In this video Denise Howard, a signature member of the Colored Pencil Society of America, demonstrates a variety of techniques and materials used to create beautiful realistic colored pencil drawings.

At minute 18:30 Denise kindly talks about the Icarus Drawing Board and how it affects wax-based colored pencil. This video is very informative to all colored pencil artists, from beginners to advanced. 

If you want to see Denise Howard's amazing artwork, please visit her website: http://www.denisejhowardart.com/

Thank you, Denise!

Yesterday I hosted my third open studio which was attended by four wonderful artists. We had a great time playing with the Icarus board, experimenting with various surfaces and mediums, and talking about different subjects, from priming canvas to editing photos. 

​Time always flies during these casual gatherings. A workshop would definitely be an opportunity to dwell deeply into the Icarus technique. Unfortunately my spring workshop had to be postponed due to other commitments. But a fall one is in the works and it will be here before we know it.

Stay tuned for my next open studio announcement.

Happy spring!

Recently I sold the last available original in my rock and water series, "Crescendo". Its new home is in Washington State.

Clearly this series has a wider appeal than my flowers so I will continue with colorful riverbeds. 

The first one of the two artworks I just started is a large commission, a 24" x 48" canvas.

Below you can see a faint outline. I will show only cropped progress images and allow my collector to see the finished work first.

The second artwork I recently started is a medium size canvas, 12" x 24". This riverbed is very intriguing to me; it's moodier and more abstract than my previous ones, showing plenty of water movement and unusual reflections. 

Below you can see a photo of the initial outline and another one with some progress.

Both canvases are primed with Art Spectrum Pastel and Multimedia Primer (Colourfix) and I will be using a combination of Neocolors, oil pastels and colored pencils on the Icarus board.

Stay tuned for progress photos.

I'm thrilled that "River Pebbles, No. 12" sold yesterday to an amazing collector in Florida. 

After spraying the canvas with Golden MSA Spray Varnish, gloss, I mounted it on a 6" x 6" x 2" Claybord using this method: http://esterroi.com/blog/post/2011/10/canvas-and-the-icarus-board-final-post

Then I painted the Claybord's sides with acrylic. It's now ready for the final varnish, Golden Polymer Varnish with UVLS, gloss. I will varnish it tomorrow because I want the acrylic to be completely dry.

This artwork is now for sale on my website: http://esterroi.com/artwork/view/rocks-water/river-pebbles-no.-12

Title: River Pebbles, No. 12

• Size: 6" x 6"
• Medium: Prismacolor Premier Colored Pencils (Verithin and Softcore), Caran d'Ache Luminance Colored Pencils
• Tools: Tortillions, Paper Stumps
• Surface: Extra Fine Texture Canvas primed with several coats of clear Art Spectrum Colourfix 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.

In this step I blocked-in the main colors on the warm zone with very low heat, just enough to soften the waxy pigments.

After setting the temperature control at medium, I began adding pigment until the canvas was completely covered. I then blended the colors with a tortillon or a paper stump.

I really enjoyed this piece. However, now that it's finished, I wish I made it larger. The swirls of colors would have looked even better on a 12" x 12". It probably would have taken me the same amount of time had I incorporated wax pastels (Neocolors).

I just mounted the canvas on a 6" x 6" x 2" Claybord. Soon I can varnish it, photograph it, and put it for sale on my website.

My next open studio will be Saturday, March 22nd, from 9:00 AM to 12:00 PM, four spaces available.

This is an opportunity to meet and share your artwork in progress, ask questions, watch me demonstrate the Icarus technique and try the Icarus board.

I will have boards set-up for all attendees, plus some basic supplies and refreshments. To sign up please email me at: [email protected].

This event is on a first-come, first-served basis, and if you don't make this one there will be more announced regularly on this blog and on Facebook.

Please bring:

your artwork, finished or in progress
your questions​
your curiosity
​
I'm looking forward to seeing you on March 22nd!

Great news! I had a wonderful article written on Arch2O.com, a website that reviews and critiques architecture, urbanism, art, and design.

The writer, Aiysha Alsane, says: "Ester Roi’s success lies in how she shares her discoveries with an audience: using a unique technique, she helps the audience see an everyday phenomenon in a refined and new light... Her pieces are studies of phenomena she has observed in nature, an interaction of two objects, a solid and fluid, yet her paintings transport the viewer to a different world. I, personally, won’t ever see the union of rocks and water the same again."

For the full article please visit Arch2O.com

Parisian artist, Amylee, shares the "Top 10 Best Artists to Follow in 2014" (Les 10 artistes peintres à suivre en 2014).

I'm honored to be one of them! 

Visit her blog post to see who the other artists are.

Title: Beneath the Blue
Size: 15" x 20" - after framing 26" x 31"
Medium: Prismacolor Premier, Caran d'Ache Luminance, Derwent Coloursoft, Faber-Castell Polychromos colored pencils
Tools: tortillions and paper stumps
Surface: Art Spectrum Colourfix Supertooth board
Technique: Icarus Drawing Board
Presentation: mounted on a 3/4" Ampersand Claybord, varnished and framed

Getting back to flowers after a long hiatus was exhilarating. As you can see, Beneath the Blue, as all my flower paintings, is depicting a daisy below the water surface.

Here's an excerpt from my artist statement that gives you some insight on my vision: "Water transforms everything it touches: hard lines become soft, warm colors cool, solid shapes break down into parts. Realism evolves into abstraction and the ordinary becomes extraordinary. The interplay between these realms is an endless source of inspiration for me."

For original and giclee information please click here.