix Paper - Melting Artist Crayon on Colourfix Paper
• Mussel Shell - Melting Artist Crayons

Artist crayons save me a lot of time. After they are melted, the paper becomes completely saturated with vibrant colors. The waxy pigments make an ideal substrate for layering colored pencils on top.

With temperature setting at medium, I finally layer and blend colored pencils to develop colors, values and details.

You can see a slideshow of this project on the following blog post: Slideshow of "River Pebbles, No. 3".

Title: River Pebbles, No. 3

• Size: 6" x 6"
• Medium: Caran d'Ache Neocolor I and II, Prismacolor Premier Colored Pencil, Caran d'Ache Luminance Colored Pencil
• Miscellaneous: Clay Shaper, Gray Paper Stumps
• Surface: Art Spectrum Colourfix Supertooth Board
• Technique: Icarus Drawing Board
• Mounted on a 6" x 6" Ampersand Claybord with 2" cradle
  (If you are interested in learning how I mount and varnish my artwork, you can read my post on Glassless Framing)

In my follow-up post of River Pebbles, No. 3, I will show you how I used Neocolor Artist Crayons with heat.

I've just posted the five part video series "Four River Pebbles" to our Icarus Art YouTube Channel. It's a collection of 57 video clips from my 2010 CPSA workshop "Wax and Heat, a Match Made in Heaven".

This project, which was accomplished on white Stonehenge paper with Prismacolor Colored Pencils and Caran d'Ache Neocolor II Artist Crayons, is divided into the following five sequential playlists:

1. Beige Pebble
2. Green Pebble
3. Yellow Pebble
4. Red Pebble
5. Shadows and Water

For my workshop attendees this is a great opportunity to review the techniques learned in Santa Clara, California. For everybody else it's like taking a workshop for free. All voiced-over video clips are available in high definition and come with a downloadable supply list, an outline of the project, and an image of the finished project.

I hope you will enjoy practicing and/or learning the Icarus technique. You are always welcomed to post comments and ask questions either on this blog or on our YouTube Channel.